Dance the Tide
by Cat929
Summary: William Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet meet when they collide on a beach on Cape Cod. Though their immediate dislike for each other is strong, they soon begin to realize that first impressions aren't always true. **Just a note, I will be pulling this story from this site around the first of September 2015, but you can still find it at The Meryton Assembly. Thank you for your support.**
1. Chapter 1

**8/1/15 - Just a note: Due to a surge in cases of story theft from fan fiction websites such as this, I will be pulling _'Dance the Tide'_ and _'Sanctuary'_ from this site on or around the first of September, 2015. My new story (currently being written), _'An Unexpected Harvest,'_ will likely not be posted here, but you can find it and my other two stories at The Meryton Assembly, another fan fiction website that I feel is better protected and moderated (I am cat0967 there). Sadly, there are too many who are willing to take what isn't rightfully theirs and claim it as such. Thank you for your support.**

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><p>"<em><strong>Too many times we stand aside and let the waters slip away<strong>_

_**'Til what we put off 'til tomorrow has now become today**_

_**So don't you sit upon the shoreline and say you're satisfied**_

_**Choose to chance the rapids and dare to dance the tide."**_

_**Dance The Tide**_

**Part 1**

**Chapter 1**

Elizabeth Bennet took a deep breath, inhaling the salty air and smiling up into the sun. It was mid-May, and it felt like spring had finally arrived on Cape Cod after a long, rainy April. Here at the beach in New Seabury, though, there was still a slight chill in the air.

Pulling her sweater tighter around her, she turned to the raucous group that had followed her out of the inn and down to the beach. It was obvious that the wedding party hadn't waited until the reception to indulge in some champagne.

She clapped her hands several times to get their attention. "Okay everyone, let's get some pretty photos so you can all get back to the party."

She proceeded to arrange the beautiful bride and her groom, along with their wedding party, into a picture-perfect group pose. She snapped several shots with her digital camera, as well as several with her 35mm. The scenery was perfect; a gorgeous sunny day, white sand, and a calm blue ocean.

After about twenty minutes of moving people this way and that, Elizabeth felt she had what she needed, and let everyone know it was time to head back inside for the festivities. She grabbed her camera bags and headed up the steps toward the inn, following behind the wedding party.

Three hours and many photos and rolls of film later, Elizabeth stepped back outside, down the steps of the inn to the sandy beach. It was close to four p.m. She still had an hour before she was due to meet up with Jane and Charles. The sun had moved a little in the sky and the breeze had picked up, but it was still beautiful out. She kicked off her sandals and dug down into the sand with her toes, looking out at the waves, watching the seagulls dip and float on the wind.

_I will never tire of living here_, she thought.

She looked around to observe the other people on the beach. An older couple walked arm in arm along the waters' edge, and some teenage boys were playing a game of football, running and showing off for the girls seated nearby on a blanket. She pulled out her 35mm camera, popped in a fresh roll of black and white film, and started taking shots of whatever she could. Sometimes, the best shots came out of nowhere and totally surprised her.

Out on the jetty, she saw a young couple sitting together on the very last rock, staring out at the water. Impulsively, she aimed the lens toward them. The girl was blonde; she sat to the left of the man and rested her head on his shoulder. He had his arm around her, and Elizabeth could see from where she stood that he had dark, wavy hair. She thought she would be capturing a quiet, romantic moment, but instead, she was surprised to see that they both looked...sad. They didn't speak, they just sat and stared out at the waves.

It was a beautiful moment just the same, and although she felt a little like she was intruding, she zoomed back out and snapped a few quick shots, keeping them at the center, but wanting to include as much of the beauty surrounding them as she could. The scenery and the atmosphere of the moment were too good to pass up.

She tucked her 35 mm camera back into her bag, and thought she'd try a few shots with her digital. She snapped some photos of the boys playing football, a few of the gulls and the ocean, then found herself drawn back to the couple on the jetty. She aimed the camera toward them, took a few shots, and was suddenly shocked to see the man staring directly at her. He abruptly stood and started walking off of the jetty, going from rock to rock quickly, and jumped down on to the sand.

"Uh oh," she said quietly. He was coming straight toward her, and he didn't look pleased.

* * *

><p>All Fitzwilliam Darcy wanted to do was share some quiet time with his sister. He had finally convinced Georgiana that a walk on the beach would be nice...some fresh air and sunshine would do her good, he thought. She'd been holed up in the house for just about four months, only venturing outside to sit on the deck or walk around the estate, but never leaving the property. She'd finally agreed to head down to the beach with him, and he even talked her into climbing along the jetty and sitting for a while. They had talked for a bit, but not about anything consequential. They didn't need to, really...each was comfortable with the silence.<p>

They sat and gazed at the wide-open expanse of ocean in front of them. Georgie sighed heavily and rested her head on his shoulder, like she used to do when she was a little girl. To Will, she was still a little girl, and he wondered if he would always feel this overwhelming need to protect her, to take on all of her burdens and worries. _What a stupid thought. Of course I will_.

Everything was fine until he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He turned slowly to his left, toward the beach, and that's when he saw her...a woman with a camera, a camera that was definitely pointing in their direction. He stood instantly and told Georgiana to head back to the house.

"What's going on?" she asked him...then she followed his gaze and saw what he was looking at. She gasped slightly and quickly looked away from the woman.

"Just give me a minute, Georgie. When I get over to her, I want you to walk off the jetty and head to the house as quickly as you can. I'll take care of this."

Georgiana didn't say a word, she just nodded quietly and kept her head lowered, watching his progress from under her lashes. Once Will reached the woman, she carefully climbed off the jetty and nearly sprinted toward the house.

* * *

><p>The man stopped directly in front of Elizabeth, arms folded across his chest.<p>

"Excuse me, but can I ask you what the hell you're doing?" Despite the fact that he was extremely agitated, Will made himself speak very calmly.

"I'm...I'm sorry," Elizabeth stammered, completely embarrassed. "I was just taking some photos...I didn't mean to upset you or invade your privacy."

"And yet, you've managed to do both. Who do you work for?"

"Who do I work for? What do you mean?" Her embarrassment became confusion.

"You know damn well what I mean...who do you work for? Who wants the pictures? Who sent you here?" he asked, still managing to remain calm.

"I don't work for anyone...I told you, I was just taking random photos".

"Fine, then, you won't mind letting me have a look at your camera so that I can make sure you've deleted all the '_random photos'_ you just took of me." He glanced down. "What about that one?" he asked, nodding toward the other camera tucked away in her bag. "You can just hand over the film to me."

Elizabeth's confusion quickly gave way to annoyance.

"Hold on a second...if you want to watch me delete the photos I took of you from my digital, that's fine, but there's _no way_ I'm handing over the film from that camera."

Will started to reach toward her bag, his intention obvious. Elizabeth grabbed his arm and pulled herself up to her full 5'7" frame.

"Back off!" she warned him, trying to keep her voice down. He was tall...he had to be at least six feet, probably a little more...but she refused to be intimidated by him. They locked eyes, and for a moment, he looked a bit surprised. Then he just stopped and let out a frustrated sigh.

"Look," Elizabeth said, trying to stay calm, convinced he didn't want to cause a scene, "I don't know who you are or why you think someone wants my pictures of you, but I can assure you, that's not what's going on here. I just took photos at a wedding, and was killing time before I have to be somewhere. That's it, I promise. I'm sorry I invaded your privacy. Please accept my apologies, and offer them to the lady that is with you as well."

Elizabeth glanced over to the jetty as she was saying this, and noticed that the young blonde woman was nowhere to be seen.

"How do I know you're telling me the truth?" Will asked her. "How do I know those photos won't show up on the internet?"

He really did look distressed at the thought. She shrugged lightly. "I guess you're just going to have to trust me," she said simply.

A look of disbelief passed over Will's face. In a flat tone of voice, he asked, "Are you serious? You're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm not," Elizabeth replied calmly. "Since I have no idea who you are, I also have no idea who would want your picture, and I'm not in the business of posting pictures of people I don't know on the internet. You're just going to have to believe me. Once again, I'm sorry. That's all I can say. I'll dispose of the photos as soon as they're developed."

"Better yet," he said, "how about you give me your business card. I'm assuming you have one? That way, I'll know _exactly_ who to sue if those pictures show up anywhere they're not supposed to." His voice had taken on a note of sarcasm. "Right now, though, I'd like to watch you delete the photos from your digital. _Please_."

"Fine." Elizabeth held her camera in front of both of them and deleted the three photos she had snapped of them with her digital.

Trying to play it cool, she glanced up at him and said, "Pity, they were actually quite lovely."

The man just looked at her, arms crossed once again over his chest, no expression on his face. She reached into her bag, pulled out a pen and a piece of paper, and wrote her name and cell number on it.

"Here. I actually _don't _have a card. If it makes you feel better, you and your friend can be there when I develop the pictures, and I will hand them to you personally. You may then set fire to them, stomp on them, rip them into shreds, or do whatever you want to do with them, I could really care less. Call me tomorrow, and we can get this over with as soon as possible."

The man just kept looking at her, and Elizabeth assumed he was trying to decide if she was trustworthy or not. She very calmly stared back, not wanting to be the first one to break eye contact.

After a moment of staring intently at her, Will agreed to her suggestion. Not that he had much of a choice. They agreed to talk the next day and parted ways. Elizabeth could feel his eyes on her as she walked back toward the inn. _What an arrogant man!_ she thought. She realized it was now almost five o'clock and she was running late for her dinner with Jane & Charles. She headed toward her car, away from the beach and away from him.

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><p>Will left the beach feeling drained. He looked at the piece of paper that was almost completely crumpled in his hand. 'Elizabeth Bennet'. <em>Bennet. Hmm<em>. The name seemed to be familiar, but in his agitated state, he couldn't put too much thought into why. He wanted to watch her, to see where she went, see if she made any calls...get her license plate number...he knew he could find out everything about her that he needed to know almost instantly, if he wanted to. All it would take was one phone call.

He walked up the stairs from the beach into the lobby of the inn, but she had already gone out through the front door, down the walk and into the parking lot. He caught sight of her and watched her climb into a black Jeep Wrangler and drive away.

Why hadn't he pushed her a little more, made her give up the roll of film? He was kicking himself now for going so easy on her, but his gut had told him that she wasn't lying. If she was a professional, she wouldn't have been so flustered. _If she was lying, she was good at it_. Now that she had driven away, he was praying his gut was right.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth pulled up in front of the address that Jane had given her. The house was immense; it actually overlooked the same beach that Elizabeth had just been on, but was further down from where the inn was situated.<p>

She rang the doorbell. The door flew open and Elizabeth was instantly pulled into her older sister's arms. Jane, as usual, looked gorgeous, her long blonde hair perfectly straight and shimmery, the total opposite of Elizabeth's mane of dark curls.

"Lizzy! You made it. I thought for sure you'd be sending out a distress call at any moment. These neighborhoods can be incredibly confusing. How are you?"

"I'm fine Jane," Elizabeth replied, plastering a smile on her face. She was still feeling a little rattled from her encounter on the beach. "I almost did call you, after passing the same street sign three times, but I finally found you. How are you?"

"I'm great...I'm so glad you're here! Come in, let's go find Charles, I can't wait for you to meet him."

A deep voice echoed down the hallway. "And I can't wait to meet Elizabeth." A tall, handsome blonde man came striding into the foyer and held out his hand to Elizabeth, a broad smile on his face. His eyes were strikingly blue in color.

"Hi, I'm Charles. Jane has told me so much about you, I'm glad to finally meet you."

"Likewise," Elizabeth answered, shaking his hand and smiling. "You have a beautiful home, thanks for inviting me for dinner." _Barbie has met her Ken, _she thought, and almost chuckled out loud.

"Our pleasure," Charles said, "but I hope you don't mind waiting a bit to eat. I have a friend joining us, and I'm afraid he's running a bit late. Let's get you something to drink and head out to the deck."

"Sounds great," Elizabeth replied. Turning to Jane, she asked, "would you mind if I changed first? I'd like to get into something more comfy." Jane showed her to a small guest room, where Elizabeth changed into her jeans and a long sleeved green cotton shirt, and let her hair down from its ponytail, brushing it out a bit.

She decided to dispense with the formality of shoes and strolled barefoot down the hall, into a massive kitchen, where Charles poured her a glass of white wine. The three of them walked through the great room, out some sliding glass doors, to a beautiful high deck with a stunning view of the beach and ocean.

"So, Lizzy, how was the wedding today?" Jane asked. "Get hit on by any good-looking ushers?" Jane grinned at her sister knowingly, having been told some of Elizabeth's humorous stories of weddings past.

"No stories to tell today, thankfully. I've had enough run-ins with inebriated best men to last me a lifetime."

"I bet," Charles replied, laughing. "If you ladies will excuse me, I have a date with some steaks."

Jane offered her assistance, which he adamantly refused.

"Will can help me when he gets here. You sit and catch up with Elizabeth, I'll take care of everything." He gave Jane a quick kiss on the top of her head and disappeared inside.

"I'm so glad you're both here for the week," Elizabeth said, smiling at Jane. "Hopefully we can get together a couple of times, so I can get to know him a little better."

The grin that crossed Jane's face was, for lack of a better word, goofy. Elizabeth giggled and looked at her sister.

"So...Jane...is there anything you want to tell me?"

Jane played dumb. "Whatever do you mean, Lizzy?"

"Oh come on...how is everything with the two of you? You look very happy, so I'm assuming it's all good. Out with it!"

"It's more than good," Jane sighed dreamily, "he's...wonderful. He's so open, and caring...he's perfect. I'm just trying to take it slow, not rush things, you know? But so far, so good...so very, very good."

Jane was glowing, and Elizabeth was happy for her. Jane was never the type to get very wrapped up in a relationship, so Charles Bingley must be something special.

"He's also very handsome, which a man should be, if possible," Elizabeth said, and they both laughed. "Seriously, Jane…I'm very happy for you."

Jane smiled at Elizabeth. "I know you are Lizzy. Thanks."

Elizabeth smiled at her softly. "Oh…not to change the subject or anything," she said, "but I have to tell you about what happened to me on the beach today. It was the craziest thing..." She then proceeded to fill Jane in about her encounter with Mr. Arrogant.

"Did you recognize him from anywhere? Was he a celebrity?" Jane asked.

Elizabeth thought about that. Cape Cod does see its share of celebrities. An image of the dark-haired man came into her mind. He certainly was very handsome, handsome enough to be some type of celebrity, but she didn't think he was. He was dressed down, in khaki cargo shorts and a long sleeve navy blue t-shirt, and had bare feet. His dark hair, more curly than wavy, was in need of a cut, and he looked as though he hadn't seen a razor in quite a while as well.

"Earth to Lizzy...helloooooo..."

"Oh, sorry, I was just trying to place his face, trying to think if I've seen him somewhere before, if he _is_ some kind of celebrity or someone important, but I don't think he is. At least, not that I know of. Anyway, he was very handsome, but totally arrogant and obviously a little too self-important. To think that I was purposely following him to get his picture! What a joke."

Elizabeth sipped her wine and thought for another minute, and then it suddenly dawned on her.

"I bet the woman he was with is someone he is _not _supposed to be with. Maybe he's having an affair, or she is, and he's worried about being caught. They certainly looked cozy on the jetty."

She paused for a moment and shrugged. "That's just a guess. Who knows? In any case, I'll develop the photos, give them to him, and be done with it. I don't want to know anything else about him."

Just then, Charles poked his head outside the slider. "Will just called, he's on his way. Do you ladies need refills?" He grabbed their wine glasses and disappeared back inside.

Elizabeth looked at Jane and narrowed her eyes. "Who's this Will, anyway? This isn't another one of your matchmaking schemes, is it?" Jane was always trying to fix her up with someone, usually someone she worked with. So far, Elizabeth had managed to avoid all of her attempts.

"Oh, Lizzy, relax. Charles and Will have known each other for a long time. I've only met him once, but he and Charles are best friends, so he must be a nice guy. I just thought it would be nice for you two to meet each other. He's staying at his house, a little further down the beach, with his sister."

Jane glanced over the deck, down along the beach. "Here he comes now."

Elizabeth looked over to where Jane was looking and couldn't believe her eyes. Navy blue shirt, khaki shorts, and curly brown hair...walking at a steady pace down the beach. He had put on a pair of sunglasses, but she knew it was him. _Oh shit!_ _This is not happening._

Charles stepped back out onto the deck with the refilled wine glasses, and seeing Will making his way down the beach, yelled out to him, "It's about time, Darcy...come on up, grab a beer on the way."

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><p>Will grabbed a beer out of the refrigerator and made his way out onto the deck, where Charles, Jane, and Elizabeth were settled comfortably in their chairs.<p>

"Just in time, my friend, you get to be the assistant grill-master tonight," Charles said as he shook Will's hand. "You remember Jane, of course...and this is Jane's sister, Elizabeth Bennet. Elizabeth, this is my good friend, William Darcy."

_Oh, you've got to be kidding, _Will thought. _That's why the name clicked with me._

"Hi Jane, good to see you again." He flashed Jane a quick smile, and then turned to Elizabeth. "Nice to meet you," he said flatly.

_Yeah, right, _thought Elizabeth. "Nice to meet you too," she said quietly. She forced herself to hold out her hand and waited for him to shake it. She offered a small smile, more like a grimace, in his direction.

Reluctantly, Will reached out to briefly shake her hand. He couldn't let go of it fast enough.

Will turned away from Elizabeth and looked at Charles. "Um, I apologize for being late. Let's get those steaks ready. I'm starving, and I know you've been waiting." He walked back into the house, without so much as a second glance back toward Jane or Elizabeth. Charles shrugged at the girls, and then followed him in.

"What was that all about?" Charles asked him, once they were in the kitchen.

"What was what all about?" Will asked back.

"That," Charles said, nodding his head toward the deck. "You were a little bit rude...Elizabeth is Jane's sister and pretty much her best friend, so I hope you'll at least _try_ to be civil," Charles said pointedly. "She seems very nice".

"I'm sure she's very _nice,_" Will said, a note of sarcasm in his voice.

Charles glared at Will, and crossed his arms over his chest. "What's the matter with you?"

Will shook his head, brushing him off. "For Pete's sake, don't worry about it Charles, I'll be the perfect gentleman."

* * *

><p>Out on the deck, Jane looked at Elizabeth. "So, what do you think?"<p>

"What do I think about what?" Elizabeth answered, pretending ignorance.

Jane rolled her eyes. "About William, obviously! He's very handsome, isn't he? Almost too handsome."

Elizabeth shrugged. "I guess….but he doesn't seem to be very pleasant."

"He's probably just shy. He'll loosen up, I'm sure, as the night goes on. Just give him a chance."

"Really Jane, I don't need your help in the dating department. Please, let it be."

"Fine. Come on then," Jane said, "let's go toss together a salad of some sort. We need something to go with the steaks."

The girls walked back into the house, and while Jane headed toward the bathroom, Elizabeth headed to the kitchen. She overheard Will's voice talking to Charles.

"...don't worry about it Charles, I'll be the perfect gentleman. I'm just not interested in getting involved with someone at the moment, especially with one of those '_Cape Cod beach girls'_ that you've always seemed to be so fond of. Have your fun with Jane, but please don't foist the younger sister on me."

"For Christ's sake, Will, I'm not asking you to "get involved" with her, just be nice to her...don't be such a snob!" Charles said. Lowering his voice, he added, "and leave Jane out of it please, you know she's more than just some "fun" to me."

"Okay, I'm sorry, I take that back." Will instantly regretted the remark about Jane. Charles seemed to feel that "this one was different", although Will had heard that before. "Look, I'll be a polite guest, but that's about it. I have no interest in getting to know Elizabeth Bennet."

Will walked away from Charles with the platter of steaks and headed out of the kitchen.

Elizabeth was rooted to the spot where she stood outside the kitchen doorway. Suddenly, William appeared from around the corner and almost walked right into her. She looked up at him and saw the look of surprise on his face.

"Oh...umm...sorry," he mumbled, "didn't see you there...time to get the steaks on the grill...excuse me." He walked away, heading out to the deck, barely sparing a glance at her.

Elizabeth stood there, unable to move. _I thought he was arrogant before! He is insufferable!_

Just then, Jane came out of the bathroom and headed toward the kitchen. "What's up, Lizzy? You look like you've seen a ghost. You okay?"

"I'm fine...let's get going on the salad."

They walked into the kitchen as Charles was walking out. He gave Jane a quick peck on the cheek and went to join Will.

* * *

><p>Dinner began as the most painful event that Elizabeth had the displeasure of sitting through in a long time. Eventually, though, she became absolutely determined to enjoy herself and get to know Charles better.<p>

She asked Charles about his job, what he liked to do in his free time, and any other topic she could think of. Upon hearing that he was a fellow runner, Elizabeth started telling him about the bike path that she frequently ran on. Charles expressed an interest in seeing it and joining her for a run, and they made plans to try to do so sometime during the week.

They talked about college; his years at Yale, hers at Boston University. She told him about her job, and purposely mentioned that she did a little photography on the side, casting a sideways glance at William as she did so. He was looking down at his food, and his face wore absolutely no expression; she wasn't even sure he was listening.

She was truly enjoying her conversation with Charles though, and decided then and there that he was a good match for Jane.

Will barely glanced up from his plate and didn't talk at all; he just wanted to get through the night and get home to Georgiana. The events at the beach had wreaked havoc on her, and Will couldn't help but blame the woman sitting next to him at the dinner table.

As she spoke more with Charles, he started listening a little more to the conversation, and was slightly surprised to hear that she was the project manager at the local Estuarine Research Reserve. He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she enthusiastically described her job to Charles. His curiosity was beginning to rise, but he forced himself to squash it and once again tune out of the conversation.

For some reason, his sidelong glances kept wandering to her hair, and he suddenly realized why; it hadn't been down when he had seen her earlier. Rolling his eyes and muttering, he mentally chastised himself for being so ridiculous.

Elizabeth thought she heard William say something, but wasn't sure exactly what it was. _Some sort of nasty comment_ _about me or my job, I'm sure_, she thought. _What an ass._

It was quiet for a moment, as everyone continued eating, when all of a sudden Jane spoke up. "Oh, Lizzy, you've _got_ to tell Charles and Will the story you told me, about what happened to you on the beach today, it was absolutely unbelievable!"

Will's head snapped up and he looked at Elizabeth, fairly sure that the "story" was about their encounter.

"Oh, I don't think they'd be interested in hearing about that," Elizabeth said, feeling her cheeks begin to warm, trying very hard not to look at William. She could feel his eyes on her though. "It's long and boring."

"Oh, no it isn't," Jane said, "it's pretty funny, actually. If you won't tell it, I will," she threatened, smiling mischievously at Elizabeth.

"Really, Jane, it's not very entertaining." Elizabeth knew she was fighting a losing battle.

"Now that you've both piqued my curiosity," Charles said, "one of you has to spill the beans."

Jane proceeded to tell Will and Charles the story of the "_very rude and arrogant man_" that Elizabeth had met up with on the beach. She also made it a point to say that "_Lizzy said he was very handsome,_ _so we thought maybe he was a celebrity, but she couldn't place his face"_.

Inside, Elizabeth was dying a slow death, but she was determined not to let it show. Charles laughed at the story, but not surprisingly, William didn't have much of a reaction.

"We came to the conclusion," Jane went on, "that the man was obviously involved in a sordid affair with the woman he was with and they were worried about getting caught...right Lizzy?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth saw William's head suddenly turn in her direction, and she could feel his eyes boring into her.

"Needless to say," Elizabeth said, avoiding Jane's question, "it was not an ideal way to end a lovely day at the beach." _Didn't Jane say his sister was staying with him?_

"I just think it's funny that someone would think you were some type of stalker. It makes me laugh to think that my little sister would be mistaken for paparazzi." That did make Elizabeth laugh, albeit self-consciously, and Charles joined in. Elizabeth steadfastly refused to even glance in William's direction.

The remaining time at dinner was spent making small talk. Charles eventually made a suggestion.

"Well, Lizzy – can I call you Lizzy? - we can try to end your day at the beach on a better note...how about a walk along the water while the sun sets? Dessert can wait until we get back. Come on, let's walk off some of that dinner."

The four of them got up and walked down the flight of steps from Charles's deck to the yard below. The grass stretched right to the sand, separated only by a low fence. They walked through a gate and were on the beach.

At first the four walked together, but soon, Charles and Jane lagged behind, until they were far enough away to have their own private conversation.

_How nice this would be if I was with better company, _Elizabeth thought. The sunset really was gorgeous. As it was, she and William walked without saying anything, keeping a wide berth around each other.

Elizabeth rolled up her jeans a few inches and walked a little ways into the water, splashing and wading a bit. It was freezing, but felt invigorating, and gave her something else to think about. She could feel William looking at her.

He finally broke the silence. "Project manager?" he asked quietly.

"Yes," Elizabeth answered, not really wanting to make conversation with him.

"I didn't know," William replied. He was staring intently at the sand as he walked.

Elizabeth looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "Well, how would you?" she said calmly. "You certainly didn't take the time to ask."

"I assumed you were a professional photographer," he stated, still speaking quietly.

"You _do_ know what they say about people who assume, don't you?" Elizabeth asked, raising one eyebrow.

He turned to glare at her.

"Speaking of making assumptions," he said, his voice cold and hard, "you _assumed _wrong about the woman I was with. She's my sister, not a woman I'm having a...how did Jane put it?..._a sordid affair _with." He lowered his voice, but his tone didn't change. "I'm glad I was able to be a source of such great amusement for you. I didn't realize I was such a comedian. Nothing like having a laugh at someone else's expense, right?"

Elizabeth stopped where she was, ankle deep in water, her jaw dropping open, hands on her hips.

"Excuse me?" She was trying to stay calm, but there was no mistaking the anger in her voice. "You have _no idea_ what you're talking about. You don't know me, so don't _presume_ to know what I find amusing. I admit, when I relayed the story to Jane, it did seem kind of funny and I could see how she would see it that way, but believe me, when you were accosting me on the beach, I didn't think you were a bit funny at all. You are the most intolerable, arrogant, rude person I have ever met! You are _certainly_ no gentleman."

Elizabeth walked out of the water and immediately headed back toward Charles's house, leaving William standing at the water's edge, mouth slightly agape.

"Lizzy! Wait up!" Jane came jogging up behind her. Elizabeth turned around and saw Charles down by the water, talking to William. "What happened?" Jane asked. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going home, Jane. It's been a long day, and an even longer evening, and I just need to go. I'm sorry. Thank you for dinner, and please tell Charles thanks as well. He really is very nice, although I do wonder at his choice in friends."

"You just have to give Will a chance, Lizzy. I know he seems very standoffish, but he's a nice guy."

"And how would you even _begin_ to know that, Jane?" Elizabeth was getting exasperated by all of Jane's praise for William. "You told me yourself you've only met him one other time. Maybe you only think he's nice because he's Charles friend, and you want to believe that Charles couldn't possibly be friends with someone so rude. I think he's difficult and arrogant, and I don't particularly care to spend any more of my evening with him. I'll show myself out, and I'll call you tomorrow. We'll talk more then."

Jane sighed. "Okay, if that's the way you want it…I know better than to argue with you. Charles and I are going down Cape tomorrow, so why don't we talk tomorrow night, okay?"

"Okay." Elizabeth reached out to give her sister a quick hug.

"Bye Lizzy. Drive safe."

"I will. Bye Jane."

* * *

><p>The next morning, Elizabeth was awakened by the incessant ringing of her cell phone, next to her bed. She glanced at her clock...8<em>am! Who is calling me this early on a Sunday? <em>She lifted her head off the pillow and looked at her phone. She didn't recognize the number, so she let it ring...her voice mail could get it. She rolled over and instantly fell back to sleep.

An hour later, Elizabeth was again awakened by the ringing of her phone. When she glanced at the caller ID, she saw it was the same number from earlier, and suddenly, it dawned on her who it must be. She grabbed for her phone and answered it. What came out was more of a croak then a voice, unfortunately.

She cleared her throat and tried again. "Hello?"

"Hello Miss Bennet. It's William Darcy. Did I wake you?"

"Actually, yes, you did," Elizabeth replied. She saw no need for pleasantries.

He ignored her response. "I called earlier, and left a message, but thought I'd try again."

"Yes, you woke me up the first time you called too." She tried to stifle a yawn, unsuccessfully. "Us _Cape Cod beach girls _need to get our beauty rest, you know." She couldn't keep the sarcasm out of her voice.

Silence. For a good three or four seconds, complete silence.

"I guess you're waiting for an explanation? Or an apology?" William asked her flatly.

"Oh, absolutely not," Elizabeth replied matter of factly, "you owe me nothing. So, let's make a plan to get together and get this whole business over with. Work for you?"

"Fine. Where are we meeting?" he asked.

"I'll develop the roll of film at my house. I live on Surf Drive in Falmouth. After you go past the snack bar at Surf Drive Beach, start counting the beach houses. Mine is the fifth one. Can you be here around one? "

"Fine," William replied curtly, "see you then."

Elizabeth hung up her phone. She flopped back down onto her pillow and stared up at the ceiling. _This is not how I want to spend my Sunday._

She hopped out of bed and poked her nose outside to check the weather. _Perfect day for a run, _she thought.

Thirty minutes later, she had strapped on her iPod and was jogging down Surf Drive, headed toward the Shining Sea Bike Path. The bike path was one of her favorite things about Falmouth; it stretched ten miles, from North Falmouth all the way south to the tiny village of Woods Hole, where she worked. She tried to ride her bike to work as often as she could, unless the weather was bad. The bike path wound its way behind different neighborhoods, through scenic cranberry bogs, acres of woods, and alongside the ocean.

Almost an hour later, she made her way back to her house. She slowed to a walk to let her body cool down, and made her way past all the other beach houses situated on Surf Drive. Most of them had been in the families they belonged to for several generations, including hers. The houses were all built roughly the same way; big squares, sitting up on stilts to prevent water from flooding them during storms.

In 1991, Hurricane Bob had wiped out a few of them, but Elizabeth's family was lucky. They'd only had to have some minor repairs done. Although there had been a fund established by her family years ago for the upkeep of the small house, she didn't want to imagine the difficulties of having to rebuild if anything happened to it.

She had fond childhood memories of spending summers here with her parents and with Jane and Lydia, literally living at the beach. During the 'off-season,' they lived in a small house in the center of town, which her parents had sold last year when they moved to the condo they lived in now. The beach house was small, but perfect for her, and once they'd had it winterized, she decided to live in it year-round. Besides converting the pantry into a darkroom, the only major change she had made was to add an outdoor shower under the wrap-around deck. The views of Vineyard Sound, Nobska Light, and Martha's Vineyard were beautiful. It was her own little slice of paradise.

After sitting on the deck sipping her water for a while, she walked into the kitchen, put on some coffee, got undressed, wrapped herself in a towel, and headed outside. After a hot shower, she threw on her jeans, an old Black Dog sweatshirt, and a pair of flip-flops. She left her hair down to finish drying on its own. The thick chestnut curls cascaded almost to the middle of her back.

She poured herself a cup of coffee and grabbed a banana and a yogurt. After eating, she went into the darkroom to get everything ready. Although the darkroom was small, it was adequate for her needs. She had a very rewarding job and loved what she did, but her passion was photography.

Most of her free time was spent wandering around different parts of the Cape, photographing the wildlife, the scenery, and the people. The 'locals' around here were a breed all their own. Occasionally, she was even asked to do a wedding, or a family portrait, but usually only by people she knew. The bride in yesterday's wedding was the daughter of a co-worker.

She didn't always develop her film, but sometimes she did. She loved watching an image come to life on a previously blank piece of paper. It was like she was seeing the image for the first time, even though she had taken the picture herself.

At precisely one o'clock, she heard the sound of a car idling out front, and knew William had arrived. She heard him coming up the stairs and opened the door before he had a chance to knock.

_Wow._ For a second, she lost her train of thought. _He really is very handsome. _She snapped back to reality quickly. _Too bad he has such a rotten personality. _He had traded in his scruffy shorts and t-shirt for a pair of faded blue jeans and a light gray New England Patriots sweatshirt. Gone were the traces of stubble, he was completely clean shaven.

"Elizabeth," he said, his face completely expressionless.

"William. Come in." As he entered the house, it seemed to shrink in size immediately. He stood there, looking uncomfortable and awkward. He took a quick look around, then looked back at her again, arms folded across his chest.

"Let's get started," Elizabeth said, "I have everything ready to go." She walked to the door of the darkroom.

* * *

><p>William looked around the darkroom, trying to see as best as he could in the strange red light coming from the bulb over the counter. He examined the walls, all covered with dozens of black and white photos. The faces of what he assumed were her family and friends looked back at him. He recognized Jane in several. The ocean was obviously a favorite subject of hers. There were dozens of pictures of it, but no two looked the same.<p>

As Elizabeth went about the process of getting the roll of film developed, William remained silent, which was fine with her. She was praying that he would just keep quiet and let her get on with it.

William watched her as she worked intently, measuring chemicals into different tanks, checking the temperatures of some, and then finally unspooling the roll of film from its canister and loading it onto a stainless steel reel. Once the reel was loaded, she dropped it into the first tank and covered it with a lid. At this point, she turned off the red light and turned on a normal bulb.

She set a timer, and eventually William got to watch the whole process...the acid stop bath, the fixer, and ultimately, the drying. She strung the photos up on a line that went from one side of the dark room to the other. The whole process didn't take as long as he thought it would, but it was a lot to remember.

Finally he spoke, his curiosity getting the best of him. "Did you teach yourself how to do all of this?"

Elizabeth jumped at the sound of his voice. "Pretty much."

"It seems rather complicated," William said.

"Not really," Elizabeth replied. She tried to keep her answers short, hoping it would discourage him from asking more questions. It didn't work.

William looked at the photos covering the walls again. "Did you take all of these?"

She nodded. "I did."

"Are they all friends of yours? And family?"

"Mostly."

More silence.

"So it's just a hobby then?" William asked.

"Just a hobby," she said, sighing. She really didn't want to make small talk with him, but she couldn't very well ignore him, he was standing a foot away from her. "I have done weddings and the like for friends, occasionally..._like yesterday._"

He noticed the emphasis she put on those last two words.

She opened the door, and they left the darkroom and walked back into what now seemed like an intensely bright living room.

"The pictures won't take long to dry, and then you'll be free to leave," Elizabeth said.

William looked around the small but neat living room, and noticed more framed photographs of the ocean on the walls. He walked around, spending a few minutes looking at them, not knowing what else to do with himself. Elizabeth was beginning to feel a little antsy.

"Were all of these pictures taken in Falmouth?" he asked.

"No, but they were all taken on the Cape."

More silence as he looked at the pictures.

"How long have you lived here?" he asked, turning to look at her.

_Why do you care? _she wanted to say, but she didn't_._

"In this house or in Falmouth?"

"Umm, both, I guess."

"In Falmouth, all my life, except for when I was away at college. In this house, since I finished my masters, so about five years. I really couldn't imagine living anywhere else."

"Oh, that's right, you're an oceanographer or something, right? Save the whales, save the seals, and all that?" William asked her, his tone of voice flat and slightly condescending.

_Is he for real? _Elizabeth thought. _He's ignorant, as well as arrogant!_

She rolled her eyes, unbeknownst to him, as he had once again turned to look at a picture on the wall.

"I'm afraid I haven't saved many whales or seals lately." Her impatience with him was coming back ten-fold. "Why don't I see if your pictures are ready?"

She disappeared back into the darkroom and reappeared a few minutes later with four black and white pictures of William and his sister.

He looked at the photos, and was amazed to see that they were actually quite good. Elizabeth had captured them both in profile, mostly, and in one shot, Georgiana was resting her head on his shoulder. Something about the picture tugged at his heart, and he could feel his eyes start to mist.

"So, that's it," Elizabeth said, "you have your pictures, so I guess we're finished."

"Yes, I guess we are," William replied. He looked at her then, really looked at her, and she looked back at him. _She has pretty eyes,_ he thought. _Hazel...no, green._

"Umm...thanks for the pictures," William said.

She was surprised to see that his expression had softened when he had looked at the images in his hand. She looked away, walked over to the door and held it open. "Oh, sure. You're welcome. Bye...watch your step on the way down the stairs."

"Goodbye Elizabeth," William replied, and walked out the door.

As he drove back to New Seabury, William didn't like the feeling that was poking at him. It was guilt. He was beginning to feel like he had been too quick to judge, and on top of that, had judged too harshly.

He tried to brush off the feeling and forced it to the back of his mind. He had nothing to feel guilty for. He had justifiable reasons for the way he behaved yesterday, and she was the last person he felt obligated to explain anything to. He had his pictures. That was all he needed, and wanted, from Elizabeth Bennet.

* * *

><p><em>The writing within this story is the sole property of the author and any form of plagiarism (for profit or not for profit) will be treated as theft and will result in legal action. This story was written by Cat929 and posted at fanfiction-dot-net beginning March 2012. It has not been published as a book or ebook, nor is it meant for publication.<em>


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks to those of you who have read and reviewed so far, I appreciate it! Just a few notes about the story. It is a WIP, and there are currently 31 completed chapters, with more still to be written. I plan on posting once a week, probably on Thursdays or Saturdays. I'm posting this chapter today as en extra, so I could put this little blurb in! Oh, and I do have a tendency to write long chapters, as you'll see. Thanks and I hope you enjoy it! Cat_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

On Sunday evening, long after William Darcy had left, Elizabeth picked up the phone to call Jane. Before she could get a word out, Jane started chatting away.

"Guess what I found out, Lizzy?" Jane could barely contain her excitement. "Monday Night Madness starts tomorrow night! I told Charles about how we used to go when we were in college, and he said he wanted to go, can you believe it?"

Elizabeth groaned. "You're not seriously thinking about taking him there, are you? It will be packed with college kids. Aren't you a little old for that stuff now?"

Monday Night Madness was held every Monday night during the summer at a restaurant overlooking the harbor in Falmouth. During dinner hours, it was a fine dining establishment with white linen tablecloths, serving the best in local fare.

At ten p.m. on Monday nights, however, it turned into a party. The tables were pushed aside to create a giant dance floor, strobe lights were turned on, and usually a DJ spun tunes, although sometimes a good local band would come in and play. Elizabeth hadn't been there in quite a few years. Jane, Elizabeth, and Charlotte lived for Monday nights when they were younger. _Much_ younger.

"Oh, come on Lizzy, don't be a dud. You have to go! Maybe Charlotte and Lydia will go too."

"I have to work on Tuesday morning...not all of us are on vacation, you know." Elizabeth was determined to think of an excuse to get out of going.

"Lizzy, you have to say yes...it'll be fun! We can reminisce about the good old days!"

"I don't know Jane, I can't imagine going there again. Not all of those old days were good, remember?"

Jane was silent for a moment. Quietly, she said, "I know they weren't, but its been years, and you've put all that stuff behind you now, right? Come and dance for a couple of hours, then you can go home and still get a decent night's sleep. Please?"

Elizabeth sighed, knowing Jane wouldn't let up. "Alright, I'll meet you there at ten."

"Yeah! I'll call Lydia, you call Charlotte. See you then!" She hung up.

_I can't believe I have agreed to this, _Elizabeth thought. _It's going to be a zoo._

Unfortunately, Charlotte was working a late shift at the hospital, so she couldn't go. She made Elizabeth promise that they would go on another Monday night over the summer. _We'll see about that, _Elizabeth thought. She'd get out of it for sure.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth was running late. Mondays were always long and tedious at work, and as she had settled onto her couch that night after having a late dinner, she had quickly dozed off. When she woke up, she was surprised to see that it was almost ten already. Her first thought was to call and cancel, but she knew Jane would kill her, so she decided to suck it up and go. She hopped up from the couch and quickly got ready.<p>

It was almost eleven by the time she finally found a parking spot and headed into "MNM," as it was fondly referred to way back when. Jane's impatient text messages had started at 10:15 and hadn't stopped.

After a brief wait in line, she walked in and immediately tried to spot either Jane's or Charles's blonde head in the noisy crowd. Having no luck, she quickly ducked into the ladies room. She had worn a comfy pair of jeans with a very pretty cropped evergreen blouse, worn off the shoulders. It brought out the color in her eyes. The usual 'flip flops' adorned her feet, and she had thrown her hair into a loose ponytail.

Looking in the mirror, she thought back to years past when coming here meant dressing to impress. _Those days are gone now, _she mused as she adjusted her ponytail, _what you see is what you get._ She smiled at her reflection and went back out into the crowd.

The music was pounding out of the large speakers, and the dance floor was mobbed. She stood for a moment and looked around, trying to see through the crowd. She still didn't see Jane or Charles. She wasn't sure if Lydia was coming, but she didn't see her either.

"Lizzy B! What the hell are you doing here?" A loud male voice caught her attention.

Elizabeth turned, and was astounded to see Dennis Weldon tending bar.

"Denny!" Elizabeth exclaimed. She wiggled her way in between people standing at the bar, stood on her tip toes and reached over the bar to give him a big hug. He held her face between his hands and gave her a big, noisy kiss on the lips.

"I can't believe you're back!" she yelled over the crowd, "I thought you had left the Cape for good!"

Denny was an ex-boyfriend of Lydia's, _and_ the best friend of an ex-boyfriend of Elizabeth's. She and Denny had always been close, but when things fizzled between Denny and Lydia, she lost touch with him. Last she knew he had moved off-Cape, looking for greener pastures.

He looked the same. He was handsome, with that combination of jet black hair and blue eyes that women seemed to find irresistible. Looking around, Elizabeth saw that there were quite a few 'women,' girls really, shooting dirty looks her way. They were already trying to stake a claim on him.

The smile on her face was genuine, she was so happy to see him. They had a lot of catching up to do.

"I decided to come back, just for the summer. It seems I can't stay away," he said. "You look fantastic! Beautiful as ever."

"And you are just as flirty and charming as ever, I see!" Elizabeth laughed back. "You don't look so bad yourself! Will you get a break tonight?"

"I will, pretty soon actually. One hour behind this bar during Madness, and I need it...I forgot how insane this place gets." He laughed. "And don't all these kids look too young to be in here? We must be getting old."

"Speak for yourself," Elizabeth laughed back, "I'm still a twenty-one year old at heart!"

"Glad to hear it, because we're dancing when I get my break, so don't go too far." He gave her a brilliant smile, and Elizabeth was reminded of exactly what Lydia fell in love with. Not only was he handsome, he was a great guy to boot.

"You're on. You haven't seen Jane, have you?" Denny shook his head, and Elizabeth again began scanning the crowd. Her eyes finally lit on the top of Charles's head. "Never mind, I found her...we'll be over there," she said, pointing in the general direction of Jane and Charles.

She leaned over to give him another hug and a kiss on the cheek, then headed over to where she had seen Charles. He was leaning against the wall, Jane standing in front of him, his arms wrapped around her waist. They were cracking up, obviously people watching and having a good time doing it.

Jane finally spotted her. "Lizzy! It's about time! Where have you been?"

"Sorry, sorry...I got caught up in things at home, and then I just ran into Denny Weldon at the bar!"

"Denny? Really?" Jane was as surprised as Elizabeth. "Oh, thank God Lydia couldn't come; she would be a wreck if she saw him. How is he?"

"Handsome as ever, friendly as ever. He's going to find us on his break." Elizabeth started looking around at the crowd, searching for any familiar faces. She recognized a small group from work and decided to go over to say hi.

Once there, she said hello to everyone, and was immediately dragged out to the dance floor with a young man that she knew only as Mark. He was cute, but young. The DJ was playing one of Elizabeth's favorite songs, so she decided to just get out there and cut loose a little. The crowd was loud and pumped up, singing along with the music.

Mark had great rhythm, and Elizabeth enjoyed dancing with him. She saw Jane and Charles dancing and was happy to see that Charles seemed to be having a good time. After the song was over, Mark offered to buy her a drink, but she politely declined and excused herself to head back over to Jane and Charles.

No sooner had she arrived back over to them when Denny wandered over. He gave Jane a big kiss on the cheek, causing Charles to frown, then grabbed Elizabeth's hand and dragged her back out onto the floor. They danced to one fast song, and then the DJ switched to something slow. Elizabeth didn't feel a bit uncomfortable when Denny wrapped his arms around her and gave her a big hug, and they started swaying to the music. She put her arms up around his neck and smiled at him.

Elizabeth let her eyes move beyond him briefly. She had one of those weird feelings, like she was being watched. As she slowly looked around the room, she noticed William for the very first time. _I didn't even realize he was here, _she thought_._

He was standing close to where she had just been standing with Jane and Charles, nursing a beer and staring straight at her. She looked away, but each time their dancing turned her to face in William's direction, he was always looking at her...and he seemed to be scowling. _He needs to lighten up_.

She turned her attention back to Denny. She was as comfortable with him as she would be with a brother...in fact, that's always how she had looked at him, at least for the five years that he and Lydia had been together. Elizabeth was only a year older than him, so he was like a sweet younger brother.

As they danced, they laughed and reminisced about summers past. He asked her about Lydia, just some general questions, and the look in his eyes as he asked made Elizabeth wonder if he had really gotten over her. She knew Lydia hadn't gotten over him, despite her claims of the opposite.

They continued to talk, until the slow song began to wind down and a faster dance song kicked in behind it. "Let's get together again soon and talk more," he said, practically yelling at this point, as the volume had picked up again. He held her hand and led her over to the bar and scribbled his number on a piece of paper. He handed it to her, and asked for hers as well. She wrote it down for him. "It's really great to see you Lizzy," he said, smiling at her.

"It's great to see you too." She smiled back and gave him a big hug. "I'll call you soon, I promise. Now get back to work!"

* * *

><p>William stood on the fringes of the dance floor, watching the people gyrate, bump, and grind, feeling mildly appalled. <em>How did I let Charles talk me into coming here? <em>Just then, he happened to turn toward the entrance and saw Elizabeth Bennet walk in. She took a quick look around, then disappeared into the ladies room. He positioned himself so that he could see her when she came out.

Not three minutes later, out she came. He watched as she stood on her tip-toes and looked around for her sister. His eyes scanned her from head to toe, taking in her appearance, noting her bare shoulders. Suddenly, she turned and headed over to the bar. He watched as she hugged the bartender, and he in turn gave her a kiss on the lips. William looked away, rolling his eyes and shaking his head, and watched the crowd again.

Within a minute, his eyes were back on her as she leaned over the bar and conversed with the bartender. She was smiling beautifully and her eyes danced. A couple soon blocked his view and he found himself moving slightly so he could keep watching her. She chatted with the bartender for a little while longer, then after another hug, moved away and headed over to Jane and Charles.

She stood with them for a little bit, then left them and headed over to a group of people. He watched as she said hello, and then as she was pulled onto the dance floor. Obviously enjoying herself, she sang along to the music as she danced. _She can move,_ he thought.

As much as he found himself...grudgingly...watching her body move in time with the music, he was continually drawn back to her face. Her eyes sparkled, and combined with that dazzling smile, they lit up her entire face.

As the song finished, he noticed she was headed back to Jane and Charles, and decided to head that way himself. Expecting to see her standing with them, he was surprised to see her back on the dance floor again, this time with the bartender. Again, her eyes sparkled, and he could see that there was a familiarity between them that wasn't there with the other man she danced with. _This one m__ust be a __boyfriend._

The music slowed, and he watched as the two came together easily and began talking as they danced. Charles and Jane deserted him and headed to the floor as well. At one point, Elizabeth's eyes locked with his, but he didn't look away. She broke eye contact, but every time she was slowly turned to face in his direction, she would glance at him and then look away.

When the dance was over, William watched her follow the bartender back to the bar, and watched as she took a piece of paper from him and slipped it into her pocket, handing him one as well. The music picked up tempo again. They hugged, and she began walking toward William.

"Hello William," she yelled over the music. "Are you enjoying yourself?" She glanced over to Jane and Charles, who were smiling and talking nose to nose, obviously engaged in a very private conversation.

He shook his head. "Not really," he replied, "it's not exactly my type of place." _No sparkle in those eyes now,_ he thought.

"Why am I not surprised by that?" she laughed, and he saw it...that twinkle, back again. She looked around them, and saw that he had certainly garnered the attention of a few girls. Once again, she found herself the victim of some evil looks. He seemed oblivious to it. "Why don't you ask someone to dance? It looks like you'd have plenty of willing partners to choose from."

He glanced around and noticed that several women...girls, really...were watching them. He didn't give them a second thought. Then it dawned on him. _Oh brother, does she expect me to ask __her_ _to dance? _He thought for a second, and before he could even come up with a retort, she answered his question.

"I wasn't hinting for you to ask _me _to dance, if that's what you're thinking. I'm perfectly capable of finding a partner on my own." She looked at him with a mixture of defiance and humor.

"I noticed," he said. _Is she teasing me? _"Did you enjoy your dances?" he asked her, unable to look away from her eyes.

She continued to look at him. "Very much so. As you saw, if I'm not mistaken. Was my dancing really that bad? Or is there something in my hair or stuck to my face that I'm not aware of?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, not following her.

"You were glaring at me the entire time. I know you don't like me, and believe me, the feeling is mutual. Don't worry, I'm not going to… _foist _myself on you." She put her hands on her hips, pursing her lips and staring up at him defiantly. "And, if you're trying to intimidate me, you may as well give up. I am not easily intimidated."

He smiled. He couldn't help it. He thought her eyes were bright before; now they were just about shooting sparks. He chuckled at the stubborn picture she presented. "I have no doubt that I would not be able to intimidate you," he said, still laughing lightly.

His smile, which Elizabeth had yet to see until tonight, surprised her.

"Which, I'm _not_ trying to do, by the way," he continued, still smiling. "I was just...looking."

_Just looking? _Elizabeth didn't quite know how to respond to that, and was saved by Jane and Charles coming over to join them.

"Darcy, you look like a pathetic wallflower," Charles yelled over the music, "are you going to dance, or stand there all night?"

"I'm comfortable being a wallflower, thanks," William said, shooting Charles a pointed look. "I think I'd be hard pressed to find someone in here I'd even be remotely interested in dancing with." He glanced around him with a look that could only be described as distaste on his face. Charles, unfortunately, understood it as a direct insult to Elizabeth, and watched as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, don't be such a snob," Charles said as he jabbed William in the chest. "Have a little fun, loosen up."

The familiar opening guitar licks of an old Janet Jackson song came on, and Jane grabbed Elizabeth's hand.

"I requested this for us!" Jane yelled, pulling Elizabeth away from Charles and William. "Let's go!" They danced their way out onto the floor, singing along with the words and laughing.

Charles and William stood back and watched the scene unfold before them. The two women danced and laughed and sang out the words, completely enjoying themselves. It was quite comical, actually, but they were obviously comfortable hamming it up and weren't the slightest bit self-conscious.

Charles leaned in to speak to William. "Is she the most beautiful thing you've ever seen?" He couldn't take his eyes off Jane, and William sighed, shaking his head. _Here we go again. _Even he could see, though, that Jane and Elizabeth were easily the most attractive women in the room. Sure, there were other nice-looking females there, but they were just...girls. Too young to catch William's eye.

Elizabeth kept glancing at him, almost as if she was daring him to stare at her. That made him want to look at her all the more. By the time the song ended it was nearing midnight, and Elizabeth chose that time to make her escape. Jane begged her to stay a little longer.

"Jane, I have to be to work at eight tomorrow morning, remember?"

"Fine...party pooper!" She stuck her tongue out at Elizabeth, making her laugh. "I'll call you tomorrow. Oh, hey, you never did tell me what happened yesterday...did Mr. Arrogant show up to collect his incriminating pictures?"

Elizabeth couldn't help but flicker her eyes briefly over to William. Thankfully, he was engrossed in a conversation with Charles, and she noticed he was smiling again and laughing at something Charles was saying. It completely transformed his face. _He should do that more often_.

She answered Jane's question. "Yes, he showed up. There's not much to tell, I'll fill you in tomorrow." She stepped over to Charles and William and yelled over the music. "Goodnight _gentlemen_!" She smirked at William, and she could have sworn that he smirked right back. _Arrogant ass._

Both men yelled goodnight. Elizabeth made her way over to the bar to give Denny one last hug, and told him she would call him soon. As she walked toward the exit, she couldn't help but turn back one last time to look...and sure enough...William's gaze was on her once again.

* * *

><p>The following day, while she was sitting outside during her lunch break, Elizabeth found herself talking to Jane on the phone as promised. She filled her in on everything that happened with "Mr. Arrogant" when he came to pick up his pictures. She still didn't want to tell Jane that <em>William<em> happened to be "Mr. Arrogant;" for some reason, she felt like she needed to protect his privacy, at least for the time being. It was the least she could do, after invading it so thoroughly at the beach. She was beginning to feel a little badly about the whole fiasco, although she still thought he was rude and insufferable.

They rehashed the events of the previous evening, and Jane finally got Elizabeth to concede that it had been fun. They both agreed not to tell Lydia that Denny was back in town. They knew she'd find out on her own; she was a regular at MNM, so it was only a matter of time before they ran into each other.

Jane did most of the talking, mainly about Charles. Elizabeth still couldn't reconcile how William and Charles were such good friends. They talked more, making some plans for the remainder of the week and the weekend.

"What's your schedule like?" Jane asked Elizabeth.

"Well, other than work, softball practice starts today. Then on Thursday, I have a staff meeting after work, which is actually a staff meeting-slash-cocktail hour."

"Really?" Jane asked, laughing.

"Yes, really...Bill likes to have his 'staff meetings' at either Shuckers or The Leeside."

"Oh, how is the lovely Bill Collins?"

"Ugh. Smarmy as always. Not leaving me alone."

"Poor Lizzy. Tell him you've got a boyfriend! He'll never know."

"Hmm. That's a good idea, maybe that will get him to back off," Elizabeth laughed. "Enough about him. What about Friday night? Do you and Charles have plans?"

"None yet. We should get together and go out...how about Wicked? I haven't been since last year."

'Wicked' was one of their favorite restaurants, and Elizabeth hadn't been since she and Charlotte had gone a couple of months ago.

"Oh, that's perfect. Should I call Lyddie, see if she can join us?" Elizabeth asked, not entirely sure if she really even wanted Lydia there.

"We should ask her, I suppose. I know you're busy with work, I can give her a call tomorrow. Oh! I almost forgot!" Jane said excitedly, "Don't make any plans for the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Charles and I are coming back to New Seabury, he's planned a big all-day party. You'll have to come, it'll give you a chance to unwind after giving your presentation next week. A lot of our friends and co-workers are coming from Boston, and I'd love for you to meet them."

Jane worked as a paralegal in Boston, and had met Charles in February when she began working at the large law firm where he worked.

"Oh, and Charles invited mum and dad too, so I'll definitely need you there for moral support!"

"Ohhh, he's meeting the parents?" Elizabeth asked, somewhat surprised. "You must be serious about him, because I know you would not let mum within twenty feet of him if you weren't. I will definitely be there...it sounds like just the thing to officially kick off the summer."

"Will is going to be there as well," Jane said hesitantly, "maybe you guys can start fresh."

"Oh, Jane, give it up already. I don't need a fresh start with him, and he most certainly wouldn't be interested in any type of 'start' with me."

"Fine, I'll leave it alone. There will be enough people there, maybe you won't even bump into him."

"One can only hope!"

They said their goodbyes, and as soon as she hung up, she forced all thoughts of William Darcy out of her mind.

* * *

><p>The rest of the day went by fairly quickly, and as Elizabeth was finishing up some work and getting ready to head out to softball practice, her cell phone rang. She didn't recognize the number, so she let it go to voice mail.<p>

Later on, when practice ended (if that's what you want to call it – they were all terribly rusty), she remembered the call and dialed her voice mail.

It was Denny, and he was hoping to get together with her on Wednesday night, to catch up and get reacquainted. She was happy to see him, she really was. it was like running into a long-lost brother.

Unfortunately, seeing him had stirred up memories that Elizabeth would have preferred to keep locked away. When she had returned home Monday night, after MNM, she had slept fitfully, bothered by dreams of the past.

"_You've put all that stuff behind you now, right?"_

Jane had asked her that on the phone, and Elizabeth realized that she never really gave Jane an answer. Had she put it all behind her?

She called Denny back Tuesday night, and agreed to meet him the next night for drinks at The Quarterdeck.

Elizabeth knew she'd have to let Lydia know that Denny was back around. There was no way she could meet up with him and not tell her. Elizabeth had no idea how she would react.

* * *

><p>"Lizzy B!"<p>

Elizabeth heard the familiar nickname called out as she walked into The Quarterdeck. Denny was sitting at the bar, surrounded by a sea of people, two of whom she recognized from work. She said a brief hello to them, and headed over to Denny, who gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

Elizabeth smiled at him, happy to finally have the chance to sit and catch up.

"Did you have dinner?" he asked.

"Umm, not really, no...I ended up working late, so I rode home and had just enough time to change before coming here. I'm kind of hungry, actually."

"Me too...why don't we get a table? I don't think we'll have to wait long"

"Sounds good to me," Elizabeth said, already knowing that she'd get the Pan-Seared Scallop Salad, one of her favorites.

"Be right back," he said, and walked over to talk to the hostess.

She watched as the hostess immediately began smiling at Denny and blushing. Elizabeth giggled as she watched him grin at the young girl, turning on the charm. Instantly, they had a table.

As they got seated, she teased him. "You're such a flirt."

Denny shrugged. "We're sitting, aren't we?" he said innocently.

She laughed outright.

"So tell me what you've been doing since you left the Cape all those years ago. I wish we had stayed in touch."

He opened his menu and shrugged again. "I didn't do much of anything, honestly. I was in New York for a couple of years...totally hated it. Since then, I've been up in Portland, Maine. I really love it there...I'd like to settle there permanently some day."

"What have you been doing, tucked away in Portland?"

He smiled. "Believe it or not, I opened up a little cafe, with a friend. We serve only local organic food, which is all the rage up there. The more natural it is, the better it sells."

"Wow, that's great. You always were a good cook, I remember how much you loved cooking for us...especially when we were all hung over!"

"Yeah, those were the days, huh?" He shook his head, smiling lightly.

"What are you doing back here then? I've never been to Portland, but I've heard it's a great little city."

"It is, you should head up there some time to check it out. It has all the perks of a big city, but on a smaller scale. No pollution, no towering skyscrapers...it's on the water...the food is great, the people are great..." he trailed off, and sighed. "I just wanted to come back to the Cape again, one more time. Just for one more summer. My business partner is taking care of things for a while."

The waiter came over and they placed their orders. Elizabeth looked at Denny, tilting her head, trying to guess what he was about.

"This doesn't have anything to do with my sister, does it?"

Denny looked at her, eyebrows raised. "Why would you say that?"

"Because the years that you were on the Cape were spent with Lydia, that's why."

Denny didn't say anything, but the look on his face spoke volumes. Elizabeth's mouth dropped open slightly. _It couldn't possibly be._

"This _does_ have something to do with my sister! Do you still have feelings for her, after all this time?"

Lydia and Denny started dating when Lydia was eighteen and Denny was nineteen. Elizabeth and Jane were sure that they wouldn't last long, but they managed to make it for five years.

"I thought we were supposed to be catching up...not interrogating each other," Denny said, somewhat miffed at himself for being so transparent. "Do I get to grill you too?"

"Absolutely. I've got nothing to hide," Elizabeth said, grinning. Her smile faltered slightly. "You already know all of my deep, dark secrets, after all."

Denny became serious. "I guess I do." He paused for a moment, not sure how to say what he needed to say. "Just so you know, I've never told anyone about what happened. I kept my word. You were always like the big sister I never had...I missed you a lot after I left."

"I missed you too," Elizabeth said, smiling again, "and I can clearly see that you're trying to change the subject." She definitely didn't want to dredge up all that stuff from the past.

"I'm not trying to change the subject," he said, reaching over the table to take her hand and hold it lightly. "I just want you to know that I never betrayed your confidence." He cleared his throat. "I haven't talked to Jason in years. He wasn't the person I thought he was."

"He wasn't the person I thought he was either. Can we just leave it at that?"

"Sure." He released her hand and smiled lightly at her.

"So, are you really here to see Lydia?" Elizabeth asked, curiosity getting the best of her.

He rolled his eyes. "Am I that obvious? I'd hoped I wasn't."

"Not really. It was just an intuitive guess."

He sighed. "I know we were young...hell, I was only twenty-four when we broke up. I've dated, a lot, since then...but for some reason, I always end up comparing everyone to her. It sounds stupid, but I do." He laughed. "Your sister is crazy, for sure, but man...I just can't shake her."

He looked at her with a touch of sadness in his eyes.

"Are you going to call her?" Elizabeth asked him.

"I don't know if I should. That's where you come in."

"What do you mean, that's where I come in?"

"Can you tell her I'm in town? Give her my number?"

Elizabeth was shaking her head. "Please don't put me in the middle of this!"

"C'mon Lizzy B, can't you help your little bro out?"

She frowned at him. "Don't pull that 'little bro' crap with me. You should just call her yourself."

"What if she just hangs up on me? I think it's better if she hears that I'm in town...from you...and you give her my number. Then, she can take her time, call me when she feels ready. _If_ she feels ready. I don't want to call her out of the blue, she might freak."

"You don't think she'll freak when **I** tell her you're here?" Elizabeth sighed loudly, knowing she would do what he asked. He was there for her when she needed him, and there was no way she wouldn't do what she could for him.

She dropped her head into her hands. "Fine, fine, I'll tell her. I may be seeing her on Friday night, can you wait that long?"

"Sure. Friday is fine."

She looked up to see him grinning from ear to ear. The waitress appeared with their food, and they dug in.

"So, tell me about the guy that was staring at you the other night," he said nonchalantly, in between bites of his pasta.

Elizabeth, about to shove a delectable scallop into her mouth, froze with her fork suspended in mid-air.

"What guy?"

Denny smirked at her. "The tall, dark, pissed-off looking one. You know who I'm talking about, I saw you talking to him at the end of the night."

"Oh...that one. He's no one."

Denny let out a short laugh. "Oh, I don't think he's 'no one.' At least, not if _he_ has anything to say about it."

Elizabeth chewed her scallop, thinking. _"__I was just...looking," _she remembered William saying. Obviously, Denny had noticed.

"He and I had an unfortunate run-in, and I'm afraid we don't like each other very much. He's friends with Jane's boyfriend."

"You may not like him...but no one stares at someone that much because they _don't _like them. He couldn't take his eyes off you."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Elizabeth said, shooting him a look that definitely said they were due for another change of subject.

"Okay, Lizzy, I get it," he said, laughing at her expression. "Turn off those eyes, I'll leave it alone."

* * *

><p>Thursday's staff meeting was just like every other staff meeting...business was taken care of in about fifteen minutes, and then everyone got down to some serious socializing. These 'staff meetings,' naturally, were not <em>real<em> staff meetings...that's what they were called, though, as Bill usually tried to discuss some type of work-related matter...before he realized eventually that no one was listening.

This meeting was no exception. They had all gathered at the Leeside. Elizabeth wanted desperately to leave, but Bill was relentless with questions about the presentation she was giving next week at work. She knew he was looking for an excuse to talk to her, and she also knew that by the end of the night, he would ask her out, once again.

Bill Collins had asked Elizabeth out several times. Technically, they were co-workers, as he was the Research Coordinator at the Reserve, but he had been there longer and had more seniority. He was not very...appealing, to put it nicely. He was short, stocky, slightly balding, and was a bit...oily, for lack of a better word. To be fair, he _was_ very smart. His advances never went beyond asking for dates, or the occasional wink, so she felt she could handle him. Aside from the banter, he was an excellent co-worker, very knowledgeable, and she had learned a great deal from him in her five years at the Reserve.

"Elizabeth, dear, are you listening to me?"

"Sorry, Bill...my mind was wandering. I was just thinking about how much work I still need to do to get ready for the presentation." _Not. I'm thinking of how to get the hell out of here!_

"I'm sure you'll get everything done, you have a full week ahead of you yet." He smiled at her, and she groaned inwardly.

"I'm sure I will too, but there's still a lot to do."

"Don't forget," he said, leaning in further to talk to her, "I'm having a party over the holiday weekend, on Sunday. Lots of people from work, some other friends. I'd love it if you could attend, of course."

Elizabeth cringed. "I'll see...if I can. I'm not sure. My sister is coming in from Boston...I'll have to check to see if...I'm free."

"By all means, by all means," he said, winking at her.

_Yuck._

Someone approached them to ask Bill a question, and she realized it was the perfect opportunity to bolt. She said goodbye quickly, and before Bill could get a word in, she was gone.

* * *

><p>Friday evening found William pacing in his office, back and forth. Georgiana walked down the hall and stood in the doorway, hands on her hips.<p>

"What's the matter with you?" she asked bluntly.

He stopped and looked at her. "Nothing. Why would you think something is the matter with me?"

"Because I can hear you walking back and forth and it's driving me nuts. You're going to wear a hole in the carpet. Why don't you play some music and relax?"

"I am relaxed."

Georgiana looked at him skeptically. "Aren't you going out with Jane and Charles tonight?"

"Yes...are you sure you don't want to come?" William asked her quietly, hoping she would change her mind.

"No...I'd rather be home. I just...not yet. Okay?"

"Okay." He knew better than to push her.

She walked over and picked up one of his guitars and handed it to him.

"Play something. Relax. Stop pacing."

He shook his head. "Fine."

Georgiana left him alone, wondering what he was so uptight about.

He sat on a stool and quietly strummed the strings of the acoustic guitar, randomly playing different chords, and felt himself relaxing slightly. He knew exactly why he was feeling a little...uptight.

Charles had let it 'slip' that Jane's two sisters were joining them tonight. Lydia and Elizabeth.

Elizabeth.

She had popped into his head more times then he cared to admit this week. He found himself thinking about their conversations, as brief...and sharp...as they were. She was clearly very sure of herself...and very sure of her dislike for him.

What bothered him the most was that he wasn't only thinking of their conversations. He would often catch himself thinking of her green eyes, how they had flashed at him, and he knew without question that those eyes could mean trouble.

Then he would find himself thinking about her hair, her bare shoulders...or the way she smiled when she was looking at pretty much anyone else but him. That's when he would berate himself for being an idiot, for letting his mind wander down what would prove to be a pointless path. She wasn't his type, and even if she was, he was not interested in wining and dining a woman at this point in his life.

He glanced at his watch, realizing that it was time to go. He had told Charles he would meet them at the restaurant, only because he wanted to be able to make a quick escape if he needed to. He put his guitar back on its stand and headed out into the great room. Georgiana was sprawled on the couch, reading a book.

"I'm taking off, Georgie. I shouldn't be late. Call me if you need anything."

"Okay...but look, stay out if you're having fun...don't feel like you have to be home early for me. I'm a big girl, you know," Georgiana said, clearly teasing him.

William rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know." He decided to try one more time. "You're sure you don't want to come with? We could leave whenever you wanted."

She shook her head. "No, Will, I don't want to go."

He nodded. "Alright." He walked over and gave her a quick kiss on the head. "Call me -"

"-if anything comes up," she finished for him, "I know, I know." She shook her head. "Go! I'm fine."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth walked into Wicked, running slightly late. Traffic on Route 28 in the summer was a bear, especially on a Friday night. She glanced around and saw Charles standing on the other side of the bar. She smiled as she headed over, ready to have a fun evening. One reason she loved Wicked was that it was so lively. It had a great open design, and was always noisy and bustling with people. The restaurant always drew a good crowd, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, and tonight was no exception.<p>

Just then, she noticed who was standing behind Charles. How convenient that Jane didn't mention that William was coming with them. She spied Lydia, standing next to him, her arm looped through his. She giggled at the look on William's face; he looked like he was in agony. As she walked over, she kept her gaze on him, a small smile forming on her lips. _This will be an interesting night._

"Hello everyone," she said as she approached them.

"Lizzy!" Lydia said excitedly, wrapping Elizabeth in a big hug.

"Hi Lyddie," Elizabeth replied, squeezing her sister.

She cringed a little, taking in her sister's appearance. Lydia had curly hair similar to Elizabeth's, although it was quite a bit lighter in color. The hair, however, was the only similarity between the two sisters.

Lydia was petite, with eyes as blue as Jane's. Tonight, she was all dolled up in a short, tight black leather skirt, a very revealing blouse, high heels, and lots of make-up. She wore her hair swept up and clipped on one side, showing off the large hoop earrings she wore.

Lately, whenever Elizabeth saw her, she seemed to be dressing more and more...trashy. She looked like she was playing the part of the desperate single girl, and it made Elizabeth sad…she was so much prettier without the tight clothing and the heavy make-up.

Elizabeth said hello to Jane and Charles, then turned to William to say a brief hello. He said hello back, his expression flat and stony, as usual.

_Oh, here we go again_, she thought, _his_ _arrogant ass isn't ruining __my__ night_.

"Lizzy, this is Willy," Lydia said, immediately looping her arm back through William's.

Elizabeth grinned, feeling slightly embarrassed. Lydia was obviously in rare form tonight.

"Yes...I know. _Willy_ and I have met already. How are you, Willy?" she said, struggling to bite back the grin forming on her lips.

William saw the glint in her eyes, that spark, and he knew he should just go home now, walk out the door, back to the safety and sanity of his house.

"I'm fine..._Lizzy_," he said quietly, staring straight at her and smiling slightly.

She raised her eyebrows. "Touché," she said quietly.

William tried to be discreet, but he couldn't keep his eyes off of Elizabeth. He removed Lydia's arm from his, for the third or fourth time at least, and excused himself to go to the men's room.

He had to walk away for a moment. _Get it together_, he thought, as he took a deep breath and stared into the mirror. She looked quite _nice _(hot) in her blue jeans and black sandals; her hair was loose and looked _nice _(sexy) falling around her shoulders. She had worn a _nice_ (beautiful) black blouse, and looked very..._nice _(gorgeous). He wouldn't let his mind go any further than that. _Nice_. _She looks nice._

Just as he walked back out, the hostess came over to take them all to a large round table. Lydia immediately grabbed a seat next to William, which Elizabeth was a bit relieved about. _Let her make conversation with him. _Elizabeth sat between Lydia and Jane.

"Well, look at the three of you," Charles said. "Three beautiful sisters, if I do say so myself."

Out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth was positive she saw William roll his eyes slightly as he perused the menu.

Lydia giggled, as she always did. "Ooh, Jane, I like this one. He's much better than those other idiots you've dated."

Jane, who was sipping her wine, nearly choked. Charles looked surprised, but slightly amused, and Will just shook his head and hid behind his menu. Elizabeth glared at Lydia, wondering just how bad this was going to be. She kicked her under the table, which was sister-code for "cut the shit."

"Ow! Lizzy! Watch those monstrous feet of yours!"

Elizabeth closed her eyes briefly, taking a deep breath. "Do you know what you want, Lyddie?"

"No, I haven't even had a chance to read the menu!"

"Why don't you do that now?" Elizabeth said quite pointedly.

"Fine," Lydia said, frowning. She turned suddenly, and leaned over toward William. "What are _you_ getting, Willy?" she asked him, trying her best to be flirtatious.

William leaned slightly away from her. "Um, not sure yet."

"Should we get a few pizzas and share them?" Charles asked. "They have some interesting choices, I can't decide on one."

Everyone agreed to the idea. The waitress came over to take their order, and asked if anyone wanted another drink.

"Margaritas all around!" Lydia called out, and was disappointed when she received a very resounding "NO!" from Elizabeth.

"_You_ can get a Margarita, but none for me, thanks," Elizabeth said. "I'll just have a glass of wine."

William caught Jane and Elizabeth sharing a glance, and both sisters started to laugh. He wondered if there was a story behind that.

As the meal progressed, the pizzas were consumed eagerly, and Elizabeth, to her chagrin, noticed that Lydia was also consuming quite a bit of alcohol. By the end of the meal, she had downed three margaritas, plus she'd had one at the bar before they were seated. She was definitely tipsy, which meant Elizabeth would be driving her home...again. She had planned on talking to Lydia at some point about Denny, but apparently that would have to wait.

There was plenty of lively conversation, and Elizabeth even managed to have short exchanges with William. They were pleasant enough, and she did get the feeling that he was trying, but he still seemed a bit...stiff. He was definitely out of his element, and obviously wanted to be anywhere else other then where he was.

_Why did he even bother coming?,_ she wondered.

"So Will, how's Georgie?" Charles asked.

"Oh, she's fine. Great," William answered, smiling slightly. "I'll tell her you said hello."

"Oooooh, who's Georgie?" Lydia asked, leaning once again on William. "She's not your girlfriend, is she Willy?"

William leaned away from her again, very tempted to lie and say yes. "No, she's my younger sister."

"Oh, that's good," Lydia said, giggling again.

All of a sudden William jumped slightly, and turned to look at Lydia with wide eyes. She looked up at him, giggling again. Elizabeth noticed, and knew exactly what was going on. Charles and Jane were caught up in their own conversation, oblivious to what was happening.

"Do you mind?" she heard William say quietly to Lydia.

"Hmm, I don't mind at all," Lydia said, batting her eyelashes and doing something to make William jump again.

"Lydia!" Elizabeth whispered loudly, yanking on her sister's elbow. "Behave yourself!"

Lydia turned to Elizabeth, brows furrowed. "Mind your own business, prissy Lizzy," she said fairly loudly, slurring her words slightly. "Just because you haven't had a man in ages doesn't mean I can't have my fun."

The conversation between Charles and Jane came to a grinding halt, and there was complete silence at the table. Elizabeth felt herself flushing with embarrassment, and felt the eyes of William, Charles, and Jane on her. Lydia seemed oblivious.

"Lydia!" Jane said, keeping her voice down as low as she could.

"Excuse me," Elizabeth said, as she rose from the table.

"Oh Lizzy," Lydia called after her, "I was only kidding. Loosen up!" She shook her head, not understanding what all the fuss was about. "She's so uptight," she murmured to no one in particular.

"Lydia Marie, that's enough!" Jane said, placing her napkin on the table and standing up to follow Elizabeth. "I think you've had more than enough to drink, don't you?" She walked away, leaving a stunned Charles and a shocked William sitting at the table.

"So, where were we, Willy?" Lydia said, turning and smiling at William.

"You were removing your hand from my...lap...before I do it for you," William said, turning to glare at her, and letting her know in no uncertain terms that her drunken advances were not welcome.

"Lord, you should get together with prissy Lizzy. Two uptight peas in a pod."

"Charles, I think it's time for me to head out," William said, rising from the table. "Sorry to leave you with the mess," he said, as he glanced down pointedly at Lydia. He threw money on the table, enough to cover the bill. "Dinner is on me."

"Will, that it isn't necessary...why don't you stay?" He stood up. "Why don't we call Lydia a cab, get her home safely, and then the four of us can enjoy the rest of the night."

William couldn't stay. He was mortified at what Lydia had said to Elizabeth and how she had acted, and he had a feeling that Elizabeth would be too uncomfortable if he was there.

"Thanks, Charles, but I think it's better if I leave. Give me a call tomorrow, alright?"

Charles sighed. "Alright." He glared down at Lydia, who was now making eyes at some guy at the bar. Charles nodded toward her. "I'm still calling this one a cab though. She's obviously a handful." He chuckled. "Pardon the pun."

William shook his head, rolling his eyes slightly at Charles's bad joke. "Obviously. Tell Jane and Elizabeth I said goodnight."

"I will. Thanks for dinner."

William headed for the exit, feeling a sense of disappointment at how the night had ended. Not that he had expected to have a great time, but...he had expected...well, he didn't know what he had expected. Just not this.

He passed Jane on his way out as she was headed back to the table.

"Are you leaving?" she asked, talking above the noise of the bar.

"I am. I think it's probably better if I do." He looked around for Elizabeth, but she was nowhere to be seen.

Jane shook her head. "I'm so sorry about Lydia. Elizabeth told me what she was doing." She rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry, I really am."

"Don't worry about it." He glanced around again. "Where's Elizabeth? Did she leave?"

"No, she's just outside getting a bit of fresh air. She'll come back in when she's ready."

"Oh, okay. I'll say bye to her on the way out." He attempted a small smile. "Goodnight Jane."

"Goodnight Will."

When he walked out, he saw Elizabeth sitting on a bench outside of the restaurant, leaning back against the building with her eyes closed. He felt an odd beat in his chest, just for a second, and then it was gone. He walked over to the bench.

"Elizabeth?" he said tentatively.

She opened her eyes with a sense of dread, knowing exactly who was standing there.

"William," she said softly, making herself look him in the eyes. "Leaving so soon?"

She sounded defeated, her voice subdued, and he felt a twinge of sadness for her. He nodded slightly. "I'm a little tired, plus I told my sister I wouldn't be gone too long."

She laughed softly. "It's okay. You can say it."

"Say what?"

"I needed to get the hell out of there, and away from your sister."

William looked down briefly, then back up at her. "Oh, well, yes...that too."

Elizabeth laughed again, and he smiled softly at her. She was glad to see that he had a sense of humor lurking in there somewhere.

"So, are you sure you don't want to stick around for the closing act of the Lydia show? Aren't you curious to see the encore?" Elizabeth said, and this time, there wasn't much humor in her voice.

William sat down on the bench next to her. "She's just drunk. She'll be mortified in the morning."

Elizabeth sighed. "No, she won't. That's just it. She won't care." She turned to look at him. "I'm really sorry about her behavior. I'm completely mortified."

"Don't be. A guy likes a good grope every now and again," he said, totally deadpan.

Her jaw dropped open, and she burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" he asked, trying his best to be serious, "You don't believe me?"

"Actually, yes, I do believe you, as sad as that is. I just didn't expect to hear that coming from you."

She smiled at him, and he felt...light. She actually, for once, smiled _at him_. He turned away from her, clearing his throat. "Well...I should get going."

She nodded, still smiling a little. He stood up, and she did as well.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"For what?" he asked, unable to tear his eyes away from hers.

"For being...a gentleman," she said softly, shrugging slightly.

"You're welcome," he said, tipping an imaginary hat to her. "Goodnight Elizabeth."

"Goodnight William."

As Elizabeth walked back into the restaurant, she realized she felt better. _Maybe he's not so bad after all._

* * *

><p><em>Would love to know what you think! Thanks!<em>


	3. Chapter 3

_Okay, so, you've all sweet-talked me with your nice words...I'm posting again, only because this chapter will bring us to a truce between William and Elizabeth. Oh, and once again...it's a long one. Enjoy it, because after this, I'll only be posting once a week. I swear! Thanks again for reading and for reviewing. Cat_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

The next afternoon, as Elizabeth was cleaning her house, she replayed the scene at Wicked over and over again in her head. One of the only semi-bright spots in the evening was that she and William had at least managed to have a civil conversation. He was nice to her when he could have just walked right by and not given her the time of day. It was possible that, lurking under the arrogant facade, he was a decent person.

Her phone rang and she sighed when she saw the caller ID.

"Yes Lydia, what can I do for you?" she answered brusquely.

"Hi Lizzy," Lydia said quietly. "Umm, I just called to apologize for last night."

"Really?" Elizabeth knew better than to think she was sincere. "Do you actually remember what you said? What you were doing?" Elizabeth asked.

"Umm, actually, I don't...but Jane filled me in." She giggled. "Did I really grope that guy?"

Elizabeth sighed, shaking her head. "Goodbye Lydia."

"Oh, Lizzy, wait, don't hang up! For crying out loud," Lydia whined, "why are you so uptight?"

"I'm not uptight, Lydia...you think anyone who isn't drunk and flirtatious is uptight."

"How could I not flirt with that guy sitting right next to me? God, he was gorgeous, wasn't he?"

"That's not the point. You embarrassed him, and you embarrassed Jane and me. You made a fool of yourself. Doesn't that matter to you?" Elizabeth could feel her exasperation building. This wouldn't be the first conversation of its kind that she'd had with Lydia, and probably wasn't the last.

"I'm sorry I _embarrassed_ you...you didn't grab the guys crotch, I did." She giggled again. "And what a handful it was."

Elizabeth closed her eyes. "Ugh. I've gotta go, I can't talk to you anymore. You just don't get it, do you?" She sighed. "I did have something to discuss with you last night, something important, but you know what? It can wait until I feel like talking to you again."

"Wait, what did you have to talk to me about?" Lydia tried to sound contrite. "I'm sorry Lizzy, I really am."

"Me too. Bye Lyddie."

Elizabeth hung up, wondering when her sister had turned into a shameless, drunken floozy. They didn't go out too much together, but when they did, the nights always seemed to end the same way; Lydia getting drunk and hitting on some guy, which led to either Elizabeth, Jane, or even Charlotte taking care of her. It was getting old, fast. She decided that she'd talk to Jane to see if she was agreeable to sitting down with Lydia to talk to her about it. That is, if Lydia would even listen.

Two hours later, guilt got the best of Elizabeth. As much as she didn't want to talk to Lydia again, she knew she needed to relay Denny's message. She had told him she would, and she didn't want to break her word.

She dialed Lydia's cell phone and was relieved when it went to voice mail.

"Lyddie, it's me. Listen, I bumped into Denny this week. That's what I wanted to tell you last night. He's back in town, and he asked me to give you his number. It's -. He'd like you to call him, if you want to." She paused for a second. "Please don't call me back to ask me any questions, okay?" She paused. "Bye Lyddie."

The last thing Elizabeth wanted was to get in the middle of _that _situation. She fulfilled her promise to Denny, that's all she was concerned about.

* * *

><p>The next week flew by for Elizabeth. With the warmer weather, she was trying to squeeze in a run whenever she could, except for the days she biked to work. The Research Reserve's softball team had practiced twice, and was starting to look like a real team again. Playing softball with her co-workers was fun; everyone cut loose, and the games were always competitive but friendly. They were involved in a town league, so they played teams from all different town departments.<p>

Elizabeth had a conference coming up on Thursday, and was giving the lead presentation. She knew she was well prepared, but still felt slightly anxious. She tried to tell herself that giving the first presentation of the day was a _good _thing...everyone will still be waking up, drinking their coffee. As soon as she was done, she could sit back and be a spectator. Having taken Friday off, she was looking forward to her long Memorial Day weekend.

Her presentation was being given at the U.S. Geological Survey building. The Woods Hole National Estuarine Research Reserve, where she worked, had just been awarded a huge grant by the National Research Reserve Science Collaborative. The grant was awarded so that the Research Reserve, in conjunction with several other government groups and two universities, could study the quantity of carbon that was being given off and absorbed by coastal wetland areas.

It was a fairly straightforward topic, one that she felt very comfortable discussing. Since she began working at the Research Reserve, first under a fellowship while still at college, and now as a permanent employee, she had steadily moved up the ranks until becoming Reserve Manager. Being named Project Manager for this grant was a huge accomplishment for her. The project itself was set to span three years, and Elizabeth knew she would have her work cut out for her, but she also knew it was a great opportunity to prove herself.

Before Elizabeth knew it, Thursday morning had arrived, and she was on her way to the USGS building in Woods Hole. She had to drive her jeep, as she had to "dress the part," wearing nice black pants and a bright blue top. She also had entirely too much to carry to ride her bike. Arriving in plenty of time, she set everything up and went to grab a quick cup of coffee.

Her presentation started at nine a.m. sharp, and by nine forty-five, she was done. She received a loud round of applause, and was able to take questions for an additional fifteen minutes.

As she walked off-stage and out into the hall behind the small auditorium, Bill stopped her.

"Excellent job, Elizabeth. I knew you'd pull it off. Very nice."

"Thanks Bill. I'm just relieved it's over, honestly. Even though I've done these things before, my nerves always get the best of me."

"Well, you'd never know it from the view in the cheap seats. It really was fantastic," he said, as he gave her that creepy grin that only he could give. "I thought about how you looked up there, and nervous was not the first thing that came to my mind." He winked.

She looked at him blankly, giving no response or encouragement.

He pressed on. "Do you have any big plans for the holiday weekend? I know I had mentioned to you that I'm having a little get-together at my place on Sunday…just a small group of friends and co-workers…you know, the usual crew. I'd love it if you could stop by."

_Oh damn, _Elizabeth thought, _I forgot about that. _"I'll have to let you know, if that's okay. My sister is coming for the weekend from Boston, so I'd like to spend time with her, and we've already made some plans." _Good thinking, Elizabeth!_ She gave herself a mental pat on the back.

"Well, you could certainly bring her along…I can only imagine how much fun _two _Bennet girls would be," Bill replied, "and of course, as I always say, the more the merrier."

There it was again, that creepy grin. "Like I said, I'll have to let you know."

"Very well, I'll give you a call on Sunday morning, you can let me know what you've decided. Enjoy your days off, my dear, I'll talk to you soon."

With that, he gave Elizabeth another wink and sauntered away. Elizabeth ventured back into the auditorium to watch the rest of the presentations.

* * *

><p>At four o'clock on Thursday, Elizabeth's weekend had officially begun. She called Jane to verify plans for Saturday, and asked her if Charles would mind if Charlotte tagged along to the cook-out. Charlotte Lucas was Elizabeth's best friend, and had been since they were in first grade together. She was an RN at the local hospital, and was always up for a party.<p>

"I'm sure Charles won't mind if she comes, and I'd love to catch up with her," Jane said, "plus, there will be plenty of single men there, so she'll be in heaven!"

"Thanks – I'm sure I won't have to twist her arm," Elizabeth said, laughing. "Bill wants me to stop by his house on Sunday for a little 'get together' he's having. I don't really want to go, but I feel like I'll be slighting him if I don't, especially since just about everyone else from work is going. I may have to suck it up and go."

"Ugh, that's a tough one. Why don't you see if Charlotte will go with you to that too? Promise her that there will be some single guys there as well, and she'll happily go, I'm sure."

Elizabeth laughed again. "The way we talk, you'd think Charlotte was desperate! If she could hear us, she'd kill us both."

"No, she wouldn't," Jane argued, "she'd agree with us, and you know it!"

"Actually, I mentioned to Bill that my _sister_ was coming to town for the weekend," Elizabeth said casually, "and he indicated that he'd _love _to meet you...you could join Charlotte and me, you know." Elizabeth was only teasing; she knew Jane would never agree to it.

"Oh, I'm _so sorry_ Lizzy, but Charles and I are having lunch with mum and dad on Sunday, so I just won't be able to fit in another party. I'm so, so sorry."

Jane tried to stifle her laughter, without much success.

"I'm sure you are," Elizabeth replied drolly. "Anyway, I'll just pop in, stay for a bit, and find an excuse to leave. Make an appearance, so to speak. Call me tomorrow to let me know what you want me to bring for the cookout, and I'll see you Saturday."

"Sounds great sis. Talk to you soon."

"Bye Jane."

* * *

><p>William's week and a half didn't go quite as quickly as Elizabeth's. He managed to get a lot of work done from his home office in New Seabury, but he honestly didn't know how much longer he could be out of Boston. He needed to make an appearance soon.<p>

Georgiana seemed to be doing better, but he could tell that she was more comfortable when he was home. He certainly didn't mind spending so much time with her; his presence made her feel secure, and he liked being able to keep an eye on her.

They stayed in at night, watching movies or reading quietly. Occasionally, Georgie sat at the piano and played, but it was rare. Her heart just didn't seem to be in it. Sometimes they played Wii, which always ended up with the two of them laughing hysterically at each other, especially when Georgiana convinced William to play "Dance Dance Revolution." As much as he hated to dance and gyrate around, he would play that game as often as she liked, as long as it made her laugh.

During the day, Georgiana didn't venture much further than the deck or the property surrounding the main house. Once in a while, William was able to talk her into walking with him on the beach, but she truly was freaked out about the incident with Elizabeth Bennet, so it took a while for him to assure her that it was safe.

A couple of days before the party, William had been talking to Charles on the phone, and decided to tell him that he was the 'arrogant man' that had argued with Elizabeth on the beach that day.

Initially, Charles was surprised, but only briefly. He knew about everything that Georgiana had been through, so he understood why William reacted the way he did. He also had no qualms whatsoever in telling William that he had drastically misjudged Elizabeth.

"How do you know I misjudged her? You've only met her a few times now," William asked Charles. That little feeling of guilt that he had shoved to the back of his mind almost two weeks ago was rearing its ugly head again.

"Well, because she's Jane's sister, and Jane says nothing but good things about her," Charles replied, a bit defensively. "She's obviously very smart, and very nice."

"Well, perhaps you only _think_ she's nice because she's Jane's sister, and you want to believe she's as perfect as your 'angel,' because Jane couldn't _possibly_ be related to someone who isn't as _equally_ angelic."

Charles could tell by William's tone of voice that he was giving him a hard time.

"Okay, Darcy, you think what you want. But I'm telling you right now, Elizabeth is coming here for the cook-out, and Mr. and Mrs. Bennet will be here as well, so you had better behave yourself. Try to be pleasant...don't just stand there, glaring at everyone."

It took a lot for Charles to speak that way to William, and even though he was only being half-serious as well, he still wanted to get the point across.

"Once again, I will be the perfect gentleman," William said dryly, thinking back to when Elizabeth had thanked him for being a gentleman when they were at Wicked.

"Sure. I've heard that one before," Charles grumbled. "Look, if Georgiana is coming with you, you're going to need to tell her about Elizabeth, don't you think? She may recognize her."

William contemplated that for a moment. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. I'll talk to her about it soon. In the meantime, can you please not say anything to Jane? I don't know if Elizabeth has told her yet that it was me that day, and I'd rather she hear it from Elizabeth, instead of you. It will only lead to questions about Georgiana."

Charles didn't hesitate. "Of course, you have my word on that. No worries."

William finished his call with Charles and put his phone down on the desk in his office. He opened the top drawer and pulled out the black and white pictures that Elizabeth had taken of him and Georgiana. He flipped through them slowly. A vision of big, beautiful green eyes popped into his head.

He immediately dropped the pictures back into the drawer and firmly closed it.

* * *

><p>The day before the cookout, William decided to tell Georgiana the whole story regarding that afternoon on the beach. They were sitting on the deck, enjoying the sunshine, and although William didn't drink much, he decided to indulge in a cold beer, while Georgiana was content to have sparkling water.<p>

He told her everything...about the ill-fated dinner at Charles's house, and seeing Elizabeth again at Monday Night Madness. He then filled her in on what happened at Wicked. He told her about his telephone conversation with Charles, and waited to see her reaction.

Georgiana had known that William had gone to the woman's house the next day to get the pictures, but didn't know that he had seen her at Charles's house the night of the whole debacle at the beach.

"Why didn't you tell me all this to begin with?" she asked him. "Why did you feel like you had to keep it from me?"

"I honestly didn't think it would be worth telling you," William sighed. "I didn't want you to know that Elizabeth was Jane's sister, because I know how much you care about Charles, that he's like another brother to you. I didn't want you to feel uncomfortable around him, knowing that it was his girlfriend's sister that had taken those pictures of us that day."

Georgiana mulled this over in her head, and realized he was just looking out for her, as usual.

"Does Jane know that it was us on the beach?" she quietly asked him.

"From what Charles says, he doesn't think she does," he answered. "She probably would have said something to him. She hasn't let on that she knows anything."

Again, Georgiana was silent. William could practically see the wheels spinning in her head. She finally spoke again. "I think that I'll stay home and skip the cookout, if that's okay. I don't think I'm ready to be out in such a big crowd yet, and I don't want you to have to hover over me all day."

William was about to try to talk her into going, then thought better of it. "You know that whatever you decide is fine with me. Would you like me to stay home with you? You know I will if you want me to."

"No, I'll be fine. You go without me. Besides, Mrs. Reynolds will be here all weekend, I'm sure she and I will find something to do. Maybe I can talk her into giving me some cooking lessons!"

They both laughed a little at that...Georgiana was not very talented in the kitchen, as William had been finding out over the past four months. Thank God for take-out, because his culinary skills were nothing to brag about either.

"If you need me to come home, just call me, and I'll come right away. I feel like I'm not being a very good big brother, leaving you for the day." William looked at her solemnly.

"You are the best big brother a girl could ask for, there's no one better." She got up to give him a bear hug, which he returned wholeheartedly. "Thanks for telling me about Elizabeth. I have to be honest with you though...it sounds as though you weren't very nice to her."

William looked surprised, then he shrugged. "I wasn't. Well, at first I wasn't. I think the last time I saw her, I may have redeemed myself a little."

"Maybe. A little." She grinned up at him. "Have fun at the party tomorrow. And remember, you said you'd be the perfect gentleman. I expect a full report when you get home."

She reached up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"Yes ma'am," he smiled back.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth got up Saturday morning and went for her usual run. She was looking forward to the day ahead of her...the sun was shining, and the temperature was expected to be in the high 60's. A perfect day for a cookout.<p>

At two o'clock, she was ready and waiting for Charlotte. She was dressed casually, in her favorite pair of faded denim capris, topped off with a plain white sleeveless blouse with a deep v-neck, which nicely showed off the beginnings of a tan. It didn't take her long to get color, even with sunscreen. She threw on a decent pair of sandals, although she knew she'd be barefoot before long anyway, as she tried to avoid shoes as often as possible when the weather got warmer. She had pulled her hair back into a loose ponytail, and had put on some small silver hoop earrings and a silver Cape Cod necklace with matching bracelet. At the last moment, she decided to paint her toenails a bright shade of red, just for a little color splash, and slipped on a little silver toe ring.

Minutes later, Charlotte pulled up in her bright blue VW bug. Elizabeth put her sunglasses on, and off they went.

* * *

><p>When they arrived at Charles's house in New Seabury, they were amazed to see the amount of people there...on the deck, in the house, on the lawn, and on the beach. There had to be at least a hundred people! <em>How on earth am I going to find Jane? <em>Elizabeth thought.

Not surprisingly, Charlotte immediately bumped into someone she knew, so Elizabeth left her friend and went searching for Jane. Walking into the kitchen, she found a catering staff, looking extremely busy. _No wonder she told me not to bring anything. I should have known!_ She walked through the house and out onto the deck, deciding that it would be the best vantage point for finding Jane.

The first person her eyes came to rest on was William Darcy. _It figures. _He was standing on the beach, right next to the gate, talking to a tall brunette woman. She took the opportunity to look him over from behind her sunglasses.

_I have to admit...he definitely stands out in a crowd. _He had to be at least 6'2" or 6'3". He wore aviator sunglasses, a pair of plaid "board" shorts in dark tones, a crisp white short-sleeved polo shirt that he left untucked, and no shoes. Elizabeth decided he also looked as though he had the beginnings of a tan, and that he was obviously in good shape, from the looks of his arms and legs...and shoulders. He stood with both arms crossed over his chest, looking as arrogant as ever. _Admit it Lizzy, he is undeniably gorgeous_.

The brunette he was talking with was dressed to the nines. She had a sundress on, the color of which could only be described as burnt orange. She wore matching high heels, a large matching hat, and _huge_ sunglasses that made her resemble a bug. It was all a bit much. She looked like she belonged at the Kentucky Derby; all she needed to complete the ensemble was a mint julep. Elizabeth giggled at her own joke, and continued to scan the crowd for Jane. She finally spotted her on the lawn, and headed down to say hello.

* * *

><p>"Hello William! How are you, darling? It's been so long, <em>too<em> long, really."

William cringed inwardly at the voice coming to him across the sand. He had just reached the gate to Charles's yard, and was ready to head in, when Caroline Bingley spotted him.

She tottered over to him, barely keeping her balance in her ridiculous heels, and gave him an 'air kiss' on each cheek. "It's _so_ good to see you, darling, we miss you in Boston. Where have you been hiding yourself?" She tried to wrap her hand around one of his arms.

"I haven't been hiding anywhere, Caroline, I've just been enjoying some time off with Georgiana."

"Oh, and how is Georgiana? Still as beautiful as ever, I'm sure?" she batted her eyelashes several times at William, and it was all he could do to keep a straight face.

"Yes, Caroline, she's as beautiful as ever," he said flatly. "She's sorry she couldn't make it today, she's a little under the weather." He was trying to discreetly remove her vice-like grip from his arm.

"I'm sure Charles will be quite disappointed. He _so_ looks forward to spending time with her."

The implication in Caroline's words was not missed by William. She had it in her head, for many years now, that Charles would someday marry Georgiana, and that William would marry her. _She's completely clueless, _he thought. _Is she even aware that her brother is mad about another woman?_

He started to step away from her. "I'm sure Charles will manage just fine without her. If you'll excuse me, I see someone I need to speak with."

He walked through the gate and into the yard as fast as he could, knowing Caroline would never keep up in those shoes. He spotted Charles standing with Jane over near the bar that had been set up, and made a beeline toward them. At the last minute, he noticed Elizabeth standing with them.

"Will!" he heard Charles yell. "Hey, you made it. Where's Georgie?"

"She's not feeling great, unfortunately. She decided to stay home and get some TLC from Mrs. Reynolds. She said to pass on her regrets." He looked at the sisters. "Hello again Jane, Elizabeth." He gave a slight smile and a nod to both of them.

"Hello William," Elizabeth said quietly.

"Hi Will. You didn't happen to bring your guitar, did you?" Jane asked with a mischievous grin.

Elizabeth did a double-take. _Guitar?_

William turned and glared at Charles. "And how would you happen to know that I play the guitar?"

Charles averted his gaze, suddenly finding something very interesting up in the sky to stare at.

"Oh, a little bird told me," Jane replied, elbowing Charles in the ribs. "I was hoping you'd bring it, maybe entertain us later when the band is done. You could sing a little song around the campfire."

She grinned at William to let him know she was teasing, and Elizabeth had to bite her lip to stifle a laugh.

Jane went on. "Charles says you're very good, actually. I was hoping you'd play for us."

William was still glaring at Charles, but managed to force a smile. "Charles is too kind. I fool around with it a bit, but..." he glanced around, "this is kind of a big crowd...so no campfire songs tonight. Maybe another time."

As the four of them stood there making small talk, Elizabeth could feel William's eyes on her frequently. It seemed he was trying to be subtle about it, but she could tell he was watching her. She ignored it, thinking that he was reverting back to his previous ways. Maybe their short conversation at Wicked was a fluke.

Somehow, they always ended up standing together within the same group of people, usually with Charles and Jane and various co-workers of theirs. Elizabeth noticed that occasionally, a man or a woman would come up and shake William's hand, saying, "Hello Mr. Darcy", or "Nice to see you, Mr. Darcy", or "How are you today, sir?", and he would answer them all, by name.

_What the heck is this all about? Who is this guy? _Elizabeth's curiosity got the best of her. Using the bathroom as an excuse, she dragged Jane away. They headed into the house, and Elizabeth pulled Jane into the bathroom with her and shut the door.

"Alright Jane, why is everyone calling him Mr. Darcy?"

"Well, because that's his name, of course," Jane answered coyly.

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. "You know what I mean. Who is he to all these people?" She was beginning to feel frustrated, like maybe she had missed something.

"I thought he wasn't your type, Lizzy?" Elizabeth gave Jane "the look," and Jane smiled, knowing when to give in.

"Alright, alright. He's the owner and CEO of RJD Properties. The law firm that Charles and I work for represents him. He's our biggest client. I didn't know that at first, as I don't actually _do_ any work involving his company. Whenever I heard anything being discussed in regards to him, it was always by his corporate name, not his own name. A lot of the people here, though, work almost exclusively for him, and Charles said Will has made it a priority to learn their names."

"Oh. So...is he Charles' boss?" Elizabeth wanted to know the specifics.

"Well, technically, Charles is employed by the law firm, but he works exclusively for Will and his interests," Jane explained.

"Hmm. Okay, I get it now. Thanks for explaining. Can you leave? I have to use the facilities."

Jane rolled her eyes, stepped out, and went back to the party. A few minutes later, Elizabeth emerged from the house. She stood once again on the deck, looking down at the festivities below, and this time it was William's chance to observe her from behind the disguise of his sunglasses.

He had been watching her as they had mingled with other people throughout the afternoon. God knows he tried _not_ to look at her, but his eyes were continually pulled in her direction whenever she was near. He couldn't help it, it was as if they had a mind of their own.

She really was attractive, beautiful even, but in such a wholesome way, "beautiful" wasn't the first word that came to mind. Earthy, maybe, but then he decided _earthy_ made him think of someone who was more like a hippie.

_She's like an "Ivory Girl," _he finally concluded, remembering the soap commercials from his youth. He noticed that once again, she wore no makeup, but she didn't need any. Her skin had a radiant, natural glow to it, and the sparkle in her eyes needed no enhancement. _Those eyes are amazing_.

She was of average height, and looked like she was in good shape. He remembered hearing her tell Charles that she liked to run. She was pleasantly curvy in all the right places, and her white blouse and capris showed off toned arms and legs. Her hair was beautiful, dark brown curls shining in the sun. He noticed she had already kicked off her shoes, and had spied the bright red polish on her toes...and the toe ring.

It was her eyes that he kept coming back to, though. Again and again, he found himself wanting to stare at them. He watched as she lowered her sunglasses, almost as if she had sensed that someone was watching her.

She was intelligent as well, he knew that from the first night he met her, when he did manage to listen to bits of her conversation with Charles. Even here, listening to her converse with people, her intelligence shone. She spoke about her work with enthusiasm, and seemed comfortable asking people questions about what they did. She could carry a conversation with someone she had just met with ease. On the flip side of that, it seemed she could be quite silly when she wanted to be, as he witnessed during her interactions with Jane. It was clear that the two were very close, as sisters and as friends, and shared the same sense of humor.

He watched as a red-headed woman approached her on the deck, handed her a beer, and said something to her. Elizabeth threw her head back and laughed, and he couldn't take his eyes off her. They continued to laugh and chat, and then she turned and caught his eye. Even with her sunglasses on, he could tell she was looking at him. She took a sip of her beer, looked away, and started talking to the red-head once again.

_Time to be the perfect gentleman._

Elizabeth noticed William and was caught off guard, once again, by his stare. She knew he was looking at her, even though he had his sunglasses on. She wished he would just...stop. As far as she was concerned, they needed only to be civil to each other. Their incident on the beach was officially in the past, and she was more than ready to leave it there.

She noticed he had started walking toward the deck, and all of a sudden she knew, somehow, that he was heading her way. For a moment, she wanted to dash off, but realized that would be like giving in. She would _not_ let him intimidate her. As she continued to talk to Charlotte, she became aware of his presence next to her.

"Hello again Elizabeth," he said as he approached, "having fun?"

"Yes, thanks. You?" She plastered a grin to her face.

Before he could answer, Elizabeth felt Charlotte's elbow digging into her side. "Oh, sorry. William, this is a very good friend of mine, Charlotte Lucas. Charlotte, this is William Darcy."

Charlotte held out her hand and leaned in slightly toward William. "So nice to meet you," she said, in what Elizabeth assumed was supposed to be a sultry voice. She didn't quite nail it though.

"It's nice to meet you as well," William said. He shook her hand lightly, but Charlotte didn't seem to realize she was then supposed to let his go. She couldn't take her eyes off of him! After a few seconds, she came to her senses and released his hand.

"Lizzy, would you mind showing me where the bathroom is?" Charlotte grabbed her hand and started to lead her away.

Elizabeth looked at William, raised her eyebrows, gave him a small smile and said, "Excuse us," as Charlotte led her into the house.

Once inside, Charlotte cornered her in the hallway. "Alright, spill it Bennet. Who is that gorgeous hunk of man, is he single, and can I have him?" Elizabeth couldn't help but laugh at Charlotte's reaction to William.

"I thought you were going to hold his hand for the rest of the day!" Lizzy laughed, as she removed her sunglasses.

"Well, it was awfully hard to let it go, let me tell you. How do you know him?"

Elizabeth explained that she had met him through Jane and Charles, and that as far as she knew, he was single. She also told Charlotte that she thought he wasn't very nice, and that he had actually been quite rude to her.

Charlotte looked at Elizabeth as if she was daft. "Who cares if he's rude? Did you see him? Did you _smell_ him? Yum! He can be as rude as he wants, honey."

Here was the Charlotte that Elizabeth and Jane were talking about earlier. When she saw something – or someone – that she wanted, she was a force to be reckoned with.

"I'm going to hit the ladies room, get a drink, and come up with a plan." With that, Charlotte left Elizabeth standing alone in the living room.

Looking outside, Elizabeth could see that William was still standing on the deck, talking to a couple of guys, sipping a beer. _Maybe I can just slip past him without being noticed. _She slipped her sunglasses back on and headed toward the slider.

Once on the deck, she tried to sneak to the stairs without being seen, but he spotted her instantly. Excusing himself from the conversation, he walked over to her and effectively blocked her access to the stairs.

"What is it about me that inspires trips to the bathroom?" he asked, quite seriously.

Elizabeth didn't know what to say. Then he smiled...really smiled...revealing an impressive set of dimples. He noticed the puzzled look on her face, and his smile faltered a little.

"I'm just giving you a hard time, I don't really expect you to answer that," he said quietly.

She said nothing, wondering if he was actually attempting to joke with her or tease her again. She had caught a glimmer of humor at Wicked, but still didn't know how to take him.

Realizing she was going to remain silent, William decided to say what was on his mind.

"Umm...listen, we got off to a really bad start. I acted like a jerk on the beach that day." He looked out toward the ocean for a moment and shifted his feet uncomfortably, before turning to look at her again.

"Without going into detail, I had my reasons, and you really caught me off guard...with the cameras. Then, when I saw you again at Charles's house that night..." He sighed and looked away again. "I was just...very _annoyed,_ and I said some not-so-nice things...which I'm fairly certain you overheard." He stopped, ran a hand through his hair, and shifted his feet again.

"To top it all off, when I saw you in Woods Hole, I was in a horrible mood and I really didn't want to be there."

"Gee, really? It was hard to tell." Sarcasm dripped from Elizabeth's voice.

He stared at her for a few seconds, willing himself not to give into the grin that was suddenly trying to form on his lips. _She's a tough one_, he thought.

"And then, at that restaurant...Wicked...well, no sense rehashing _that,_"he said, rolling his eyes slightly. "Look, I'm not trying to make excuses...I just want to apologize, for all of it."

Elizabeth was a little surprised to hear the words coming out of his mouth. He seemed a little uncomfortable broaching the subject with her, but she wasn't about to let him off the hook too easily. She stayed silent, waiting for him to finish.

"I realize I can be...umm...judgmental. Well, Charles actually_ helped_ me realize that. I think it would be nice, though, if we could try to get along. With Charles and Jane pretty much joined at the hip, we're bound to see a lot of each other, especially this summer. I don't want you to think I'm an arrogant jerk, so I just wanted to say that I'm sorry." He cleared his throat. "I hope you'll accept my apology and give me a chance to change your opinion of me."

Elizabeth just kept looking at him, trying to sketch his character, but having no luck.

"Are you going to say something, or is this conversation going to be entirely one-sided?" he asked in an exasperated tone. "Come on, I'm really not that bad." He gave her a self-deprecating smile.

_This is the last conversation I expected to have today, _Elizabeth thought. "Does this mean you'll stop staring at me like you want to kill me?"

William laughed, caught off-guard by her blunt manner, then cleared his throat. "I can't promise that I'll stop staring at you, but I will try to do so with a...less homicidal look on my face."

She didn't even want to _try_ to figure out what that statement actually meant, and instead continued to look at him. _He really is handsome, especially when he smiles_. Acting on impulse, she asked him to take his sunglasses off. She wanted to see the expression in his eyes. He raised his eyebrows, but did as she asked.

For a moment, they just stared at each other.

_His eyes are the color of...root beer candy,_ she thought.

"Now that I've shown you mine, don't you think you should show me yours?" he asked quietly, a grin tugging at his lips once again. He never took his eyes from hers.

Elizabeth removed her sunglasses and stared back at him. He felt his heart skip a beat, and he was aware that an alarm was going off somewhere in the back of his mind. He chose to ignore it.

At first she didn't know what to think, but looking into his eyes had decided it for her. She thought she could see sincerity there. "Apology accepted," she said.

He continued to stare at her. "Great," he said quietly. "Friends?"

He held out his hand. She reached out to take it, and he gently shook hers, really just holding it. His grip was firm but gentle.

"Friends," she replied.

"Lizzy! There you are, my dear, I've been looking all over for you!" Elizabeth's mother, Fran Bennet, was yelling quite loudly to her from the lawn below the deck. Elizabeth cringed and quickly pulled her hand from William's. Both of them replaced their sunglasses and turned toward the grass below.

As Mrs. Bennet came up the stairs, she called out to Elizabeth. "There are so many people here, you know how large crowds vex me!"

"Hello mum." Elizabeth turned back to William, her face slightly pink. "Excuse me."

"Of course," William replied. He turned and walked into the house, feeling as though their conversation wasn't quite finished.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth's mum kissed her on the cheek, then looked Elizabeth up and down. "My dear, dressing like that will not get you any attention from a man. You must have something nicer you could have worn, don't you think? Look at Jane, in her beautiful sundress. She knows what she needs to do to keep her Charles interested."<p>

"It's nice to see you too mum," Elizabeth replied drolly. "Do you think you could try to criticize me a little less loudly? Where's dad?"

"He's inside the house, probably sitting in the library. You know your father, dear, a good book is all he needs to make him happy."

"Well, let's go find him, shall we?" Elizabeth led her mother into the house, noticing that William was nowhere to be seen. They found the 'library,' which was actually just Charles's office. Mr. Bennet was seated in a plush leather chair, perusing a book about eastern shorebirds. He looked up at the sound of someone entering the room.

"There she is, my favorite girl," he said with a smile on his face. He stood to give Elizabeth a hug and a peck on the cheek.

"Hi dad," she said, returning the hug. "Why are you sitting in the house? It wouldn't hurt for you to get a little sun, you know. Some Vitamin D is good for you."

"I am perfectly content to sit here, undisturbed by the younger crowd, reading this lovely book. I will leave the carousing and the sun-worshiping to you silly young ones – oh, and your mother, of course."

"Oh, very funny, David," Elizabeth's mother said, poking him in the chest. "You'll need to eat eventually, so don't stay here all day. Come, Lizzy, let's go meet some of the nice young gentlemen that have come to the party, Jane swears there's scads of single ones here, young lawyers and businessmen, all with perfectly decent incomes, I'm sure!"

"Mother, _please. _I don't need Jane's help, and certainly not _your _help, finding a man. I'm really not looking right now anyway."

"Well at least get out there and _mingle, _my child. Of course, dressed as you are, you may have to work a little harder on getting some attention...maybe Jane has an extra dress you can wear! Let's go find her."

"Mother, Jane is three inches taller than me, not to mention a tad bit more...endowed. Anyway, I'm quite happy with what I'm wearing, thank you. I'm quite comfortable."

"Franny, for heaven's sake, leave the girl alone. She looks adorable. Scientists don't go prancing around in fancy dresses, do they Lizzy?" Mr. Bennet looked at his daughter and gave her a quick wink.

"Not usually, dad." _Thank you,_ Elizabeth mouthed to him.

"Oh, alright, alright...we won't change your clothes, but at least get outside and _**mingle**_!"

* * *

><p>Elizabeth left her parents in Charles's office and headed back outside, down to the grass. Charles had hired a band and they were just getting into their first set. She immediately recognized the music of O.A.R as the band launched into "This Town," one of their newer songs.<p>

She thought back to the O.A.R. concert that she, Jane, Lydia, and Charlotte had attended in Boston last fall, at the Pavilion. They had all been having such a good time...until Lydia drank too much and got sick, and the three of them had ended up babysitting her for the rest of the night.

She started singing along, and spotted Jane doing the very same thing across the yard from her. Elizabeth quickly walked over to her, and they both started dancing to the music and singing along. Charles stood there, looking very amused, and to be honest, totally besotted. Soon, dozens of people were dancing away on the lawn, enjoying the music and the sunshine.

Little did Elizabeth know that while she was dancing, she was being watched once again. From up on the deck, William couldn't keep his eyes off of her as she swayed and moved her hips to the music, lifting her arms over her head, singing and laughing with Jane.

Caroline Bingley, however, couldn't keep her eyes off of William, and therefore couldn't help but notice that his eyes were glued to the little chit that was shaking her booty with Charles's new love.

_An interesting development, _Caroline thought. _Time to do a little investigating. _She walked over to Charles and pretended to be delighted by the dancing.

"Lovely party, as usual, Charles," Caroline said, "Jane and her little friend seem to be enjoying the music."

"Thanks Caroline. Oh, that's Jane's younger sister Elizabeth, she lives here on the Cape."

"Jane's sister? How nice! And she lives...here? All the time? How...quaint. You _must _introduce us, I would _dearly_ love to get to know Jane's family," Caroline said, a little too sweetly.

Charles looked at his sister as if she had suddenly sprouted a second head. She didn't fool him for a second. He watched as she looked up toward the deck. He followed her eyes, and soon saw who they rested on. _ Ha...Will, of course. _He then realized that Will was watching Elizabeth. _Hmm._

"Caroline, whatever you're thinking, stop. Jane's family is _off limits _to you. Understand?"

"Why, whatever do you mean Charles?" Caroline sniffed. "I'm just trying to make the effort to get to know your 'angel' and her family better...they may very well become my family someday, too." She nearly grimaced as she said it.

"Just don't get any ideas in that head of yours. I won't have it."

Caroline knew when to leave well enough alone. "Fine, Charles, I'm sure we'll have an opportunity to meet another time." She smiled up at him and patted his cheek. "I'm going into the house, I fear I'm getting a bit too much sun, and I don't want to tan." She wobbled away.

After dancing with Jane to four songs, Elizabeth was ready for a break and a cold beer. She and Jane went to the bar and then headed over to Charles, and the three were soon joined by William.

"Great band, Charles!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "They really got the crowd going." Some people had decided to dance out on the beach as well. They stood there for a while, making small talk and sipping their drinks.

After finishing her beer, Elizabeth still felt warm from dancing and looked longingly out at the ocean.

William noticed the direction of her gaze. "Would you...like to go for a walk down by the water?" he asked her, hesitating slightly.

Elizabeth was sure that the surprise she felt at the invitation must have shown on her face, but she tried to mask it. "Sure," she shrugged, and walked with him out of the yard and down toward the shoreline.

* * *

><p>Neither said anything until they reached the water's edge. As they walked along slowly, William brought up their previous conversation.<p>

"I really am sorry, you know, for everything that happened that day on the beach..."

Elizabeth stopped him, knowing she had to say something to him as well. She turned to look at him, and saw that he was watching her intently.

"Before you say anything more, I need to apologize to you too. It certainly wasn't all your fault. I shouldn't have taken your picture. I was invading your privacy, and it was very presumptive of me to think it was okay. I get carried away sometimes, I guess. I was actually hoping your sister would have come along today, so I could apologize to her as well."

"She's the reason I reacted the way I did," William explained. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not using her as an excuse...she's just been through a lot lately, and I have a tendency to be the over-protective big brother at times."

They walked along in silence again, still feeling awkward with each other. Finally, William broke the silence and asked her a question. "What is it that you get carried away with?"

She gave him a quizzical look.

"You just said you get carried away," he clarified. "What do you mean?"

She thought for a moment before answering, not wanting to sound foolish.

"When I take pictures...it's hard to explain. It's just...it's all about trying to capture a moment, or a feeling. Sometimes I'll see something, and it will make me feel a certain way. I want to capture that. I try to have my pictures convey the way something, or someone, made me feel. Some people can pick up on it, but not everyone can. It's...like I said, it's hard to explain."

She looked down at the sand as they walked, feeling as though she had revealed entirely too much of herself. She looked up at him. "I'm sure you think it sounds ridiculous."

William turned to look at her, and noticed the defiant look on her face and the gleam in her eye, as if she was challenging him. He thought about the way he felt when he first looked at the pictures she had taken of him and Georgie sitting on the jetty, and thought that he knew exactly what she was talking about.

He shook his head. "No, it doesn't sound ridiculous at all."

She looked away from him, back out to the ocean, feeling her face become slightly warm with embarrassment.

"Why didn't you pursue photography as your career?" he asked her. "What made you get into oceanography?"

"I wanted to save the whales and the seals, of course." She couldn't resist the jibe.

William cringed and looked at her. "I really said that, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did," she said, trying to be stern and failing miserably, "and just for the record, I haven't had experience saving either."

She paused for a moment, looking out at the expanse of blue water in front of them. "I actually studied Environmental Science. Growing up here gave me an appreciation for the ocean. It's like an old friend. I never get tired of looking at it, listening to it, smelling it...I just wanted to do something with my life that would enable me to be near it, and to help take care of it."

Once again, she felt herself blush slightly. "Sorry. I have a tendency to ramble, in case you haven't noticed."

"You weren't rambling," he said quietly, as she turned to look out at the water.

The expression on her face as she gazed at the ocean could only be described as peaceful...or maybe _blissful_ was a better description. He found himself staring at her again, and pulled his eyes away from her as they walked further down the beach.

"Where did you go to school?" he asked.

"I got my bachelors and my masters at Boston University."

He nodded appreciatively. They walked along, once again in silence.

"What about you?" she asked, looking up at him. "When you're not berating amateur photographers, what is it exactly that you do?"

He saw her grin, and shook his head at her choice of words, unable to hide his answering smile. "I work in real estate."

She waited for him to continue. When he didn't, she looked at him and said, "..._and_...?"

"And...that's it, really. The company has been in my family for years, and when my father died, I took it over."

"What type of real estate?"

"Corporate."

She waited for him to continue, and when it became obvious that he wasn't going to, she asked another question.

"Okay, so what exactly does a 'corporate real estate' company do? Buy and sell office buildings?"

"Well...kind of, yes," he said, thinking it odd that she was actually interested. "We invest in buildings that are vacant, or becoming vacant due to the economy."

He glanced at her and saw that she was listening closely, so he continued. "New construction isn't always feasible in large cities, so the supply of office space can be somewhat limited. Existing buildings are attractive and valuable. We own buildings in Boston, San Francisco, New York, and D.C. We also just completed construction on the first 'green' office building in Boston."

"Wow, that's quite an accomplishment. Very 'forward thinking' of you." She had to admit, she was a little impressed.

As engrossed in their conversation as they had been, they weren't aware of how far they had walked. Looking up, Elizabeth realized they were in front of the inn where they had their very first ill-fated meeting. William realized their location at the same time.

"Ah, we return to the scene of the crime!" he said, half-jokingly. He looked at his watch. "Almost two weeks ago to the minute, we were having a very unpleasant conversation. I believe you said I was "berating" you. I think you used the word "accosting" at one point too."

"I have a saying about the past," Elizabeth said, "and that is, 'remember it only as it gives you pleasure.' Maybe we can both agree to forget about what happened here. What do you think?"

"Consider it forgotten." They smiled slightly at each other, both feeling relieved that things had turned in a different direction. "We should head back before we're missed too much."

They turned back and began talking again. William told her a little about his college years at Harvard, and his ongoing rivalry with the 'Yaley,' Charles. Elizabeth told him about the presentation she had given at work during the week. Once again, he noticed how enthusiastic and confident she was when she talked about her work.

He asked her to tell him more about Monday Night Madness, and she laughed and said, "What happens at Madness, stays at Madness." She mentioned that the bartender was an old friend, an ex of her sister Lydia's. For some reason, he felt relief when he heard that.

She asked him about his guitar playing, which he told her "is...or was...a well-guarded secret." From there, they discovered they had similar tastes in music, and they began discussing concerts they had been to, Elizabeth making William cringe when she told him about Lydia's escapades at the O.A.R. concert.

"She just doesn't know when enough is enough. You know, I talked to her the day after we went to Wicked, and she didn't feel the slightest bit ashamed of her behavior. I haven't talked to her since, and I have to admit, I'm not sorry she couldn't come today. I would have felt as if I had to keep an eye on her the entire time."

"I'm really not sorry she couldn't come either," he said lightly, and they both laughed.

As they arrived at the beach in front of Charles's house, William turned and looked at the ocean. "Want to see how warm it is?" Without waiting for an answer from her, he walked straight into the water, up to his knees. A look of total shock came over his face.

Elizabeth laughed outright. "Don't you mean how _cold _it is?" She waded in, barely above her ankles, and went no further. It was freezing!

She bent over to examine what she thought was a piece of sea glass under the water, and heard William quietly mimicking the sounds of a chicken from behind her. She stood up and turned around to face him, hands on her hips.

"I am _not_ a chicken, believe me. I've gone swimming in water _much_ colder than this." _Without a stitch of clothing on, _she added mentally. He kept making the sounds. She shook her head. "I'm not going any further. My clothes will get wet."

"Not if you roll them up," he said. "Come on, it feels good when you get used to it." He grimaced. "Actually, my legs are so numb right now, I can't feel a thing!" They both laughed at that.

He smiled at her and held out both hands. "Come on."

She couldn't resist a challenge...or a dare, whichever this happened to be.

She bent over and rolled her capris up to her knees, which didn't look like it was going to be far enough. She reached out and took hold of his hands, and he slowly pulled her toward him, to within a foot of where he stood. She looked down, and saw that the cuffs of her capris were soaked.

"There," he said, sounding quite pleased with himself, "doesn't it feel good?"

"I suppose, yes, it feels good, if you're a seal or a polar bear." She smiled as he laughed at her remark.

Elizabeth could hear the band finishing up a Beatles tune, and heard the crowd cheering and clapping. They went into a slow number that she instantly recognized.

"Shall we dance, Miss Bennet?" William smiled at her and bowed deeply.

Elizabeth was incredulous. "Do you mean to tell me that the certified _wallflower_ has found someone he could be _remotely interested _in dancing with?"

He looked wounded. "Ouch...another jab...what about remembering the past as it gives you pleasure? I thought we agreed to a truce?" His smile grew as he looked at her.

Elizabeth said nothing, only arching an eyebrow at him.

"Come on, I'll be the perfect gentleman, I promise." He winked, and out came the dimples.

He tugged her into shallower water and pulled her just a tad closer to him. She lifted her left hand to his right shoulder, and he put his right hand on her waist. He held her other hand out quite dramatically, as if they were going to tango through the water. She laughed again, and he relaxed his arm, holding her hand loosely. He kept a very polite distance between their bodies as they slowly moved to the music.

Elizabeth suddenly became very aware of what they were doing, and immediately felt shy and self-conscious, feelings she was not at all very familiar with_. _She was trying to understand how just six hours ago, she thought this man to be arrogant and rude, and now she was actually dancing with him...in the ocean, no less.

She was distracted from her thoughts when he began to hum, then softly sing the words to the song.

_'Cause you give me something  
><em>_That makes me scared alright  
><em>_This could be nothing  
><em>_But I'm willing to give it a try  
><em>_Please give me something  
><em>_'Cause someday I might know my heart.*_

"You have a very nice voice," Elizabeth said, as the song ended.

"Thank you," he responded quietly.

She was almost afraid to look up at him, but when she did, he just smiled down at her and let go of her waist. He took her by the hand and led her back up onto dry land.

"Thank you for dancing with me, Miss Bennet," he said, bowing slightly.

"It was my pleasure, Mr. Darcy." She grinned and gave a small curtsy, feeling silly but playing along with him anyway.

"Are you hungry?" He sniffed the air. "Something smells good, and I'm famished." He patted his stomach.

"I'm very hungry, actually," she answered him. "It does smell delicious, whatever it is."

"Let's go find out."

They slowly made their way up the beach, back to the house, and as they did, Elizabeth realized that he was still holding her hand.

* * *

><p>*Song:<em>"You Give Me Something" by James Morrison<em>

_Hope you enjoyed the dance. Send me a review and let me know! Thanks ~ Cat_


	4. Chapter 4

_Here's the next installment, let's see how things progress with our couple. I'm now officially going back to once-a-week postings, although I still don't know if they'll be on Thursdays or Saturdays. Which ever day works I guess! Thanks again for reading and for all the nice reviews. _

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

The morning after the cook-out, Elizabeth woke slowly. As she lay in bed, she glanced at her clock. It was just after nine, so she didn't have to jump up quite yet. She closed her eyes again and snuggled under the comforter, letting her mind wander back over the events of the previous day.

As she and William had walked up the beach after their impromptu dance in the water, he had suddenly realized, as she did, that he was still holding her hand. He released it, both of them blushing slightly. To say it was an awkward moment would be an understatement. They dealt with it in the easiest way possible; they ignored it.

She made it a point to spend time with Jane as much as possible throughout the day, as she wanted to get to know Charles a little better. He seemed totally smitten with her, very rarely letting her out of his sight. They danced quite a bit, and during the faster songs, Elizabeth and Charlotte would inevitably end up dancing with them.

During one particularly popular song, there were more people dancing then standing still. "Come on Darcy!" Charles yelled to William, but William just shook his head and raised his beer in a mock salute.

Charlotte saw that as her opening. She sashayed over to William and attempted to "persuade" him to dance.

William was having none of it. "I really can't dance, at least not to this kind of music."

"Oh, come on, it's not that hard. I'll teach you," Charlotte said, fluttering her eyelashes at him. She tried to pull him gently out to where everyone was dancing, but he wouldn't budge.

Watching the whole thing as she danced, Elizabeth couldn't help but giggle. Charlotte was tenacious! She couldn't hear what they were saying to each other, but she could read William's body language loud and clear. Charlotte, amazingly, gave up and soon went back to dancing with Elizabeth.

"You're right," Charlotte yelled to Elizabeth over the music, "he _is_ arrogant...he still smells good though!" They both laughed, and Elizabeth once again caught William watching her.

As the band shifted into something slower, Charles pulled Jane into his arms and gave her a long kiss. Elizabeth watched them both and smiled, happy for Jane. She and Charlotte had walked away and were having a conversation about the lovebirds, when they both saw William approaching. Seeing this as a second chance, Charlotte greeted him as he came over.

"Is this the kind of music you can dance to?" she asked him.

"Actually, yes, it is." He smiled at her, and immediately turned to Elizabeth. Holding out his hand, he said, "Shall we?"

Elizabeth took his hand, and with only a quick glance at Charlotte to see that her jaw was hanging open, she allowed herself to be led to where several other couples were swaying to the music.

They danced a little closer this time. He held her right hand in his left, but wrapped his other arm around her a little. She placed her left hand up behind his neck, letting it brush against his hair. They were slightly more comfortable with each other, but there was still a bit of awkwardness hovering about.

Once again, he alternately hummed or sang the words as they danced, this time to "Change the World," an older Eric Clapton song. Instead of trying to initiate a conversation, Elizabeth found she was quite content listening to his deep voice.

William smiled down at her as the dance ended.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

She smiled back up at him. "You're welcome."

From that point on, he seemed to stay by her side as much as possible. Even when he was talking with other people, she would catch him looking at her. It was slightly disconcerting, and still made her feel a little self-conscious. Previously, she had believed that his intense gaze was conveying dislike, and that he was looking down on her, judging her. Now she knew that wasn't the case.

They didn't have much more time for personal conversation, as they were usually within a group, but it was interesting to see him interact with other people. It was obvious that Charles and he were very close. They were constantly ribbing each other and joking around like brothers, and he seemed able to smile and relax more around him.

Yet, when other people approached to say hello, as they had been doing all day, she instantly saw him become a different person. Even though he knew every person's name that approached him, he became formal, almost reticent.

_This is Mr. Darcy, _Elizabeth thought.

Before she knew it, the night was over, and William had offered to walk Charlotte and her to Charlotte's car. He walked Charlotte to the driver's side, making sure she was okay to drive. He held the door open and smiled at her. "It was very nice to meet you, Charlotte."

"It was nice to meet you too, William," she said. "I'm sure we'll see each other again soon." She gave him a not-so-subtle wink and gave Elizabeth a knowing glance as she got in the car.

Elizabeth grinned and shook her head slightly, already dreading the ride home.

He walked Elizabeth to the passenger door, and for a moment it became awkward again. They both started to speak at the same time.

"Do you think you'd-" William began, just as Elizabeth said, "I'm glad-"

They both stopped and laughed, and the discomfort of the moment dissipated.

"You first," William said.

"I was just going to say, I'm glad we had the chance to talk more tonight and clear the air...I enjoyed myself." Feeling that he still deserved to be teased a little, she raised an eyebrow at him and said, "You're not half as arrogant or snobby as you initially appear to be."

He chuckled, holding his hands up. "Once again, I thought we agreed to a truce? Or do you just have to have the last word?"

"It depends on the topic, and in this case, yes, I do." She smiled smugly up at him.

"Alright then, it's time for a change of topic." He was looking straight into her eyes, and found himself drawn, once again, to their sparkle. "I thought maybe...I was wondering if you'd want to get together this week, maybe go out for lunch? Or dinner?"

She was a little surprised, but then thought, why not? She was more than a little curious about him, now that she had seen a little glimpse of a different side of him. He was like a puzzle she wanted to figure out. "I would like that, yes," she said confidently.

He smiled. "Great. I'll call you, soon. I still have your number."

He took her hand and raised it to his lips, giving it a quick kiss before releasing it.

"That sounds good," she replied. "Enjoy the rest of the night."

"Goodnight Miss Bennet."

"Goodnight Mr. Darcy," she answered, as he opened the car door for her.

As Charlotte pulled away, Elizabeth turned back and looked toward the house. He was still standing in the driveway, watching the car disappear.

Charlotte wasn't oblivious to where William's attention was focused during the evening. She didn't give Elizabeth a moments peace all the way home, firing question after question at her. Elizabeth couldn't answer any of them, however, because she really didn't think that anything big had happened between her and William, if anything at all. Yes, they danced, and yes, he had kissed her hand, but so what? She did enjoy talking to him, and they had even shared a few laughs throughout the evening. He seemed like a nice man, underneath the arrogant, standoffish exterior.

Charlotte, on the other hand, had them married off with half a dozen children by the time she dropped Elizabeth off at her house.

Coming back to the present, Elizabeth looked at her clock. Ten? She had been daydreaming for an hour. She got out of bed and got ready for her morning run. She dreaded going to Bill's cookout, but knew that when he called, as he was sure to do any time soon, she would tell him she'd be there.

Charlotte, thankfully, had agreed to go with her. _Today's party won't be nearly as interesting as yesterdays, _she thought.

* * *

><p>As Elizabeth lay daydreaming about the previous day, little did she realize that William was doing the same thing, although he had been up for a few hours already.<p>

He had been reading the same lines of a financial report over and over again, without absorbing any of the information at all. He couldn't get Elizabeth Bennet out of his head. He kept replaying their dances, their walk...her smile, the way she laughed...her beautiful eyes...all of it. How did he go from one extreme to the other with her so quickly?

He had told her he would call her soon; he wanted to call her now. He tapped his fingers on his desk and glared at his cell phone.

Finally giving up on getting any work done, he got up from his desk, left his office and headed toward the kitchen. The smell of fresh coffee and the sound of someone humming reached him before he got there.

"Good morning, Mrs. R," he said as he walked into the kitchen, planting a kiss on her cheek.

"Good morning William," she replied. "How are you today? Would you care for a cup of coffee?"

"I'm fine, and I'd love one, thank you. How was your day with Georgie yesterday? Please tell me you gave her some cooking lessons."

Mrs. Reynolds laughed at William's plea. "We did get some of the basics down, yes. I'm sorry to say, between you and me...she has a long way to go. How have you managed to stay fed these past months? You should have called me sooner." She handed him a cup of black coffee.

He gave her a comically indignant look. "I'm not half bad in the kitchen, you know. I can hold my own."

He chuckled at the look of doubt that crossed her face.

"I can, ask Georgie! I've cooked for us plenty of times. Plus, there are lots of good restaurants around here that provide take-out service," he said, leaning back against the counter and sipping his coffee.

"Oh, nonsense, you cannot live on take-out. It's time the two of you began eating properly again. I'll see to it."

"I have no doubt you will," he replied with a grin.

Alice Reynolds had been working for Will's family for years, since he was a boy, but she mainly stayed in Boston now. He knew she enjoyed being near her remaining family, who lived in the city, hence his hesitation to have her come to the Cape too often. After his last conversation with her, however, she insisted on coming to stay for a few days over the holiday weekend.

He was quiet for a moment, then turned to look at Mrs. Reynolds with a serious expression.

"Really, though, how did Georgie seem to you yesterday?"

He needed another person's opinion of his sister's progress, or lack of, and Mrs. Reynolds knew Georgiana as well as he did. She knew about everything that had happened, and other than Charles, she was the only one whose opinion he could trust.

Mrs. Reynolds thought for a moment. "She seemed much better. More lively. More like her old self. I think this fresh sea air has done her some good. She needed to be away from the city. You've done a fantastic job taking care of her, William."

"I just want the old Georgie back," he said quietly. "I miss her."

"She's coming around, son, don't you worry about that. You just keep doing what you're doing, and she'll be fine."

Just then, Georgiana came strolling into the kitchen. "Good morning," she yawned, stretching.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Will chuckled. "I was wondering if you were ever going to get up."

"I'm surprised you didn't sleep later, brother," she grinned, "I heard what time you came in last night."

"It wasn't that late...sometime after midnight maybe. I was having a good time."

Georgiana smiled at her brother, happy to see that he looked relaxed. She felt responsible for the upheavals that the two of them had gone through over the past four months, and was worried that she had been demanding too much of his time and energy.

"I'm glad you had a good time. Now, I expect a full report, as I told you before," she demanded, as she poured herself a cup of coffee, "so out with it. You behaved like a gentleman, I hope?"

"I behaved as a true Darcy would, of course. Very gentlemanly," he said, grinning and resting his chin in his hand on the counter.

Mrs. Reynolds looked amused at the sibling's conversation, but politely excused herself, claiming that there was a necessary pantry & refrigerator evaluation that needed to be done.

William went over the details of the night, filling Georgie in on the dancing, the food, and the people. He mentioned that he had spoken to Elizabeth quite a bit, and that piqued Georgiana's curiosity. Not quite satisfied with his generalizations, she started pushing him for more details.

He eventually told her about the walk he had taken with Elizabeth, and that he had apologized for his behavior. He told Georgie that they had talked a great deal, and eventually ended up telling her that they had danced in the water (which made Georgiana's mouth drop open), and danced again later in the evening...and that they had made tentative plans to see each other again, possibly this week.

William hadn't noticed that he had been staring out the window at the ocean as he talked about Elizabeth, and when his attention finally went back to his sister, her look of shock was almost comical.

"Georgie, close your mouth or you'll be catching flies."

She closed her mouth, but fastened a look so gleeful on him, it made him uncomfortable.

"What? What is that look all about?" he asked, brows furrowed.

"Oh, my dear brother, if you could have only seen the look on your face just now while you talked about her."

"What? What are you talking about? What look?" He was beginning to feel self-conscious.

"I think you may have a crush...you _danced _in the _water_ with her? In _full view_ of other people? You, _Mr. Privacy? _Oh, this is too much." She began giggling, as she watched her brother begin to blush.

"It was just an impulsive thing-" he became flustered and stopped any attempt at forming a coherent sentence. "Forget it. Forget I said anything."

'Impulsive' is the last word Georgiana would ever use to describe her brother.

"Oh, Fitzwilliam, I'm sorry I laughed," she said, laying her hand on his arm. She became serious once again. "It's just so unlike you. She must have made quite an impression."

William stopped for a moment, and thought again about the time he spent with Elizabeth at the cook-out, and he finally figured it out.

"You know what it was about her?" he said. "She was just _herself_. We talked, we had _real_ conversation. She wasn't saying things to try to impress me, and she certainly isn't very easily impressed. Not by me, anyway. She's very smart, very confident, but at the same time, she's so...unassuming. _And_, I learned that you definitely know where you stand with her. If she doesn't like you, she lets you know."

He glanced over at his sister, and saw that she was listening intently. "It was a very refreshing change, you know?" _A refreshing, unexpected change._

Georgiana did know exactly what he meant, and she could see a spark in her brother's eyes as he talked about Elizabeth, a spark she had never seen before. She smiled at him. "It sounds like you enjoyed yourself."

"I did, Georgie. I really did." His return smile said it all.

* * *

><p>Returning from her morning run, Elizabeth hit the shower and began to get ready for Bill's party. He had called, as he said he would, and she had told him she would be there with a friend of hers. He was <em>delighted,<em> of course.

She said they'd be there by two, and personally, she was hoping to be gone by four. She and Charlotte would have to come up with some kind of story to get them out of there. She felt bad being dishonest, but didn't want to encourage him or give him any false hopes. She wanted to make a polite appearance and be done with it.

Her phone began to ring, and she answered when she saw that it was Jane.

Jane was no better than Charlotte! She had noticed that William really couldn't take his eyes of Elizabeth for most of the night, and had seen them dancing in the water, and saw them dance again later. She also told Elizabeth that as soon as she and Charlotte had departed, Will had headed home also.

Jane was asking her a multitude of questions, for which Elizabeth had no answers. The only one she could answer was that yes, her opinion of him had improved, even though she still felt like she didn't know him that well yet. She did feel like she knew him a _little_ better though.

At that moment, she decided to reveal to Jane that the infamous "Mr. Arrogant" really was, in fact, William Darcy.

She rendered Jane speechless, which, in and of itself, was not an easy task to accomplish.

Before Jane could barrage her with more questions, Elizabeth told her that she and William had discussed the whole matter, and had chosen to put it behind them and try to be friends. She asked that Jane please not mention anything to Charles, or to William, as she didn't want him to feel uncomfortable about the whole situation, especially since they had moved on from it.

Jane promised that she wouldn't say a word to the men about the 'beach incident.' Despite herself, though, she giggled and told Elizabeth that she was fooling herself if she thought that William wanted to be just 'friends' with her.

"A man who wants to be 'just friends' with a woman doesn't look at her the way he was looking at you," Jane stated emphatically.

Briefly, Elizabeth's conversation with Denny popped into her head, as she recalled him making a similar comment; she promptly pushed it away. Giving Jane any encouragement in this type of situation was dangerous...her matchmaking brain would go into overdrive. Elizabeth very decidedly told her that she had things to do before she left for Bill's cookout, so she would talk to her later.

"Goodbye, Jane, thanks for calling!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Lizzy. Don't be upset, but how can you think -"

"Goodbye, Jane!" Elizabeth cut her off and hung up.

_First Charlotte, now my sister. How do they expect me to tell them what's going on when there's nothing to tell?_

The phone immediately rang again. Sure it was Jane calling back, Elizabeth grabbed her phone and answered without looking at the caller ID.

"I told you, I have nothing else to say about William Darcy! Give it a rest!"

There was a brief moment of silence at the other end of the line, and then a tentative male voice spoke.

"Elizabeth? It's...it's William."

_Ohhhh, shit. _Elizabeth felt herself turning five different shades of red.

"Hi...William...oh, I'm so sorry about that. Really. I...I thought you were...I assumed it was Jane calling me again...I just got off the phone with her."

"Oh. Okay. Umm, didn't we have a conversation once about making assumptions?" His tone was light.

"Yes, we did. You remember that, do you?" She was cringing at the reminder.

"Yes, but barely, as I have been advised to remember the past only as it gives me pleasure."

"Very good advice, from a brilliant person, obviously." She heard him laugh. "Um, I should explain why I answered the phone that way. It probably sounded horrible, but honestly, my sister was just badgering me with questions...she was driving me crazy. I thought she had called back to harass me some more."

"She can't be any worse than my sister. She wasn't even at the party, and I still got the third degree."

"I guess that's what sisters are for, right?" Elizabeth said, feeling slightly less horrified about everything that had just happened.

"So let's start over," he said. "We seem to do that well. Hello, Elizabeth."

"Hello William." She smiled.

"I was just wondering if you had any plans for today." He couldn't believe he was actually nervous about asking her a simple question.

Elizabeth sighed. "I do, actually. I have to go to a small party at a co-worker's house for a few hours this afternoon."

"Oh, okay. Well, what about tomorrow night?" _Do I sound too desperate? Maybe I should've waited to call._

"I have nothing planned for tomorrow night," she answered. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well, the weather is supposed to be nice, I thought we could go out to dinner somewhere on the water, maybe a place that has outside seating? Although I have to admit, I'm not familiar with a lot of the restaurants in Falmouth or anywhere else, for that matter."

"There's a place near me that has outside seating. It's nothing fancy, just a small restaurant, but it's nice and has great views."

"Sounds perfect. I'll call you tomorrow, we can figure out a time?" he asked.

"Sure."

"Okay. Good," he said, "I'll talk to you tomorrow. Have fun at your party today." _Without me, _he thought, surprised at his selfishness.

"Oh, thanks, I'm sure it will be fun." _Not. _"See you tomorrow. Bye William."

He hesitated, then said, "You can call me Will, by the way. Everyone does. William is too formal."

"Oh...okay then." She smiled. "Bye Will."

"Bye Elizabeth."

* * *

><p>As it turned out, Bill's party wasn't all that bad. Elizabeth managed to stay within her hoped-for time limit, and by four o'clock, she and Charlotte were leaving.<p>

Charlotte, however, would have stayed all night, as Bill had made it a point to introduce his cousin, George, to both of them, and Charlotte immediately took a liking to him. He was handsome and very outgoing. Charlotte flirted shamelessly with him the entire two hours that they were there, which was fine with Elizabeth. There were plenty of people to chat with, but occasionally she found herself thinking of Will and the time she had spent with him the day before.

Thankfully, she had managed to avoid Bill for most of the afternoon. He did ask them to stay longer, as he had planned on lighting a bonfire later in the evening, but Elizabeth bowed out, pleading a headache.

Charlotte looked quite happy to be leaving with George's number, and she had given him hers as well. Apparently, he was here working on some type of assignment for Boston Magazine, and would be staying with Bill for most of the summer. Elizabeth was surprised to hear he was a photographer.

"I told him you did some photography on the side, and had your own darkroom," Charlotte mentioned, "he said he'd love to see it."

"What type of assignment is he working on?" Elizabeth asked her.

"I'm not sure, some touristy thing for the magazine. Fall getaways on the Cape, that type of thing. He'll be back and forth to Boston for most of the summer." Charlotte said, "I told him if he needed a tour guide while he was on the Cape, to let me know."

She wiggled her eyebrows and smiled at Elizabeth.

"Oh Charlotte, you are shameless. He's nice looking though, and seems friendly enough."

"Nice looking? He was a hottie!" Charlotte giggled. "Although, compared to your Mr. Darcy, I guess 'nice looking' is fair enough." She giggled again when Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

"He is not _my Mr. Darcy_," Elizabeth said emphatically.

Charlotte pursed her lips. "Whatever you say Lizzy. Anyway, George _was_ very nice. We'll see if he calls, I guess. Hey, what are you up to tomorrow? Want to hit the bike path for a nice long run?"

"Sure, what time?" Elizabeth knew Charlotte would be 'enthusiastic,' to say the least, if she found out Elizabeth was having dinner with Will, so she decided to keep it to herself for the time being.

"Well, I kind of wanted to sleep in tomorrow morning," Charlotte said, "so maybe early afternoon?"

"Okay," Elizabeth replied, "call me when you're up."

As they pulled up in front of her house, Elizabeth hopped out and told Charlotte to drive safely. They said their goodbyes, and Charlotte left.

Elizabeth was happy to have the rest of the night at home to relax, knowing there was no work tomorrow and no reason to get up early. She knew she wouldn't have to worry about dinner, as she had eaten enough at Bill's party to last her until breakfast tomorrow. _I'll definitely need that run!_

She pulled out her laptop and went over a few things for work for the upcoming week. After about an hour, she decided to quit for the night. It was almost six o'clock, and there was a slight breeze coming in off the ocean, so she changed into an old pair of light gray sweatpants, and threw on her oversized bright red South Beach sweatshirt. She pulled her hair out of her ponytail, and roughly combed it with her fingers. Barefoot, of course, she went outside and plopped herself into one of her deck chairs, ready to enjoy the solitude.

The flow of traffic past the beach was heavier than normal, it being a holiday weekend and the official start of the 'tourist season' on the Cape. It didn't bother her though, as the sound of the waves crashing onto the beach drowned out the sounds of the cars. The rhythm of the waves was like music to her ears, and never failed to relax her. She settled back and sighed, feeling very content as she looked out to the Vineyard and up towards Nobska Light.

She had been sitting there for about twenty minutes, eyes closed, completely relaxed, thinking about her dinner plans with Will for tomorrow, when she heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps coming up her stairs. She sat up and looked in that direction, wondering who it was. Her parents had a habit of coming by unannounced, so she had no doubt it was probably them. She was shocked to see Will's head appear at the top of the stairs, especially since she had just been thinking about him. He got to the top step and stopped.

"Oh...Will! Hi...come up...umm, I didn't expect to see you," Elizabeth stammered. She tried to smile but knew she couldn't erase the surprise from her face quickly enough.

"I'm sorry, I should have called," he said self-consciously, "but I was actually in the neighborhood, so I thought I'd stop in, see if you were home. You know, just say hi. That's all." He paused for a second, his eyes lingering on hers. "So, hi."

"Hi," she said, smiling easily now. "Don't apologize, really, I'm glad you stopped by. Pull up a chair. I was just relaxing, enjoying the quiet." He lowered himself into the chair next to hers. "So what are you doing in my neck of the woods, anyway?"

"Oh, just, you know, checking out Falmouth, exploring, seeing a little more of it." He quickly changed the subject. "How was your party today?"

"It was fine. Lots of people from work. It's always nice to see them socially. Can I get you a beer or something? Do you have to rush off?"

"I don't want to impose. I really just wanted to say hi. I don't want to interrupt anything you might be doing."

She opened her arms and gestured at her deck and the ocean. "These are my plans. Sitting here, enjoying the scenery. Pardon my appearance, though, I wasn't expecting company." She was well aware that she looked like a beach bum. _Or maybe a_ _beach girl_? She grinned at the thought.

_You look adorable_, is what he wanted to say. How someone could make sweatpants and a sweatshirt look incredibly appealing, he didn't know, but she was doing it_._ In the absence of something sensible to say, he just smiled at her.

"So, how about a beer? I believe I have a couple in my refrigerator?"

He looked at her, and an idea popped into his mind. "Actually, I have a craving for ice cream. Would you like to go get one? You must know of a good ice cream place around here."

"You want to go out for ice cream?" She was surprised, to say the least. "Oh, well, there are quite a few places in town. They're all good, actually."

"You must have a favorite though." He smiled at her expectantly.

She smiled. "I do, actually, it's a small place in North Falmouth. A little further away than some of the others, but worth it, I think. It's near Old Silver Beach."

"Ahh, another place I've never been. Good place to watch a sunset?"

She nodded. "Absolutely, the best. Are you sure you have time though?" She didn't want to assume that he had time for anything more than a quick visit.

"I have plenty of time. Ready to go?" He smiled and rubbed his hands together, looking like an excited child.

She laughed, and looked down at her clothes. "Can I at least put on some decent clothes?"

"You look fine just as you are," he said seriously.

She rolled her eyes. "Sure, I look fine for hanging around on my deck. It'll just take me a minute."

He nodded, and she got up to go inside. Once in, she took a deep breath. It was quite a surprise to see him, but not an unpleasant one. She had thought about him off and on during the day. He looked quite handsome in his faded blue jeans and black North Face fleece jacket.

She changed quickly into a pair of jeans, but left her sweatshirt on. Grabbing some sandals, she headed back outside. "Let's go," she said smiling, "Smitty's awaits us."

She locked up, and they went down to his car. _A Porsche, of course, _she thought. He opened the door for her and she climbed in, feeling slightly decadent. After she pointed him in the right direction, they both fell silent. Elizabeth finally spoke up.

"So, how long have you lived in New Seabury?"

"Well, I grew up in Boston, but we've always had a summer home here. We used to be in a different neighborhood, but after my mother died, my father sold our first house and bought the one Georgiana and I have now." He hesitated. "I think being at the old house was too painful for him."

"Were you young when your mother passed away?"

"I was fifteen. Georgiana was almost five." He paused, clearing his throat. "She had breast cancer, and when she found out, it was already at stage four. She began chemo, but stopped when it became obvious that the cancer was beyond treatment. She just wanted to be at home, with her family, to die peacefully. She wanted to be on the Cape."

"I'm so sorry. It must have been horrible for all of you."

He shrugged. "It was, more so for my father. Georgiana was too young to really understand what was happening. She asked for my mother constantly for a while, but then it was like she just...forgot about her. I think my father was relieved, in a way. For a time, he was pretty lost, dealing with his grief...so I stepped up as much as I could, trying to take care of Georgiana and be there for her."

She looked at him and tried to imagine what he was like at fifteen, enduring such a huge loss. Before she could think too much about it, he spoke again, obviously looking to change the subject.

"Do you have any more sisters? Any brothers?" he asked her. He realized that he had told her quite a bit about himself over the past two days, but for some reason, it didn't surprise him, or bother him. She was easy to talk to.

"No brothers...and no more sisters." She smiled. "Obviously, you can see that Jane and I are the _sensible_ ones," she said, in a mock-serious tone of voice.

He laughed. "And then there's Lydia, right?"

"Yes. Lydia, the unpredictable one."

"Has she always been like that?"

"Not always. Sadly, she's gotten worse over the past couple of years. She's...well, you witnessed her behavior. My dad says she's 'silly.' I think he's purposely ignorant of how she really is. She's only two years younger than me, but she has absolutely no ambition or drive, other than wanting to live it up and have a good time."

"So, she's two years younger...which makes her...?"

She grinned. "That makes her twenty-eight. You're how much older than Georgiana?"

"Ten years...well, ten and a half, actually," he replied, knowing what was coming next.

"That makes her...how old?" She was barely containing a laugh, feeling silly at their roundabout way of finding out each others age.

"That makes her just shy of twenty-six." He turned briefly and smiled at her, and they both chuckled at themselves. "So, back to Lydia, does she live here on the Cape?"

"She does, right here in Falmouth. She shares a house with three other girls. She works as a waitress at a restaurant in Woods Hole. I've been trying to tell her for a couple of years now that it's time she came up with a plan for her life, but so far, she's been resistant to the idea."

"She'll come around eventually," Will said confidently.

At that moment, they pulled into Smitty's. Will parked the car and they walked up to the line at the window.

"So, what do you recommend? You must have a favorite flavor." He stared at the long list of offerings on the chalkboard.

"My personal favorite is the coconut almond chip. It's to die for. I also recommend the Cape Cod crunch, or if you have a real sweet tooth, the peanut butter cup."

They got their cones; coconut almond chip for Elizabeth, and peanut butter cup for Will. They hopped back in the car and as Elizabeth held both cones, Will drove them down to Old Silver Beach. Once there, they climbed out of the car and walked over to the stone wall that separated the parking lot from the beach. It was a good eight to ten foot drop down to the sand.

Kicking off their shoes, they sat together on the wall with their legs hanging over the side, contentedly eating their ice cream cones and watching all the people who had come to enjoy an evening on the beach. There were families here and there, some on blankets, some flying kites or playing Frisbee, people out on the jetty fishing...it was going to be a gorgeous sunset. It was a beautiful beach, wide, with a high bluff to the left, and a beachfront resort down a ways to the right.

He sighed as he looked around at the scenery. "I can see why you love it here so much, why you couldn't imagine living anywhere else. I always loved spending my summers on the Cape when I was growing up."

He turned and looked at her as she happily ate her ice cream cone, oblivious to his gaze and the way the gentle breeze was ruffling her hair. _She really is beautiful. _He looked back out to the ocean and popped the last of his cone into his mouth.

Elizabeth was surprised that he remembered her saying that to him the first time he went to her house. It seems he didn't forget much.

"I do love it," she said. "I love living right on the water, but I worry, sometimes, about having to leave my little house someday if another hurricane comes, or even a bad nor'easter. We've been lucky in the past, the damage has never been too bad, but someday it's bound to happen. I guess I shouldn't worry about what I can't control, though." She polished off her cone and licked her fingers happily.

She turned to smile at him. "That was a wonderful treat. Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The sun was starting its slow descent into the ocean.

"Do you want to walk down by the water?" she asked him.

"Sure," he answered. He would have agreed to just about anything at that moment. He jumped down into the sand and turned to look up at her. She hesitated, then jumped, and he held a hand out to steady her. They made their way across the large expanse of warm sand to the water's edge.

"I'm guessing you won't be wading today!" Elizabeth teased, remembering the look on his face when he entered the water yesterday. "I bet there isn't much that could get you to do that again."

"Oh, I don't know," he said, glancing at her and using his own teasing tone, "perhaps the promise of another dance would persuade me." He gave her a cheeky smile and they both laughed.

"Will?"

"Yes?"

"Tell me more about your guitar."

He looked at her seriously. "It's brown and made of wood."

She groaned and rolled her eyes. "That was absolutely horrible," she said, as he laughed. "I mean, how long have you played? How did you learn?"

She admitted to herself that she was curious about the completely different sides of this man that she had seen so far. There was William, the man who had been through so much tragedy at such a young age, who was trying to do right by his sister, and seemed fiercely protective of her; there was Mr. Darcy, the real estate mogul, approachable, but at the same time, reticent and standoffish; and then there was Will; laid back, funny, and charming.

He took off his sunglasses, no longer needing them in the fading light, and tucked them into the pocket of his fleece. "I learned like most other people learn to play instruments. I started lessons when I was eight. I loved it, so I practiced constantly. I played throughout all my school years, even formed bands with kids in school." He had a wistful look in his eyes. "When it came time to decide my 'path,' so to speak, I told my father I wanted to study music. Go to Berklee, follow my dream. I knew I was good enough. Unfortunately, my 'path' had already been decided."

He paused for a moment, stooping to pick up a flat rock and skip it across the water. She watched him, and once again was struck by how handsome he was, especially looking at him in profile. He truly was gorgeous.

"My father wasn't about to have his son study music. He needed someone to take over for him when the time came for him to retire. So, that's how I ended up at Harvard. Despite pushing me toward the family business, though, he always encouraged me to keep playing, so I never gave it up. I played all through college. Ultimately, I made the right choice I guess. Made my dad proud. Who would have thought I'd have to take over for him so soon?"

"How long ago did he pass away?" Elizabeth asked.

"He was killed in a car accident ten years ago. I had just turned twenty-six, and had barely gotten my feet wet in the business. He was a good teacher, though, and there were other people that were helpful to me along the way, people I knew he trusted, and that I could trust to guide me."

"It must have been very difficult, just the same," Elizabeth said quietly. She looked up at him as they walked. "So Georgiana must have been about sixteen?"

"Almost. I had been through it with our mother, so in some ways it was easier for me to deal with. Georgiana took it really hard. At least she has memories, good memories, of our father."

He seemed lost in his thoughts for a few moments, then he suddenly looked down at her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to go on like that. You only asked about my guitar, and I end up giving you more of the history of my life."

"It's fine, really," she said. "I'm sorry that you and Georgiana have both been through so much. Despite the fact that my parents can drive me crazy, I would miss them terribly if they weren't here."

They walked along in silence for a few more minutes, then stopped as the sun finally disappeared into the edge of the ocean.

Elizabeth had her eyes on the horizon. "Watching that last bit of sun slip into the ocean never ceases to amaze me. It's just beautiful."

He turned to stare down at her. "Yes...beautiful," he said quietly. He was dying to reach out to touch her, caress her cheek, but he didn't dare.

Elizabeth, unaware of Will's admiring gaze, sighed deeply at the scene before her. This was her paradise, this was where she belonged. She smiled at her thoughts, catching herself before she became too lost in her own private world.

"What did you think of your first Old Silver sunset?" she asked, smiling up at him.

"Best sunset ever," he said, truly meaning every word. He looked around at the view one last time. "Ready to go home?"

"Sure, ready when you are."

He offered her his arm, and she hooked hers through it. They slowly made their way back to the car, and then headed back to Elizabeth's house.

Once there, Will walked her up the stairs to her door, but when she asked if he wanted to come in, he politely refused. He was beginning to realize that he was very attracted to her, and he felt that it was best to say goodnight to her now, outside on the deck.

"Thanks, but I'm going to head home. Georgie is probably wondering what the heck happened to me."

"Are we still on for dinner tomorrow night?" she asked.

"Absolutely," he grinned. "Unless you'd rather go out for ice cream again."

She laughed. "As good as that sounds, I'm looking forward to going to dinner." She smiled at him. "You still have to convince me that you're not a pompous jerk, remember?"

Her eyes lit up when she teased him, and he found himself staring at her again. He made himself look away as he laughed, not trusting himself. "I believe I said 'arrogant'. I see you've decided 'pompous' works just as well. You have no qualms about telling me how you really feel, do you?"

"None at all. Although, you have managed to change my opinion of you _a little_. Lucky for you," she said, still teasing.

"Yes, very lucky for me." Her eyes shined up at him, and no longer able to stop himself, he reached up to tuck a stray curl behind her ear, and then lightly stroked her cheek before quickly dropping his hand and shoving it into his pocket.

Elizabeth was caught completely off guard and didn't know quite what to make of what had just occurred. A brief, awkward silence ensued, until she spoke.

"Umm, thanks for stopping by, and for the ice cream," she said quietly, smiling up at him tentatively.

"You're welcome. Thank you for introducing me to Smitty's, and to Old Silver." He felt himself becoming ensnared in her gaze again. Clearing his throat, he made himself look away. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay. Bye Will."

"Bye Elizabeth. Sweet dreams." He smiled softly at her, then turned and went down the stairs and was gone.

* * *

><p>The next morning found Elizabeth once again lounging in bed, staring up at the ceiling, thinking back to the previous evening.<p>

She tried to decipher the meaning behind the last few moments of her time with Will last night. _What the heck was that all about? _ Her stomach had given a small lurch when he touched her, and it certainly wasn't a lurch of distaste. She had liked that small gesture. _But what did it mean?_

The phone rang, bringing her back to reality. She glanced at the caller ID and was surprised to see Will's number.

"Hello?"

"Good morning Elizabeth."

"Good morning yourself."

"How are you today?" His voice was scratchy, as if he had just woken up as well.

"I'm fine. Slowly waking up, and not quite ready to get out of bed yet." She glanced at the clock, which read eight-thirty.

"Me either, which is not like me. Usually I'm up and raring to go pretty early, but today I decided to be lazy." He laughed quietly. "I knew better than to call you too early...I wanted to make sure I talked to you and not your voice mail."

The fact that they were both laying in bed while talking on the phone did not escape his notice. Even though the conversation couldn't be more innocent, for some reason, it felt very intimate.

"Yes, you were wise to place your call _after_ eight," she laughed. "Any calls before that definitely go unanswered." She paused briefly. "So, what's up?"

"Oh...nothing, really. I just wanted to call to say good morning, that's all...and to tell you again that I had a really nice time last night. Even nicer because it was unexpected, I guess."

"Oh." Elizabeth smiled. "Well, I'm glad you stopped by. I enjoyed spending the evening with you."

"You did?"

"Yes, I did. It was a pleasant surprise to see you standing on my deck."

"I'm glad you were home." He could tell she was smiling into the phone. "I do have another reason for calling, though. How would you feel about coming out this way for dinner tonight?"

Elizabeth didn't give it a second thought. "That would be fine. What did you have in mind?"

"Well, Georgiana would like to meet you, if that's okay." He wasn't quite sure how Elizabeth would react to the idea. "I thought you could come to the house, and then maybe if it's nice, we could walk to the inn from here and have dinner there."

"You just can't stay away from that inn, can you?" she said. "I thought we were trying to forget that day, not continuously remind ourselves of it?" They both laughed.

Her thoughts turned to meeting Georgiana. "Are you sure Georgiana wants to meet me? I'd like to meet her, I still feel like I owe her an apology."

"She was the one who suggested that you come here tonight, before we go to dinner. She's fine with it...I just want to make sure you are."

"I think it's a good idea. Maybe we can _really _put that day behind us, once and for all. What time should I be there?"

They settled on five p.m., and Will gave Elizabeth directions to his house.

"I'm looking forward to it," Will said.

"Me too," Elizabeth said, smiling. "See you later."

"Bye Elizabeth."

* * *

><p>Will laid in bed after hanging up with Elizabeth. When he arrived back at home last night, Georgiana had been sitting out on the deck with a blanket wrapped around her, watching the moonlight on the water. Will had gone out to join her, and ended up telling her about the entire evening.<p>

He could tell Georgie was staring at him, but he refused to look at her. He was waiting for the teasing and the line of questioning that was sure to start at any moment, but she surprised him.

"When do I get to meet her?" Georgiana asked, no hint of teasing in her voice.

Will turned to look at her, and was surprised to see that she was serious.

He shrugged. "Umm...I don't know. I'm not betting on a second date yet. I just want to get through the first."

Georgiana laughed. "Will, really, let's be honest...your first date with her was tonight, even though it wasn't actually planned that way. So technically, tomorrow night_ is_ your second date."

Will smirked. "Yeah...I guess you're right."

"Why don't you see if she'll come over tomorrow before you go to dinner? You could go to the inn, I've heard they have fantastic food and that it's _very_ romantic."

He rolled his eyes at his sister's blatant hint, then thought about her suggestion. "That's actually not a bad idea. I'll call her in the morning, see what she thinks."

He didn't like the way his sister was looking at him. "What? What's with that look again?"

She laughed. "You're very transparent, you know...at least to me. I told you before that I thought you had a crush. It's fairly obvious."

Georgiana knew that Will had only been involved with a few women, none seriously, and she also knew that he had certainly never _pursued_ anyone. Women were drawn to him, and Georgiana was no fool, she knew exactly why; he was wealthy and extremely handsome. Hence, _he_ was always the one being pursued.

She knew that he wanted to settle down some day and have a family, but there was never anyone who seemed to want to bother to get beyond the good looks and the money, and see the person that she knew was underneath all the outside stuff.

"I definitely feel some type of connection," Will said. He thought for a moment. "I don't think I like the word 'crush'...it doesn't seem to fit. Although, right now, I can't really think of a better word. Can I just leave it at that?" He hoped Georgie wouldn't keep questioning him, and was relieved when she let it go.

"Yup. That's good enough for me." She smiled and stood up, reaching out to ruffle his curls. "I'm going to bed. See you in the morning."

"Goodnight Georgie."

Will came back to the present and rubbed his face. Time to get out of bed. He woke up thinking about Elizabeth, and decided to just give in and call her. It was a treat to know that she was snuggled in bed while she talked to him, the sound of sleep still in her voice. It was a nice way to start the day.

_What is it, exactly, that I feel for her?_ He really didn't know, but he decided that he was going to let himself find out. For so long, he had wondered if he would ever find the right person to settle down with, someone who loved him and wanted him for who he was, not for what he had. At the 'ripe old age' of thirty-six, he was beginning to lose hope.

Now, he found himself..._with a crush_. He sighed and laughed at himself. _Score one for Georgie_. A crush on someone he had known for...well, for a couple of weeks, but not really. He had really only started to get to know her less than forty-eight hours ago. How was that possible?

She was, for lack of a better word, unaffected_._ She was herself. He didn't impress her, and he liked that. She had called him out on his arrogance and snobbish behavior, and he actually _enjoyed_ it.

He was so tired of the women who said or did things hoping only to meet his approval, or get his attention; the women who wanted to be seen at particular clubs or events, or make the society pages while gracing his arm. He was done with them; he didn't want those women, or that life, anymore.

Sitting on the wall with Elizabeth last night, enjoying an ice cream cone, walking on the beach with her and watching the sunset...it all seemed so ordinary. And yet, to him, it was anything _but_ ordinary. It was almost surreal. He knew it had everything to do with Elizabeth. She was _not_ ordinary, not by a long shot.

* * *

><p><em>Well, what do you think? Anxious to see how the 'real' date goes? Send me a review and let me know! Thanks.<em>


	5. Chapter 5

_I'm not doing a very good job sticking with my posting schedule! I realized that it's silly of me not to post more frequently if I can. I'm not saying it will happen all the time, but I know that sometimes it will be possible. So, here's chapter 5...on with the date! Thanks to all who are reading and reviewing!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

Elizabeth talked to Charlotte in the morning and they planned on meeting in the afternoon to go for a run. It was a beautiful day, and the breeze coming in off the water would keep them cool as they ran on the bike path. Elizabeth had decided not to tell Charlotte about seeing Will last night, or about her plans to see him again tonight; just for the time being, she wanted to keep it to herself. She knew Charlotte would be relentless with questions and speculation about him, and she wouldn't know how to respond to an interrogation at this point.

Just then, she had a thought..._should I Google him?_ At first, she was mortified that she had even thought of it. But then, as usual, her curiosity got the best of her. She opened her laptop, went to the Google website, and typed in his name.

_Yikes!_ A wealth of information lay at her fingertips, and she immediately felt guilty, like she was being sneaky.

Guilt quickly turned back into curiosity. She clicked on "Images," quite content to just look at him for a while. He was unbelievably handsome, yet seemed totally unaware of it. Not surprisingly, there were many pictures of him with women, although she had to admit, there were not as many as she expected. Elizabeth thought she recognized two of them. She was pretty sure one was Georgiana, and the other was the woman he had been talking to at Charles's party, the one who was wearing the Kentucky Derby outfit.

The common feature of each photo was that he wasn't smiling. His face appeared stony, indifferent. In every picture, even some of the ones with Georgiana, he looked as if he wanted to be somewhere else. She had seen that expression before! He didn't even look like the same person she had kept company with for the past two days.

Elizabeth read a couple of articles, hoping to gain some insight into that other side of him, his 'Mr. Darcy' side, and she did learn a few things. One was that the "green" office building that his company had built in Boston was a very big deal, apparently. He was being lauded by many different environmental groups for his "eco-friendly vision." He had also talked about branching off from RJD Properties and creating an architectural arm of the company that was strictly involved with green design.

The second thing she learned was that he was very generous. There were several stories about donations made to different charities. Not surprisingly, he was a huge supporter of several breast cancer groups, mainly the Susan Komen Foundation, and made regular donations to several of the top hospitals in Boston that had cancer-based research initiatives. He was also a big supporter of "Arts Alive", a national program developed to help keep the arts available to kids in inner-city schools. No surprise there either.

She also learned that he was intensely private. Even in the few interviews she managed to find on-line, he gave away nothing of his private life, no matter how much poking and prodding the interviewer did. Everyone wanted to chip away at that stony exterior to see what was inside, but he didn't give an inch. She respected that, but it seemed completely at odds with the person she had spent time with. He had shared things with her so freely.

There were a few gossip-column type articles that she read, several naming him as one of the "hottest bachelors in Boston," which she couldn't help but giggle at, as she could picture him rolling his eyes at the title. There was also the typical "who's he dating now?" stuff, but none of it was very recent. Deciding she had seen enough, she closed her laptop and checked her watch. She still had two hours before Charlotte showed up, so she threw her laundry into a basket and headed to the nearby laundromat.

* * *

><p>Thankfully, Charlotte was fairly preoccupied with George, the cousin of Bill's that she met at the party yesterday, and was perfectly happy to talk on and on about him during their run. She did ask Elizabeth if Will had called, and the only thing that Elizabeth would say was that yes, he had called, and yes, they may go out soon. Charlotte was content to leave it at that.<p>

Apparently, George was considering relocating to the Cape permanently. Bill had offered to let him stay at his house through the summer and into fall, when it would be easier for George to find a place of his own. Charlotte was thrilled, of course. She mentioned that he had contacted the two local newspapers, and several locally published magazines, to see if he could do any freelance work for them. He was still working for Boston Magazine as well.

Elizabeth was happy for Charlotte. She had married at nineteen, and had ended up divorced before celebrating her first anniversary. Elizabeth would never say "I told you so," but she knew that Charlotte and Steven were destined for heartbreak. They were just too immature and too volatile to make it work. Thankfully, they parted amicably and Steven had long since remarried and moved further down-Cape.

"Lizzy, maybe we can go on a double date! Maybe next weekend, you, William, George and me can go out somewhere. What do you think?"

Elizabeth wasn't too thrilled with the idea. "I don't think so...William and I are just getting to know each other better, that's all."

Charlotte laughed, shaking her head. "Okay Lizzy, if you say so. But let me tell you...if you let that man get away, I will personally kick your ass. Okay, so yeah, he seems a little full of himself, but so what? The pros are waaaay better than the cons."

Elizabeth laughed. "I'll take your warning to heart, okay?" Looking to change the subject, Elizabeth asked Charlotte to tell her more about George, which worked very nicely, as she knew it would.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stood staring at the clothes in her closet, clad in her robe, a towel wrapped around her wet hair. She wanted to look nice, but didn't want to go overboard. The Popponesset Inn was dressy, but not completely upscale. Finally, she settled on a slim floral-print skirt that came to just above the knee. It was white, with flowers of purple and deep green, and had a slight flare at the bottom. She topped it with a deep green sleeveless blouse that had a matching light-weight cardigan. Slightly dressy and decidedly feminine, but not over the top. Strapping on low sandals, she glanced at her reflection in the mirror and was happy with what she saw.<p>

_Now what to do with this mop of curls? _She unwrapped the towel from her tresses and ran some product through it, then let it dry naturally, deciding to just leave it down. Her Cape Cod jewelry completed the outfit, and she was ready to go.

* * *

><p>Little did Elizabeth know that Will stood inside his walk-in closet, towel wrapped around his waist, contemplating the same thing. He finally settled on a pair of khaki pants and a royal blue button down short-sleeve shirt, worn over a plain white t-shirt.<p>

_Now what to do with this mop of curls?_ Absolutely nothing. He toweled his hair, then shook his head from side to side, before running his hands through it. _Done. _Not bothering to button his shirt yet, he walked downstairs to find Georgie laying on the couch in the family room, channel surfing. She immediately looked him up and down.

She muted the television. "Hmm. You look pretty good. Acceptable I guess."

He laughed. "What are you, the fashion police?" He hesitated for a moment. "Are you sure it's okay? Do I look presentable?"

"Yes, you do, that shirt is a great color for you. You're going to button it though, right? Button it, but not all the way up to the top. And don't tuck it in. Don't forget, we're on the beach, not in the city. You can dress down a little." She smiled at him. "You are _very_ handsome, and she will not be able to take her eyes off of you." She laughed as he blushed. "She may not be able to keep her hands off of you either..."

He groaned. "Okay, Georgie, that's enough...maybe asking her here to meet you wasn't such a good idea after all."

She sighed dramatically. "I will be the model younger sister."

Will glanced at his watch. "She should be here soon. I'll be in my office for a few minutes, let me know when you see her pull up."

Georgie knew exactly why he was going to his office; he liked to play guitar to relax and unwind. She could tell he was a little nervous about tonight, so it was no surprise that he wanted to play for a bit before Elizabeth showed up.

Twenty minutes later, Georgiana saw Elizabeth's jeep coming up the long driveway, and decided to greet her at the door herself, knowing they had something to talk about. They exchanged introductions, and Elizabeth immediately apologized for what happened on the beach.

She smiled at the pretty blonde girl in front of her, noting that she and Will shared the same warm brown eyes. "I truly am sorry, I meant no harm. You both made a beautiful picture sitting there, looking so peaceful." She smiled slightly. "I hope you'll accept my apology."

Georgiana returned the smile. "Apology accepted. Please, don't give it another thought. Will explained everything to me, and said it was just a miscommunication of sorts. I'd rather just forget about it."

Georgiana had brought Elizabeth into the main part of the house. It was huge, with a massive stone fireplace and high ceilings. Surprisingly, despite its impressive size, it felt homey and cozy.

"William's just down the hall in his office." Georgiana smiled and put a finger up to her lips, then beckoned for Elizabeth to follow her. They walked down a long hall, stopping just outside one of the open doors. From inside, Elizabeth could hear the sounds of an acoustic guitar.

Her eyes widened as she listened. She had no idea what song he was playing, but it sounded amazing. She would have loved to watch him...she could imagine his fingers flying over the strings. Deciding to be bold, she peeked around the corner of the door frame.

The picture that Will presented was entrancing. He was sitting on a stool, and along the wall near him were several different guitars, each one propped up on its own stand. He was obviously lost in the music, head slightly bowed, eyes closed, a serene expression on his face. She watched his left hand move up and down the neck of the guitar as his right hand plucked at the strings. As the music picked up tempo, his body began to move slightly with it. He hadn't bothered to button his dress shirt yet, and she was not surprised to see that he was barefoot.

_I wish I had my camera, _she thought_._ There was so much emotion emanating from him...she would have loved to capture it on film.

Elizabeth backed away from the door, and when Georgiana looked at her, she was quite pleased to see Elizabeth's expression. Her eyes were wide, and her cheeks had taken on a light shade of pink. William's playing definitely had an effect on her! Just what Georgiana had hoped for. She loudly cleared her throat, and immediately the music stopped.

Will walked out of his office, buttoning his shirt, and almost collided with the two women standing just outside the door. He was completely surprised to see Elizabeth standing there with his sister.

"Oh...hi," he said, instantly drawn to her eyes. "I didn't know you were here."

He dragged his gaze away from her eyes, only to be arrested by the sight of her hair tumbling down over her shoulders.

"Georgie, you were supposed to let me know when Elizabeth arrived," he said, turning to glare pointedly at his sister.

"That's just what I was coming to do." She gave him a big smile. "We didn't want to interrupt. Elizabeth and I have already introduced ourselves, so I'll leave you two alone." She turned to walk back down the hallway, disappearing into another part of the house.

He turned back to Elizabeth. "Sorry I didn't greet you at the door, although Georgie seemed to conveniently forget to let me know that you were here."

"I think she wanted to give her and I a chance to talk. I'm glad she did. I feel like now, finally, that day is completely behind us."

He smiled at her. "Good. I'm glad. Although, once again, we're returning to the inn...are you sure you wouldn't rather go somewhere else?"

"No, the inn is fine. Really." She looked at him and couldn't help but notice how incredible he looked in that shade of blue. _If any man could be called beautiful, it would be him. _She gave herself a mental shake and pulled her eyes away from him.

At the same time that Elizabeth was taking in his appearance, Will was taking in hers. Her cheeks were glowing and her eyes were sparkling. She looked bright and summery, and the green of her top brought out the color of her eyes.

He smiled softly at her. "You look very nice."

"Thanks. You don't look so bad yourself."

"Oh, thanks. Georgiana declared me fit to be seen in public, so I figure I did alright." They both chuckled. There was a momentary awkward silence. He cleared his throat, and gestured for her to walk ahead of him back down the hallway and into the great room.

"Would you like a glass of wine or something before we go? We have some time, our reservation isn't until six."

"Sure. A glass of wine sounds nice."

"Red or white?"

"White please." She smiled at him and held his gaze.

"I'll be right back. We can go out onto the deck and sit for a while, if that's okay."

"Sure."

As he disappeared into the kitchen, Elizabeth took the time to look around the room she was standing in. Once again, she was surprised to find that even though it was a large room, it was very cozy. It had the distinct feel of a summer home...a very large one, but just the same, it was very warm and inviting.

Elizabeth walked to the mantle over the fireplace and looked at the photos there. There was one photo, in the center of the mantle, of a man and a woman, who she assumed must have been Will's parents. She could see the resemblance. They looked happy in the photo, holding each other and smiling. She felt a stab of sadness for him and Georgiana. The other pictures were of Will and Georgiana, at various ages.

In one of the pictures, Will looked about five or six, a serious look on his face, brows furrowed, the unruly curls on his head adorable. She laughed to herself as she realized she had seen that exact same expression on his face, quite a few times.

A minute later, he was back with two glasses of wine and a pair of sandals on his feet. He led her out to the deck, and it was all she could do not to let her eyes pop out of her head as she took in the scene before her.

The yard was huge, with a beautifully manicured lawn and gorgeous plantings. There were two smaller buildings on the property, one obviously some type of maintenance shed that was tucked nicely into the landscaping so as not to stick out too much. The other was bigger, and looked to be some type of guest house.

Further out, about halfway before the yard met the beach, there were two adirondack chairs, with a small table in between. Beyond them she could see more lawn, then sand, and then a wide expanse of ocean.

The yard was easily big enough to host a soccer game, or a football game, or any other sporting event. It was completely fenced in, offering complete privacy, but the plantings had been designed to camouflage the fence. Everything looked to be in its natural element, there was nothing pretentious or overdone. It was postcard perfect.

"Will, this is...it's beautiful." She couldn't think of anything else to say, she was literally speechless.

"Thank you. I'm afraid I can't take much credit for it...we have landscapers and gardeners that take care of everything, I just pay the bill."

"Well, it's unbelievable."

He looked at her, and could tell by the look on her face that she meant what she said. She wasn't saying it because she wanted to please him, or saying it because she had an ulterior motive. She just appreciated what she saw.

"Why don't you sit?" He gestured to a chair and pulled up another, moving it close to her.

Elizabeth looked at him and smiled softly. "I'm sorry if you thought Georgiana and I were spying on you. I had no idea why she was leading me down the hall!" She chuckled and sipped her wine. "I'm glad she did though, so I guess I'm not _really_ sorry, actually. You play wonderfully."

Will felt himself blush slightly. "Thanks. I was just goofing around. It relaxes me, helps me to decompress."

Her eyebrows flew up. "Are you telling me that you needed to relax and decompress in anticipation of our dinner? Have you been dreading it that much?" Her tone of voice was obviously teasing."I had no idea I had such an affect on people."

He looked at her, and felt himself getting lost in her glittering eyes again. "I didn't mean it that way." _You have no idea of the affect you have on me,_ he thought.

"I know, I'm teasing you. I thought you were beginning to get used to it?" She grinned up at him mischievously.

"I am...you catch me off-guard sometimes, that's all. I like it though...you keep me on my toes." He smiled back at her.

Elizabeth turned to look back out at the massive yard before her. "Is that a guest house there?"

"It is," Will replied. "We have a housekeeper, Mrs. Reynolds, who has worked for us for years. When Georgiana and I were younger, she and Mr. Reynolds would live out there when we were all here for the summer. He was the property manager until he died quite a few years ago. She's usually up in Boston now, although she was here this past weekend. She left earlier today. She stays in the main house whenever she visits now." His voice softened a bit. "She's getting older, and I don't like her to stay alone out there."

"How long has she been with your family?" Elizabeth asked.

"About twenty-five years. She's more like family than an employee, you know?" He smiled gently. "She's like a grandmother...she likes taking care of us. She's attempting to teach Georgie how to cook, but I think it's turning out to be more difficult then she thought it would be."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "I can relate to that. I'm a horrible cook. My mother never bothered to teach me, and once I was away at school, it was all about pinching pennies." She laughed. "I will never, ever eat canned pasta or ramen noodles again."

"The essential diet of the college student."

"I'm sure _you_ wouldn't know about that, Mr. Harvard. What did they serve you in the dining hall there, caviar and lobster? On white linen tablecloths?" She laughed again.

He laughed with her, enjoying the tease. "_No, _not quite. Although, I must say, I ate well. No canned pasta for me, although the occasional late-night package of ramen noodles was not unheard of." He smiled at her, and once again, the gleam in her eyes as she teased him completely pulled him in. He made himself look away from her and took a gulp of his wine.

"Are we going to walk to the inn?" Elizabeth asked him. It was a nice night, and she knew that it wouldn't take very long if they walked along the beach. Their walk would actually take them right past Charles' house as well.

He glanced at his watch. "If you'd like to, that's fine...we should probably go now, though."

They both got up from their chairs and walked back inside. While Will put their glasses in the kitchen, Elizabeth went into the bathroom to freshen up. She heard him call up to Georgiana that they were leaving.

Georgiana came down from another part of the house and met them in the great room. They looked relaxed and happy. "Have a nice time you two," she said. As she looked at them, she had to bite back the huge smile that threatened to bloom across her face. _They really do make a striking couple_.

William squinted his eyes and looked at her, knowing exactly what she was about. "Thanks Georgie. See you later."

"It was nice to meet you, Georgiana. Have a good night." Elizabeth smiled at her warmly.

"It was nice to meet you too, Elizabeth. Goodnight."

Georgiana watched as Will placed his hand on the small of her back and guided Elizabeth toward the door. The moment they were gone, she burst into giggles.

* * *

><p>They enjoyed their stroll down the beach, carrying their sandals and talking as they walked. Will had called the inn as soon as it opened to request a table for tonight. Although he was told that they were booked, he mentioned his name, and lo and behold, a private table by a window magically became available. He didn't like to do that, but he wasn't going to let anything mess up this dinner. They arrived at the restaurant, and once they were seated, the waiter lit the candle at the center of the table. They each ordered a glass of wine.<p>

Elizabeth wanted to talk more about Will's music. She couldn't get the image of him playing his guitar out of her mind, and she wanted to know what he was thinking and feeling as he played.

"What was that song you were playing when Georgiana and I snuck up on you?"

"It's called 'The Most Evolved.' Kind of a funny name, but I love it. It's got that whole Flamenco vibe." He felt a little self-conscious. "There's a lot of passion in that song."

"I did peek around the corner to watch you play," she admitted.

"Oh." He blushed slightly and looked away, then turned back to her. "I thought you were just spying with your ears, not your eyes."

She smiled at him. "Nope, both. You obviously get lost in your music...you didn't even know I was there."

"I do get lost in it, sometimes...depending on my mood, I guess."

He thought for a moment before going on. "Remember when you told me about how you get carried away taking pictures? How you take a picture of something, hoping to capture how you felt at that particular moment?"

Elizabeth nodded in response.

"That's what music is for me. It's emotion." He grinned mischievously "Well, sometimes it's just, you know, cutting loose and making noise. But mostly, it's about evoking feelings."

He looked at Elizabeth, hoping to see understanding in her eyes, and happy to see it was there.

He continued. "For everything significant that's ever happened in my life, good or bad, there's a song that takes me back to it. Everyone has a soundtrack to their lives, I think."

Elizabeth completely understood. What he said was true; songs brought memories back. In a way, they were both artists, at least in part, and she guessed that's what all artists felt about their medium, whether it was painting, or sculpture...or music and photography; it was about emotion.

"Do you play mostly that type of music?" She didn't want to pry too much, but she wanted to know about this side of him. She felt like it was a side that a lot of people probably didn't get to see.

"Oh, no, I play everything. Before you came, I was playing a little Dave Matthews. Some Beatles." He grinned at her. "You missed the singing, you were too late." He laughed as she pushed her bottom lip out into a pout. He couldn't look away from her eyes, the way they were lit by the candlelight. _She is __stunning._

Elizabeth felt her face begin to warm under the intensity of his gaze. The waiter appeared with their wine and began to go over the dinner specials, effectively ending the moment. Elizabeth had the feeling, though, that there might be more to come.

* * *

><p>They both sat back after their plates were taken away, finishing the rest of their wine, enjoying the view of the sunset, and commenting on the excellence of the food.<p>

Conversation during dinner had been light and effortless. The comfort level between the two of them had grown, and both felt a little more willing to let their guard down.

She was trying to be as honest with herself as she could. She was drawn to him, and even though she had only known him for two weeks, and had _really_ only started to get to know him over the past few days, she was beginning to genuinely like him. Something inside her, however, was telling her that he could definitely be dangerous. Not necessarily in a bad way; just...dangerous to her equilibrium. Her perfect, orderly world was definitely being pulled a little off balance.

"Elizabeth...hello..." Will finally caught her gaze. "What's going on in that head of yours?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I went off somewhere for a minute!" _Snap out of it, _she chided herself."That was rude. Sorry." She felt herself blushing.

"You were staring at me, and I was beginning to wonder if I had a piece of shrimp stuck between my teeth. I don't, do I?" He flashed an exaggerated smile at her, dimples and all.

She laughed. "No shrimp." She tilted her head and bit her bottom lip lightly, still gazing at him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, wondering why she was looking at him so strangely.

"Mmhm." All this time, she had been thinking that they were getting to know each other so that they could be friends, but she was wondering if she had been fooling herself.

"Can I ask you a question?" she said softly.

"Sure. Ask away." He folded his arms on the table in front of him, and leaned forward with a smile on his face, looking her straight in the eyes. "What do you want to know?"

That look totally disarmed her. _He really has no idea how gorgeous he is. _She caught herself staring at his bottom lip and was absolutely mortified. She forced herself to look back into his eyes.

Hesitating, she took a deep breath, then went for it. "What is this?" She gestured back and forth between them with her hand. "Are we really doing this so we can be nicer to each other around Jane and Charles?"

She watched as his eyes widened in surprise.

"Is that why you think I asked you out to dinner tonight?" He had a small grin tugging at his lips.

"Well...yes, actually. You said that since we'd be seeing a lot of each other this summer, you thought it would be nice if we could get along. You didn't want me to think you were an 'arrogant ass.' Remember?" She tilted her head and gave him a teasing smile.

He chuckled and sat back in his chair. "I believe I said 'arrogant _jerk,_' just to refresh your memory." He paused for a moment. "I thought we had already agreed that we were leaving all that in the past. Haven't we moved on from it?"

"Well, yes, I'd like to think we have," she replied, unsure of where his line of questioning was going.

"Has your opinion of me changed? Even a little?" he asked, still smiling at her.

"Of course it has. I wouldn't be here if it hadn't." She pursed her lips and studied him. "I'm assuming...though I hate to use that word...that your extremely poor first impression of me has changed as well."

He chuckled again. "It has."

He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "Elizabeth, I asked you to come to dinner with me tonight because I like you. I think you're smart, and funny, and beautiful, and I want to get to know you better...for me. Not for Charles and Jane, for me." He waited for some type of response, but since none was forthcoming, he went on.

"Do you really think that I just happened to be driving around in Falmouth last night?" he asked her quietly, leaning forward again.

His question surprised her. "Well, yes, since that's what you told me." She really hadn't thought too much about it.

"Well, I lied." He smiled at her, quite smugly. "I couldn't stop thinking about you. All day. I wanted to see you, and I didn't want to wait until tonight. So I drove to your house."

She saw that he looked quite pleased with his confession. "You know, you're dangerously close to being called arrogant again," she said, not sounding half as stern as she wanted to. He had actually surprised her very much.

He reached across the table and took her hand in his, interrupting her train of thought completely.

"Why? Because I went after what I wanted?" he asked her, lightly stroking her knuckles with his thumb. "That's not arrogance, it's confidence. There's a difference." He couldn't believe he just said that to her. The truth was, he _wasn't_ feeling very confident about anything at the moment.

She sighed quietly and offered him a slight smile. "Okay, maybe there's a difference...a _small _one." Her hand was feeling significantly warmer, and the warmth was creeping up her arm.

"When I talked to you this morning on the phone, you said you were happy that I stopped by last night," he continued.

"I was. It was a pleasant surprise."

"Because you thought about me yesterday too?" _I hope_.

She gave him a piercing stare, trying unsuccessfully to stop the smile threatening to form on her lips. "Arrogant."

He smiled back at her and shook his head. "Confident."

They both laughed softly. He lifted her hand to his lips and gave her a lingering kiss there, all the while looking straight into her eyes. "You ask what this is? I have no idea. I just know that I like it, and I know that I like you, and I want to continue to get to know you. Does that answer your question?"

_What was my question again? _She got her thoughts back on track. "Yes...I...yes, it does."

"Do you want to see me again?" He hoped he knew her answer.

She nodded her head, no longer trusting her voice.

Relief flooded him. "Excellent." He smiled at her, a wicked gleam in his eye. "I knew you'd come around."

Her mouth dropped open comically. She closed it and shook her head slowly, trying not to grin. "Arrogance...or confidence...whatever you choose to call it, you have entirely too much of it."

He gifted her with that beautiful smile, complete with dimples, and before she knew it, she was smiling back.

* * *

><p>The walk back to Will's house was quiet at first, the two just enjoying the view of the moonlight playing on the water and the sound of the waves lapping against the shore. Will reached for Elizabeth's hand and was happy when she took hold of his without hesitation and held it firmly.<p>

"You and Georgiana seem to be very close," Elizabeth said, as they walked hand in hand.

Will nodded. "We are. It's just the two of us, has been for a while, so I guess we've always depended on each other a lot."

"She's very lucky to have you."

She turned to look up at him, and saw that he looked distracted. A muscle twitched in his jaw, and he was staring straight ahead. She felt his hand grip hers a little tighter.

He sighed. "I do my best. It's not always enough, though."

His voice had softened so much, she wasn't sure if she had heard him correctly. She watched as he seemed to retreat into himself for a moment. She knew that Georgiana had been going through a difficult time, just from the few things Will had said, but didn't know the extent of it. She wouldn't pry, though; he didn't seem comfortable talking about his sister, so she left it alone.

Abruptly, he changed the subject and began asking her about Martha's Vineyard. She was shocked to learn that he had never been, and he made her promise to take him there some time over the summer.

They decided to enjoy the clear, moonlit night from the adirondack chairs. As they started to walk up from the beach toward them, Elizabeth stopped, causing Will to stop as well. "Sorry. I just thought of something. Wouldn't it be nice if we had some music to listen to?"

She gave him a smile designed to charm, and he willingly fell for it.

As they reached the chairs, Will said, "Have a seat, I'll be right back." Releasing her hand, he walked up to the house and returned a few minutes later, carrying a guitar. "Will this do?" He knew it was exactly what she had been hinting at.

"Oh, I was hoping you had an iPod or something, but that will do in a pinch I guess."

He looked at her, face tilted up to his, wearing that mischievous smile that he enjoyed so much, and he had to fight back the urge to kiss her.

A chill had come into the air, as it always does at night in the spring, so Will had also grabbed a sweatshirt for her. It was maroon, and said 'HARVARD' across the front in big white letters. It was huge, hanging all the way down to her thighs, and she had to cuff the sleeves back a few times, but she didn't care.

He repositioned the chairs so they were closer and facing toward each other, instead of side by side. Elizabeth sat with her legs curled next to her, watching him as he got into a comfortable position.

As he squirmed around, he grumbled that "whoever designed these chairs obviously didn't have guitar players in mind." Finally he found a comfortable position and looked at her.

"Any requests?" He lightly strummed the strings.

"Are you going to sing for me?" She batted her eyelashes at him playfully.

"What would you like me to sing?" He batted his back.

She giggled at his silliness. "Oh, umm, I don't know. Play anything." She really didn't care what he played, she just wanted to watch him. "Something _you_ enjoy playing."

The thought flashed through his mind that he had never done this before...he had never played or sang for a woman, ever...and here he was, ready to do so, without hesitation.

"Do you like John Mayer?" he asked her.

"Sure," Elizabeth answered. Even if she didn't, she wouldn't have said so.

"Okay, I'll play a song I used to sing to Georgie, years ago."

He started to play the song, and Elizabeth was mesmerized. He made the guitar playing look so effortless, and as he started to sing the lyrics, she was pulled in even further. His warm voice washed over her.

_I_

_hate to see you cry_

_Lying there in that position._

_There's_

_things you need to hear,_

_So turn off your tears,_

_and listen._

_Pain throws your heart to the ground,_

_Love turns the whole thing around._

_No, it won't all go the way it should,_

_But I know the heart of life is good.*_

Georgiana quietly stepped out onto the deck and heard the sounds of Will's guitar, drifting to her on the breeze, as he played and sang for Elizabeth. She recognized the song, and it always brought tears to her eyes. How many times had he sang that to her after their father had died?

She thought about what he was doing, sharing this with Elizabeth. He hardly every played for anyone besides her. Yes, Charles had heard him play, and Mrs. Reynolds...but he never opened himself up like this to anyone else.

She was happy for him, but part of her was a little worried for him, too. He was more vulnerable then he let on, and the fact that he was opening himself up made him more susceptible to getting hurt. She listened a moment longer, then turned and let herself back into the house.

Elizabeth clapped and cheered quietly when he finished the song. He looked so sexy in the moonlight, playing his guitar, the breeze blowing through his hair. She felt like something special was happening and she didn't want it to end, but it was getting late and she had to work in the morning.

"That was wonderful," she said, and she meant it. His voice was incredible. "One more, please?"

He paused as if he was thinking of something. "One more...for a price."

She looked at him and raised her eyebrows. "For a price? What might the price be?"

"Hmm...a kiss would be payment enough. One kiss for one song?"

He hoped he wasn't moving too quickly for her, but he was having a hard time _not_ kissing her. He thought that maybe if they shared a kiss, she would see that there was something between them. He already knew it, but she needed to realize it for herself.

Elizabeth's heart picked up its pace. She looked at him, and he never took his eyes from hers. "You want to kiss me?" she asked him.

"Very much," he answered quietly.

It took Elizabeth only a moment to realize that she wanted to kiss him too. She wanted to know what his lips felt like, what he tasted like. She untucked her legs and scooted forward on the chair. He put his guitar down and did the same, until their knees were touching.

Reaching up with both hands to cup her face, he stared into her eyes, then leaned in to kiss her slowly and sensuously, lightly caressing her lips with his, over and over again. He didn't push to deepen the kiss, even though he desperately wanted to. _Her lips are so soft._

Elizabeth reached up with one hand and gently rested it against his neck, feeling his soft, warm skin. She shivered slightly, and knew it wasn't due to the breeze.

As they slowly broke apart, Will kissed the tip of her nose, then her forehead. He leaned back slightly, and they stared at each other. Neither spoke a word, but both knew that something momentous had just happened.

Speechless, Elizabeth settled back into her chair, once again curling her legs underneath her body, and waited for him to play something else, trying to slow her heart rate and her breathing. She felt like she had a ball bouncing around in her stomach.

Will picked up his guitar again, then cleared his throat and smiled at her. "This is one of my favorite songs. No words, just music." He realized that his heart was pounding and his hands were shaking slightly, and hoped it wasn't noticeable.

He started playing "Always With Me, Always With You," by Joe Satriani. It was an older song, and Elizabeth recalled it being played on an electric guitar, but it sounded beautiful on the acoustic. Feeling completely relaxed, she rested her head against the back of the chair and let her eyes drift shut, smiling lightly.

Will watched as she closed her eyes, and he felt a surge of warmth go through his entire body. She looked so appealing, wearing his sweatshirt, curled up in the chair, hair shining in the moonlight. So many thoughts were rushing through his head. The one he paid the most attention to was the one telling him not to rush whatever was happening between them.

He finished the song, but she didn't move and her eyes didn't open. A soft grin graced her lips.

He stood up and quietly placed the guitar on his chair. Standing in front of her, he bent over, bracing his body with his hands on the arms of her chair, and placed a soft kiss in her hair. _She smells so good._ She lifted her face slightly as he moved to kiss her eyes, then her cheeks, then finally her lips. Again, he didn't push to deepen the kiss. After a minute, she slowly broke away from him, and he reached down to pull her up out of the chair.

Silently, holding hands, they made their way back to the house. He put his guitar away, then walked her outside to the driveway.

She leaned back against her jeep and looked up at him. "Thank you for dinner. It was very nice." _Ugh...that sounded so lame. _She laughed at herself, and Will looked at her curiously.

"What are you laughing at?"

"I'm laughing at _me_. That was such an understatement, it's ridiculous." She shook her head as if clearing her thoughts, then became serious. "The whole night was...wonderful. Dinner...watching you play, and hearing you sing. You mesmerized me."

"I almost mesmerized you right into a nap, apparently."

He laughed as she hid behind her hands. He gently pulled them away from her face and held them in his own.

Her face felt warm. "I'm sorry! I was just so...relaxed. I didn't fall asleep, I swear! I was very comfortable, sitting there listening to you."

"I'm glad you felt relaxed. I enjoyed watching you."

She gave a slight roll of her eyes, not sure if he was just trying to make her feel better. "Well, anyway...thank you for a wonderful night."

She stood on her tip-toes to kiss him, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her body closer to his. She reached up to rest her hands on his shoulders for balance, and let the rest of her body sway into him. Feeling bold, she took the lead in deepening the kiss, and immediately felt his response. She loved the feel of his lips, and the gentle way his tongue sought hers. He released his arms from around her waist and reached up to cup her face with both hands, moving them back to weave into her hair, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs as he kissed her over and over again.

When they finally broke apart, he lowered his forehead to hers and smiled, trying to regulate his erratic breathing.

She returned his smile. Her heart was pounding, and she wondered if his pounded just as hard. "By the way...I'm keeping the sweatshirt." She pulled the collar up around her nose, then let it drop back down into place. "It smells like you."

Even in the moonlight, he could see the shine in her eyes and knew that she was teasing him. "I hope that's a good thing," he said, kissing her nose.

"It's a very good thing." With one last brief kiss, she climbed into her jeep.

"Will you text me when you get home, just so I know you made it there okay?" he asked.

"Sure. Goodnight Will."

"Goodnight Elizabeth."

He watched until her jeep was out of sight.

* * *

><p>After Elizabeth left, Will went back into the house and walked to his study to grab his guitar and his cell phone. He went back out onto the deck, and the adirondack chairs, still slightly askew, caught his eye in the moonlight. He smiled to himself and sat down in one of the deck chairs that he and Elizabeth had sat in before dinner.<p>

He began strumming a few chords, mindlessly at first, but eventually found himself playing "Blackbird" by The Beatles. It was an easy song to play; he could probably do it in his sleep. He just wanted to kill time until she texted him that she was home.

As he played, he went over the night in his head. He was ridiculously happy at the turn of events. He had never felt this way, ever, about a woman before. The thought of spending time with Elizabeth, of getting to know her...it excited him. He felt like he was about to embark on a very important journey.

_How can I feel this way already? _He had no idea how to answer his own question, so he didn't bother trying. He just had a feeling. A gut feeling. The very first gut feeling he had about Elizabeth was right...he hoped this one was too.

He thought back to the relationships he had been in. As few as they were, they were always so...impersonal. They had always felt more like business arrangements. He usually liked the women well enough, he couldn't be with someone that he didn't like, and they were always attractive. He was smart, though; he was never foolish enough to think that they were interested in anything more than his name and his wallet.

That was okay with him, and most of the time, it was enough. It meant having someone to take to the necessary social engagements and functions, and it also meant having a warm body in his bed when he needed and wanted one. Looking at it now, though, it sounded crass and cheap, and lately, it hadn't been enough. He wanted more.

He had only one expectation and requirement from the women he spent time with; complete and total respect for his privacy. The last thing he needed was to open a newspaper or magazine and see his personal life laid out for all to see. So far, so good; the women were happy just to be seen on his arm, attending all the best society functions. They were usually from the same social sphere as he, therefore, they knew how to 'play the game,' so to speak. When the relationship ran its course, they went their separate ways, no harm no foul.

Some of the women had been to his Boston townhouse, but going to the Cape was out of the question. This was his sanctuary. He didn't want to let anyone that far into his life, and frankly, none of them really showed much interest anyway.

His thoughts drifted back to his music, and he started playing "The Most Evolved" again.

Fifteen minutes later, his cell phone buzzed, startling him out of his thoughts.

_Home safe and sound._

Will smiled and texted back. _Glad to hear it. Thanks for indulging my paranoia._

_My pleasure. Miss me yet?_

He laughed. _You are a flirt. YES, I do. __What time will you be home from work tomorrow?_

_4:30ish_

_Can I call you? _

_Of course!_

He smiled. _Talk to you then. Sweet dreams._

_You too. _

* * *

><p>Elizabeth rode her bike into work the next morning, glad for the chance to sort through her thoughts and try to get them into some semblance of order. By the time she got to Woods Hole, she had not had any moments of great clarity, like she was hoping.<p>

The day crawled by, and she couldn't wait until four o'clock so she could get out of the building and get some fresh air. She'd had her nose buried in paperwork all day, and had the start of a pounding headache.

Will had drifted in and out of her thoughts quite a bit, but she still hadn't been able to sort anything out. Inevitably, when she did think about him, she found herself daydreaming like a schoolgirl over his kisses. Just thinking about them, and him, made her stomach flutter, and she had to force herself to focus on work again.

She decided that she was being too hard on herself. The reason that she didn't want to say anything to Jane or Charlotte about seeing William was because she knew they'd have a ton of questions for her that she couldn't answer. If she didn't have answers for herself, how could she expect to have answers for them?

They liked each other, and wanted to see each other more. That was going to have to be good enough for now.

Her cell phone rang as she walked into her house, and she smiled when she saw the caller ID.

"Hi Will," she answered.

"Hi yourself. How are you?" he asked.

"I'm fine...you?"

"Fine, thanks. How was work? Busy day?"

"Yes, a typical day. Lots of paper shuffling and computer work."

"Me too. I think I'll be heading into Boston this week, I'm long overdue for an office visit. My staff probably thinks I've been kidnapped."

"I'm sure your intimidating presence is felt, even from afar." She smiled, knowing he would hear the tease in her voice.

"Thanks for that," he laughed, "although, you said I didn't intimidate _you_...not that I was trying to."

"Hmm...yes, I know better now."

"So," he went on, "what's your week like?"

"Well, work, of course," she said, "and our first softball game of the season is tomorrow."

"Softball?" Will couldn't keep the surprise out of his voice. "You play softball?"

"Yes, I do...very well, I might add. I'm an ace pitcher," she said confidently. "There's a league in town. We have our first game against the police department tomorrow. I think we'll beat them."

"You sound very sure of yourself." Will had heard _that_ tone in her voice before. "This I would like to see. Can anyone go to the games?"

"Of course, there are always a lot of people there...spouses, kids. Everyone brings their dinner, and we all sit around and have a picnic after the game. It's a lot of fun." She knew he was hinting for an invitation. "Would you like to come down and watch?"

"I'd love it," he said, "you'll have your own personal cheerleader."

"Pom poms and all?" she laughed. "The park is on Bell Tower Lane in Woods Hole, right next to the church. Game starts at four-thirty, sharp."

"I'll be there. I'll take care of dinner for us...I can pack a mean picnic."

"Cheerleader _and_ caterer. What will you surprise me with next?"

"Oh, I'll think of something," he said quietly

"I have no doubt you will." She felt a little flutter in her stomach. "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"You will. I'll be there, pom poms and all." He sighed quietly. "See you tomorrow."

"Bye Will."

"Bye Elizabeth."

* * *

><p>Will hung up the phone, happy that he would be seeing Elizabeth again so soon. He would have liked to see her tonight, but thought that four days in a row would have been pushing it. Not for him, mind you; he wouldn't get tired of seeing her. He didn't want <em>her<em> to get tired of seeing _him_. She had sounded a little distracted on the phone at first, but it didn't last too long. She probably did have a long day at work.

His day had also seemed to stretch on forever. He was on the phone all morning, talking to his cousin Richard, who lived in San Francisco and ran the RJD offices there. William had put him in charge of looking into the possibilities of creating a new division of RJD Properties that would work solely on green design. This would be a whole new area of business for William, but he felt it could prove to be quite lucrative. Instead of working exclusively on existing properties, they would design new eco-friendly properties as well. If he was going to do this, he was going to launch it in California, and William trusted Richard to get all the information he needed. They had agreed to talk again later in the week.

Georgiana interrupted him around noon for lunch, and they both sat out on the deck, enjoying the weather. Will smiled at the adirondack chairs, still cockeyed, and thought back to the previous night. Georgiana noticed his grin and had an idea of what he was thinking about, but didn't want to let on that she had seen them.

"Have you talked to Elizabeth today?" she asked.

Will glanced at her, taking another bite of his sandwich. He swallowed. "No...not yet. I'll call her when she's home from work." He looked down at his watch. "Another four hours or so."

"But who's counting, right?" she teased him.

"I'm counting...I almost called her this morning, but decided that would be overdoing it." He looked at her, a small, pathetic expression on his face.

"Oh brother, you have it _bad_. You look like a lost puppy dog!" She giggled. "I hope you know what you're getting yourself into."

"I'm sure that I have _no idea_ what I'm doing," he laughed at himself. "I'm winging it, completely. I like her, and she seems to like me, so...we'll see what happens, I guess."

"The mighty Fitzwilliam Darcy has fallen," Georgiana said, ducking out of Will's reach as he tried to pull her ponytail. "Have you told her your _real_ name yet? Hmm,_ Fitzwilliam_?"

He shook his head at her and attempted to shoot her his best Darcy glare. "No...I'm sure it will come up, eventually. It's not like I'm trying to hide it. I just haven't thought about it, really."

"If you say so...Fitzwilliam."

He rolled his eyes as he got up from the table and went back into the house, listening to Georgie crack herself up.

Once again, his eyes were drawn to the clock on the wall. Sighing, he headed back to his office.

* * *

><p><em>How do you think they're 'first' date went? Please leave me a review to let me know what you think! Thanks!<em>

*Song: _"The Heart Of Life" by John Mayer _


	6. Chapter 6

_Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

Not surprisingly, Wednesday seemed to fly by. Despite the fact that she once again spent the day under a mountain of paper work, Elizabeth was full of anticipation at the thought of seeing Will in another hour. She hoped he would show up...but then she worried about how to greet him if he did. _Are we...together? _She shook her head and told herself not to worry about it. _Go with the flow, Elizabeth_. That's what she'd do.

Just before the game was about to start, she saw Will walking down the short lane to the ballpark. Her heart felt as if it did a gigantic somersault in her chest, and she was thankful she had her sunglasses on, because she couldn't take her eyes off of him. He was drop-dead gorgeous in his faded jeans and pristine white t-shirt, sunglasses gracing his handsome face. He stopped as he reached the grass to remove his sandals. She smiled to herself, liking that they had a similar approach to footwear.

She was standing with some of the other women that were on the team, and one of them, Mary, spoke up quickly. "Ladies, ladies, hottie alert."

Elizabeth blushed slightly and listened as they all made whispered comments about Will as he walked their way, giggling to each other.

"Is he a new employee?" "Hot flash...I'm having a hot flash!" "Is he with the police?" "Anyone see a wedding band?" "Check out those guns." "Wait, is he walking over to us?"

Will spotted Elizabeth out on the field, and slowly began making his way over to her, not wanting to interrupt her conversation. She looked adorable in her gym shorts, t-shirt, and sneakers, wearing her sunglasses and a pink Red Sox hat. He felt like he was walking in quicksand as he headed toward her, and he felt his heart rate speed up.

"He's with me." The four women turned to look at Elizabeth, eyebrows raised, and she felt her blush deepen. "Well, I mean, I invited him. Here. To watch. The game," she stammered.

Before they had a chance to process that information, she broke away from the group and began walking toward him, and then he did it...he smiled _that smile_, dimples and all. Her insides turned to jello. She knew that the smile that broke out on her face was just as huge, and she didn't care. She was happy to see him.

When he reached her, Will stood close to her and looked down at her face. "Hi." God, he wanted to kiss her.

"Hi yourself," she said, still unable to take her eyes off him.

He couldn't take it. _I'm winging it, right? _He leaned in and gave her a soft, lingering kiss, and reached up with his free hand to lightly caress her cheek.

They slowly broke apart, and he felt as though he had been waiting all day for this exact moment. He couldn't stop an immense smile from again spreading across his face, especially seeing it returned to him so beautifully. "I am...very happy to see you," he said quietly, still touching her face.

"I'm happy to see you," she replied, and she meant every word. She knew she was blushing, and her heart was pounding in her chest. She was afraid to turn around, knowing they had a small audience. She was going to have a lot of explaining to do at work tomorrow. "I have to get ready, we need to finish warming up." _Although I feel plenty warm already._

She bit her lip to hold back a giggle, and as if reading her thoughts, Will said "You feel pretty warm to me." They both laughed, and she stood on her tip-toes to place another quick kiss on his lips before walking away.

As she turned toward the field, she was relieved to see that the group of women had broken up, although they were all still staring at her, each with the same wide-eyed look on their faces. She smiled to herself and headed to the pitchers mound.

* * *

><p>As Will lay back on the grass, propped up on his elbows, he thought that he had never enjoyed watching a game of softball more. Actually, he didn't think he'd ever watched an entire softball game at all before today. His eyes were constantly on Elizabeth. She wasn't lying, she certainly knew how to play.<p>

He loved watching her pitch, her enthusiasm as she struck someone out, and especially the way she laughingly taunted the batters. It was evident that all the players knew each other and had a great rapport. The police department team was mainly made up of men, and he didn't fail to notice how they flirted with Elizabeth, and it bothered him a little, but not much. They were very respectful, not crude or overtly hitting on her, and she seemed to take it all in stride, laughing and not taking anything seriously at all. She turned to look at him and smile at him often, and although she was concentrating on the game, he knew she was very aware of him.

Watching her at bat was an entirely different experience. Seeing her up there, wiggling her bottom around in those cute little shorts, and now taunting the pitcher, was extremely distracting. _That catcher better not be staring at her ass._

He watched, amazed, as she swung and knocked the ball far out between the left and center fielders. She ran to first and rounded to head for second, never slowing her pace. The center fielder threw the ball in, but he was too late. She had slammed a double.

Her team cheered for her from the bench, and Will whistled loudly. He watched as the second baseman smiled and said something to her, making her laugh as she elbowed him lightly in the ribs. The next batter got a big hit, sending Elizabeth around to score. She headed to the bench and was high-fived by the other members of her team. She glanced over to him, and he gave her a huge smile and clapped lightly for her.

Smiling back, she walked over to her bag to grab another bottle of water. Looking at him with an arched brow, she asked, "What, no pom poms?"

He laughed and shook his head. "Next time," he called back to her. He couldn't wipe the smile off of his face. She was enchanting. He watched as she tilted her head back to take a long drink of water. His eyes dropped from her face, to her neck, to the curves of her breasts, to her flat stomach, to her adorable bottom, and down to her very beautiful, toned legs. _Runner's legs_.

His gaze went back up to her face. Her cheeks were glowing from her run around the bases, and he watched as she smiled and chatted with one of the men on her team. While talking, she took her hat off to pull her hair out of its pony tail, comb her fingers through it, and put it back up again. His eyes were glued to her, to the column of her neck, and the few stubborn curls clinging to it that refused to stay up in the elastic. She seemed totally unaware of how sexy she was...which made her even sexier.

He tried to picture any of the women that he had previously dated running around in shorts and a

t-shirt, playing _softball_, of all things. Though he had never dated Caroline Bingley, an image of her running in her high heels and one of her ridiculous hats popped into his head, and he laughed out loud. Being here, watching Elizabeth, was so...revitalizing. She was like a breath of fresh air.

Thankfully, the game ended after six innings. Will didn't think he could sit still much longer. Watching her laugh and tease was hard enough...watching her wiggle every time she came up to bat, then run the bases, was sheer torture. Elizabeth's team lost, 11-8. Immediately, everyone started pulling out blankets to sit on, and kids were running all over the field, chasing each other around. Coolers were dragged out, someone turned a radio on, and it was an instant party.

Will smiled as Elizabeth made her way over to him. "Hi there, killer."

She laughed. "Killer? Not exactly."

"Yes, _exactly_. You slaughtered that ball every time you got up to bat. I wouldn't want to be the pitcher that faces you." He smiled and nudged her with his shoulder. "The catcher had a nice view though."

He laughed and jumped away as she tried to swat him.

"You're awful," she said, but couldn't stop from laughing just the same. They started walking to the infield.

"I can't help it. Are you aware of how much you wiggle your bottom when you're up to bat? It's very distracting."

"Maybe that's why I do it," she said, turning that delightful teasing smile on him.

"Well, it would certainly work on me." He reached out to wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her to him, kissing her on the top of her baseball hat as they walked. "Oh, I need to go get the food, it's in the car. Go grab us a patch of grass."

She watched as he jogged away, and felt herself shiver a little. She took the momentary break from his presence to take off her hat and attempt to arrange her curls, once again, into a more presentable pony tail. Immediately, the four women she had been standing with before the game hurried over to her. _The Spanish Inquisition had nothing on these ladies._

"Elizabeth Bennet!" Mary was Bill Collins' secretary, and was old enough to be Elizabeth's mother. "Who is that divine man? Have you been holding out on us?"

Elizabeth laughed. "No, I have _not_ been holding out on you. His name is Will. We're...umm, he's a friend." For some inexplicable reason, she felt herself blush slightly.

Thankfully, Will was already heading back over, walking at a rapid pace, cooler and blanket in hand.

"Oooooh, here he comes," Mary giggled. "We'll let you be. Come on ladies, we can still ogle him from afar. Have fun Lizzy!" The women walked away, and Elizabeth hoped they wouldn't resume their questioning tomorrow, but she knew better. She'd have to find a good hiding place at work.

Elizabeth helped Will spread out the blanket, purposely choosing a spot that was a little removed from everyone so they could have at least a little privacy. Once they settled down, Will opened the cooler and surprised her with a huge lobster roll.

"I hope this is okay," he said. "The Raw Bar makes the best lobster rolls around, I couldn't resist picking up a couple."

"This is fabulous! I didn't expect such a treat." She laughed. "I didn't know _what_ to expect, honestly!"

"Did you think I'd show up with peanut butter sandwiches?" He smiled.

She shrugged, and smiled softly back at him. "That would have been fine too," she said, and she meant it. She was just happy he came.

They were quiet as they ate, sitting shoulder to shoulder. Elizabeth sat with her legs folded under her, but Will chose to stretch out. She wanted to ask him about his day, but when she turned to look at him, she was completely transfixed by a tiny dollop of mayonnaise that had positioned itself at the corner of his mouth.

Will felt her eyes on him. "Elizabeth...you're staring at me again. You're going to give me a complex about eating with you."

"Oh...sorry...you just have...a little...right there." Her eyes looked at the dollop, and she felt her skin warming.

"Oh great. This time I really _do_ have food stuck to my face." He laughed and swiped at his lips with a napkin, and just like that, the dollop was gone. "Better?"

"Better." _So...stop staring at his lips then. _She managed to drag her gaze from his mouth up to his eyes. He was staring back at her, and instantly, she saw a glimmer of laughter there. On top of that, he was definitely smirking. _Oh, I am so busted._

He leaned in to kiss her, softly brushing her lips with his. She didn't hesitate to return the kiss, and as much as she would have liked to remain occupied as such, she really didn't want to provide a show for her co-workers. She reluctantly broke away, and when she opened her eyes to look at him, she saw that he still had that smug look on his face.

"Mmm. _That's_ better," he said.

Elizabeth did eventually get around to asking about his day, and the conversation flowed easily while they finished their dinner. With a sigh, Will moved to lay flat on his back on the blanket, rubbing his stomach and closing his eyes. Elizabeth turned her body around so she sat facing him, cross-legged.

"I'm. So. Stuffed," Will said, again rubbing his stomach. "I feel like a beached whale." He opened one eye and peered up at her. "I think I need saving."

Elizabeth laughed, then hopped to her feet and held out her hand. "You need saving alright. Come on, get up, you can't just lay around after eating all that food." She knew better than to even attempt to eat the entire lobster roll; half of hers was wrapped up and placed back in the cooler.

He sat up and grabbed her hand, and she grunted and groaned as she pulled him to his feet, exaggerating the effort it took her to do so.

He rolled his eyes. "Very funny." She laughed, and began to lead him back down the little lane, away from the ball field.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked.

"To the Bell Tower. Did you notice it when you came in?"

"No...there's an actual Bell Tower? I thought it was just the name of the road."

"There's a tower. It's not very big, and we can't go inside of it, but there's a nice park, and a view of the harbor and the houseboats. I thought you might like to see it."

They made the short walk, holding hands, and opened the high wooden gate to the park. It was extremely small, but well taken care of. It was bordered on three sides by high rows of hedges, the fourth side sporting a steel railing that ran along the wall of the harbor. There were flowers everywhere, and a massive tree stood on either side of the tower. The tower itself was made of stone, but was not really that big. It was no surprise to Will that he didn't see it; he wasn't looking that direction when he came down the road, he was looking for the ballpark.

The sun had dropped lower in the sky, and everything seemed very still inside the park. They walked around, and Elizabeth told Will tales of her youth, when she and her friends used to come here to try and figure out ways to scale the tower and get inside through the openings in the walls, way up at the top.

"No one thought of bringing a ladder?" Will asked.

Elizabeth sighed dramatically. "A ladder? Obviously, you have no sense of adventure. A ladder would have been entirely too easy."

"What else happened in this park?" he asked, a twinkle in his eye.

She laughed outright. "Oh, lots of things _always_ happened in this park..." she paused and looked at him coyly, "...or so I've been told." He chuckled at her tease, and she went on. "It's very private. The gate has a very loud squeak, as you heard, so it's like an alarm system, warning anyone inside that they're about to be disturbed...or caught, depending on what was going on."

She walked around to the side of the tower that faced the harbor, and leaned back against it to admire the view. She nodded toward the water. "Did you see the houseboats?"

"Mmhm," he replied quietly.

She looked at the boats, bobbing in the harbor.

"Aren't they funny looking? I've been on one, and they're actually pretty cozy. I don't know if I'd like living in one, though...too much work. How do you go for a run? You have to get in your little dingy, tie in at the dock, climb up...I think it would drive me nuts."

Another thought came to her. "What if you get all the way back to your boat...or your house, whatever you choose to call it...and you realize that you left something in your car? Talk about aggravation."

"Mmhm," he replied again.

She turned to look at him, thinking she was rambling and completely boring him, and saw that he was leaning against the tower on his right shoulder, facing her, looking at _her,_ not looking at the houseboats at all. She felt her breath catch. "Were you even listening to me?" she asked him quietly.

He pushed himself away from the tower and moved to stand in front of her. He placed his hands against the wall, on either side of her head, staring intently at her for a few seconds.

"Mmhm," he nodded slightly. He lowered one hand to stroke her cheek. "You don't want to live on a houseboat." He couldn't stop staring at her, at those eyes.

She laughed softly, unable to pull her eyes away from his intense gaze. "I guess that pretty much covers it."

He slowly leaned in to kiss her, drawing out the moment, and her heart began to thud in her chest. When he was no more than an inch away from her, he stopped, letting the anticipation build further. She felt his warm breath on her face, and after a moment, she felt his tongue trace over her lips, so lightly and slowly that she wondered if she had imagined it. He gently tugged her lower lip into his mouth, nibbling it softly before releasing it to do the same to her top lip.

Will pulled away briefly to look at Elizabeth, wanting to savor the moment and enjoy the electricity that was bouncing between them. She opened her eyes and focused on him, and the sight of her tongue darting out to wet her lips was his undoing. He leaned in to capture her mouth again, kissing her deeply. Their tongues danced together, each of them giving in to the desire flowing like a current between them. He kept his hands pressed against the wall of the tower, but slowly moved his body in closer to her until he could feel her breasts against his chest.

Elizabeth felt like she was drowning in sensation. The feeling of having his body against hers was overwhelming...and not in a bad way. She craved the contact, and let herself press back against him, reaching out to grip his waist tightly. He moved his mouth and began to slowly kiss and nip his away along her jaw and down her neck. She moved her head to the side to give him more access, and every touch of his warm mouth sent a shiver of feeling through her entire body. He returned to her lips, once again kissing her hungrily.

He finally broke away and took a step back from her, closing his eyes. They were both breathing heavily, and Will wondered how it was that she could turn him completely inside out with one kiss. Opening his eyes, he looked at her in the fading sunlight, seeing her flushed cheeks and her red lips, then let his eyes drop down to her breasts. Her nipples were outlined against the material of her thin t-shirt, and he groaned quietly.

Elizabeth knew exactly what he was staring at. She held out a hand to him, and when he took it, she pulled him back towards her and reached up to kiss him, this time taking the lead, kissing him slowly and sensuously, reaching up to run her fingers through his hair and hold his head. She moved forward until her body was again pressed to his, and heard another quiet groan come from deep within his chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close.

Will registered the creaking noise of the gate and froze, and Elizabeth immediately tensed. They heard the sound of children, and the web of intimacy that they had spun around themselves began to break apart. He rested his forehead against hers as they both tried to control their breathing. She reached to cup his face and give him one last kiss, and they laughed softly, both realizing that the creaky gate was still, indeed, a very good alarm system.

Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Will's waist, laying her head against his chest. She smiled to herself when she realized that the rhythmic pounding she was listening to wasn't her heart, but his. After a moment, she broke the silence.

"We should head back."

Even though they hadn't been gone long, not even twenty minutes, she knew the office gossips would have their tongues wagging.

"I guess we should," he replied. He gave her one more lingering kiss before taking her hand to lead her out of the park.

On their way out, they passed the couple who had come into the park with their children. They held hands as they walked back, letting their shoulders and arms rub against each other, both still wanting to feel some type of contact. Back at the ball field, without the cover of trees, the sunlight was a little brighter. They walked over to their blanket and plopped back down, still holding hands.

"Nice park," Will whispered into her ear.

She turned to look at his adorable grin, but before she could say something in reply, she heard the unmistakable voice of Bill Collins calling out to her.

"Hello, Elizabeth," he said as he wandered over to them. He was smiling, but looked only at Will.

_Ugh._ The last thing she wanted to do was make small talk with Bill Collins. _Where did he come from_ _anyway?_ He hadn't been there during the game, she was sure of it.

"Hi Bill," she replied. "I didn't know you were here, I didn't see you."

He still kept his eyes trained on Will. "Oh, I've only just arrived. I had some work to finish up, and thought maybe I could catch the last inning or so, but I was too late. I heard the police were victorious this time."

His eyes shifted to Elizabeth, then down to her hand, still enfolded in Will's. He looked back up to Will's face. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Bill, this is my...this is Will; Will, this Bill. We work together at the Reserve." She had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing at the absurdity of introducing people with rhyming names.

Will released Elizabeth's hand and stood up. He held out his hand for Bill to shake, and Elizabeth looked at them. Again, she had to suppress a laugh. Bill was even shorter than Elizabeth, so seeing him stand face to face _(or face to chest?)_ with Will was comical. Will towered over him.

"Nice to meet you Bill," Will said formally, as he firmly gripped Bill's hand, making Bill wince. Elizabeth noticed that his _Mr. Darcy_ mask had dropped into place.

"Ah...yes, you also, Will," Bill stammered.

Elizabeth didn't like the way Bill was looking at Will, almost as if he was...sizing him up. Apparently, Will noticed as well, because he was glaring at Bill. _I know that look, _Elizabeth thought.

"Elizabeth has told me what a great group of people she works with." Will's voice was all charm as he reached down to Elizabeth and pulled her up onto her feet, so she was standing next to him. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. "She always speaks highly of her co-workers."

Bill was instantly flustered. "Oh, well, yes, it's easy to be great when one has lovely people, such as Elizabeth, to work with." He blushed. "I mean lovely, as in...hard working, knowledgeable people."

"Mmm, yes. Elizabeth is all of those things, isn't she?" Will smiled, but it wasn't the typical smile that she was used to. It didn't quite reach his eyes.

"That she is," Bill said. "If you'll excuse me, I see some other people I'd like to say hello to. It was very nice to meet you Will."

"You too, Bill," Will said, not removing his arm from around Elizabeth's waist. "I'm sure we'll be seeing each other quite a bit at these games." He smiled down at Elizabeth, and this time, it was the real thing.

"Yes...well. I'm sure we will. Yes." He turned his gaze back to Elizabeth. "See you at work tomorrow, my dear." Wink. Smile.

_Ick._ "Yes, Bill, see you tomorrow. Have a nice night."

"Oh, yes...you too." He turned and walked away.

Still holding Elizabeth to his side, Will started chuckling quietly, shaking his head.

"And what exactly is so funny?" she asked, looking up at him, already knowing what he was going to say.

"_He_ is. 'See you at work tomorrow, my dear'," he said, doing a decent impersonation of Bill's voice. "He has the hots for you, doesn't he?"

Elizabeth was embarrassed. "Oh, no...maybe...I don't know. He has asked me out a few times...he's persistent, I'll give him that."

"So is he my competition?" Will asked her in a mock serious tone. "Should I call him out? Pistols at dawn? Swords at sunset?"

She reached over to poke him in the stomach. "Oh please. He is _not_ your competition, trust me."

His face became more serious. "Who is, then?" He tried to keep his tone light, but she could tell he wanted a real answer.

She smiled up at him. "There isn't anyone. No competition. You win by default."

He leaned down to give her a soft, loving kiss, letting himself show his happiness at her answer through actions instead of words.

Across the field, Bill glared at Elizabeth and Will as they kissed. _That should be me kissing her, not that pretty boy, _he thought. He honestly felt that he was the perfect man for Elizabeth, and that it would only be a matter of time before she realized it.

Will and Elizabeth started to pack up their belongings. Elizabeth stuffed her softball glove and water bottles into her backpack, and pulled out a light sweatshirt that she could throw on for her bike ride home. The sun was still shining, but it wouldn't be for too much longer, so she knew she had to get on the bike path soon.

"I'll walk you to your car," Will said, after they had folded the blanket.

"Oh, I rode my bike in today. It's locked up over at the rack by the playground."

Will looked up at the sky, then turned to look at Elizabeth. "Why don't we take your bike over to your office building and lock it up there? I can give you a ride. It'll be dark soon."

"It's fine...there's still enough light, and it doesn't take me long to get home." She smiled at him. "Thanks for the offer though."

"I'm really not comfortable with you riding now...will you indulge me?"

"_I'm_ comfortable with riding now, so no, I won't indulge you. I want to ride home...I've done it a million times. I want my bike there so I can ride in to work tomorrow morning."

Will sighed. "There can't possibly be enough light on that bike path at this time of day. Please don't be stubborn, let me drive you home."

Elizabeth shook her head and gave a short laugh. "I am not _being stubborn." _She put her hands on her hips. "I don't want to have to drive in tomorrow, then tote my bike home in the back of my jeep. This is the easiest way, believe me."

He stood there, staring at her but saying nothing.

She felt herself becoming annoyed._ "_This is what I do, all summer. As long as it's not raining, I ride my bike to work. Sometimes, I work late. Sometimes, I have softball. Always, I ride home." _Are we actually having this conversation right now?_ "And, the longer I stand here talking to you about it, the darker it's going to get. So, you can stand there and pout, or you can walk me to my bike."

Will raised his eyebrows. "Alright, fine," he replied, convinced he was _not_ pouting, and not at all happy that he couldn't talk her out of riding home. Her eyes flashed, and he could tell she was getting aggravated...which was making him feel the same way.

They walked over to the bike rack. The playground was adjacent to the ball field, and there were still some people there from the softball game, pushing kids on swings and playing on the huge climbing toy. Elizabeth unlocked her bike and backed it away from the rack. She put on her sweatshirt and unclipped her helmet from the handlebars.

"Where does the bike path start from?" he asked her, his voice flat.

"I get to it through the Steamship Authority parking lot. It's two minutes from here, on the other side of the harbor."

"Okay, but...I still think this is you being stubborn."

Her mouth dropped open. "And I think this is you being pushy...do we really need to do this? Over a bike ride?" She put her helmet on and buckled it under her chin. _This is a really crappy way to end a nice evening. _"I can't believe we're even having this conversation. Goodnight, Will. Thanks for dinner, and for coming to the game."

Before he could reply, she had climbed on to her bike and pedaled away. He stood there, blanket and cooler in hand, and watched her ride off. _Did we just argue?_ He didn't think they had, but he wasn't really sure. He was just concerned about her, that's all. Why was that such a big deal?

He walked over to his car, placed the cooler and the blanket in the trunk, and climbed in. He sat there for a few seconds, replaying their conversation. The evening had come to a sudden, lousy end. He knew he was being overprotective. She thought he was being pushy.

_I owe her an apology._

Despite the situation, he couldn't help but smile when he thought back to how her eyes had lit up when he called her stubborn. _Beautiful._

As Elizabeth rode home, trees flashing by her, she replayed their conversation as well. She knew he was obviously concerned for her safety, but calling her _stubborn_? She preferred _independent. _She sighed in frustration. _It's a stupid bike ride, for crying out loud._

Twenty minutes later she arrived home, still with plenty of light to spare. She locked up her bike under the deck and climbed the stairs, and was surprised to see Will's cooler next to her door. She opened it, finding a note and the rest of her lobster roll on top of an ice pack. Unlocking her door, she brought the cooler in, turned on some lights, and opened the note.

_Elizabeth,  
><em>_I wanted to leave you the rest of your sandwich so you could have it for lunch tomorrow.  
><em>_Please call me when you get home.  
><em>_Will_

She sighed. It _was_ nice of him to leave the lobster roll, she couldn't argue with that. And she knew she should call him, or else he'd probably end up driving back to her house to make sure she was okay. It's not like they had fought...he was just trying to tell her what to do, and that _never_ worked with her.

She picked up her cell and dialed him, and he picked up on the first ring.

"Hi Elizabeth."

"Hi Will. I made it home, safe and sound." She tried to lighten the tone in her voice, realizing that the last thing she wanted was for this to become a big deal. The whole thing was a little bit ridiculous.

"I'm sorry I was such an ass," he said. "I really was just concerned about you riding home. I don't know anything about that bike path, so all I can picture is you riding through the woods on this skinny little trail in the dark."

That surprised her, and she laughed. "It's not a skinny little trail in the woods. I guess I'll have to get you to ride it or run it with me someday, so you can see for yourself." She sighed. "It's safe. I've ridden it so much that I don't even give it a second thought any more. It's convenient, saves me gas, and it's great exercise. Plus, I enjoy it. It helps me wake up in the morning, and helps me unwind at the end of the day."

"I know, I get it, I really do. I'm sorry that I was being pushy...I guess I can be a little overbearing." He paused, then added playfully, "You are a _little bit_ stubborn though...you do know that, right?"

"I prefer _independent_. It has a much better ring to it." She smiled. "Although, I have to admit, you are not the first person, nor will you probably be the last, to call me stubborn."

"Well, you won't hear it from me again, trust me." Will felt himself relax a bit, relieved that she truly wasn't angry at him.

"Thanks for leaving me the sandwich, it was very nice of you. Something to look forward to for lunch tomorrow."

"You're welcome."

"What are you up to for the rest of the week?" she asked him, curious to know what his plans were.

"I'm heading to Boston tomorrow, I'll probably stay through Friday night. That way, I can be in the office for two days. I really need to catch up on some things." He paused. "I'm hoping to get together with Charles at some point, if I can pry him away from your sister. Maybe you and I can get together this weekend?"

She smiled. "I'd like that. We have another game Friday, but other than that, I don't have too much going on."

"Oh, I'll miss your game. Too bad...I really enjoyed watching you play today."

"Yes, you said as much," she laughed, thinking about his comments on her "batting stance."

"I did! And not just because you wiggle your bottom so nicely when you're up to bat," he said, reading her thoughts, and happy to hear her laugh. His voice became softer. "I especially liked the tour of the park."

"Hmm, I liked that part too," she replied softly, feeling herself blush slightly. "I do believe that was the best part of the evening, although the lobster roll was a close second."

He laughed, then became serious again. "Seriously, I'm sorry I messed everything up at the end. I tend to think that my way is the best way...which I'm finding out isn't always the case."

"I'm sorry for overreacting." She knew she was just as at fault.

"So, truce then?" he asked her.

"Truce."

"Great," he said. "Can I tell you something?"

"Sure."

"You are absolutely breathtaking when you're angry," he said softly.

She felt herself blush again, but couldn't stop herself from grinning. "Oh...um...thank you?" she said, not really knowing what to say to that.

He laughed softly. He could hear the smile in her voice, and felt himself wanting to grin back into the phone like a fool. "You're welcome. Can I call you tomorrow night?"

"Of course."

"Okay, talk to you then. Have a good day tomorrow."

"You too. Good night Will."

"Good night Elizabeth."

Elizabeth thought back on the evening and realized that despite the little...tiff...or whatever it was that had happened between them, she had really enjoyed herself. She liked having someone there to cheer her on during the game, knowing that he was watching her. _Admit it,_ she thought to herself, _you like the fact that he was impressed by your softball skills...and your batting stance. _She laughed out loud.

She also was very taken with this passionate side that he seemed to have tucked away. The few kisses that they had shared previous to their little foray into the park were fantastic...sensual, soft, getting-to-know-you kisses. Today was completely different. When he had kissed her in the park, her whole body had responded on a totally different level. She felt desire, something she hadn't felt in a long time.

Her thoughts turned to the following day and what she was going to deal with at work. Mary, the unofficial head of the office gossips, was not likely to let the day go by without hunting her down like small prey. What had Mary called Will? A _divine man?_ Elizabeth smiled to herself. _Indeed._

* * *

><p>The next morning, Will was up bright and early for his drive into Boston. He had a quick cup of coffee and a bagel and was out the door. Georgiana was aware that he'd be gone overnight, and she was more than fine with it. He promised he'd call her that night to check in.<p>

He was in a good mood; he felt that whatever had happened between him and Elizabeth the night before had been ironed out pretty quickly. He knew it was his fault. She wasn't one to be told what to do, he got that...now. Not that he was trying to tell her what to do...it was more that he was making a suggestion that he had hoped she would listen to. Yes, that sounded much more reasonable.

As he drove, he played the rest of the events of the previous evening through his head. Well, one event in particular. Their little walk in the park was enlightening, to say the least; he loved the way she responded to him. Her kisses weren't tentative or shy, and he sensed that there was a passionate woman lurking beneath the surface. He smiled to himself as he thought of how much he would enjoy discovering that woman.

After parking his car, he walked into the building where his offices were located. Exiting the elevator on the 18th floor, the first face he saw was that of the very surprised receptionist, Jennifer.

"Oh...Mr. Darcy! Hello...good morning," she stammered, "we didn't expect to see you here."

Obviously, not everyone had been told he was coming in today.

"Hello, Jennifer," he replied, all business, "why wouldn't you expect to see me here? It is my company, is it not?" He shot her a quick grin, showing that he was partly teasing, and continued on his way down the hall to his office, whistling while he walked.

His secretary, Eleanor, was sitting at her desk, flipping through an appointment calendar.

"Good morning, Eleanor," he called out, startling her out of her thoughts.

"Good morning, Mr. Darcy," she replied, obviously happy to see him. "It's so nice to have you back."

Eleanor Davenport had been working for RJD Properties since Will was in grade school. She was his father's personal secretary, and now his. Truth be told, she was more like an aunt than an employee, and Will was very fond of her. He had been checking in with her by phone over the past few months, but it wasn't the same as walking through those doors in the morning and seeing her familiar face.

"It's nice to be back. Well, right now it is...talk to me at three this afternoon to see if I still feel the same way. What kind of trouble have you got me scheduled for today?"

He walked into his corner office, taking off his suit jacket and throwing it over the back of his chair. Eleanor promptly walked over to his chair, picked up the jacket, and hung it on a hanger on the back of his door.

They proceeded to go over his schedule of morning meetings, which included a conference call with Richard and two other employees out in San Francisco at eleven. Will decided to call Charles to see if he could meet for lunch, to go over a few things related to business. Hopefully Charles could meet him here at the office.

Richard's news was better than expected. He had been searching for architects that were eager to pour their talents into a start-up green design firm, and had managed to narrow the pool down to six candidates. Will was anxious to get the ball rolling, but he knew it would be at least another month before they whittled down the number even lower.

They went over some other business regarding a couple of properties that Richard thought had some potential for RJD, then ended the conference call. As usual, the cousins stayed on the phone to catch up with each other.

"How's the west coast treating you?" Will asked.

"It's treating me quite well, actually. I manage to keep myself occupied."

Will gave a short laugh. He knew exactly how Richard was probably keeping himself _occupied. _"So, all those songs about California girls aren't lying?"

"What do you think?"

"I think you're probably enjoying yourself. Just keep your head on straight, okay?" Will knew that Richard had a tendency to get carried away with his...fun, and he didn't want any problems while Richard was taking care of business for him out there.

"No worries, cuz, I'm keeping it all together. How about you? Still living the life of a monk, or have you finally given in to Caroline Bingley's persuasive ways?"

"Ha – very funny. I would choose the life of a monk over Caroline any time. And, compared to you, everyone looks like a monk. Look, I have to get going, Charles is on his way up for lunch, we've got some things to go over. Call me if anything else develops, and send me the specs on the two properties you're looking at. Can you forward me the resumes on the six candidates as well?"

"I'll email everything to you." He paused for a second. "Will, you don't have to remind me about how things are done. You know I can handle it."

"I know, Richard. Just keep me informed, okay?"

"Okay. I'll check in with you early next week."

"Sounds good."

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, Charles Bingley strode out of the elevator and headed down to Will's office, carrying an armful of Thai take-out. He knocked on Mrs. Davenport's desk. "Lunch is here!"<p>

Mrs. Davenport came out of Will's office, and Charles greeted her with a kiss on the cheek.

"Mrs. D, looking lovely as usual. How are you today?" He smiled at her, placing her lunch on her desk. "Will ordered your favorite for you, thoughtful boss that he is."

"Now Charles, don't you go teasing my William. He is the most thoughtful boss...other than his dear father, may he rest in peace. He's in quite a good mood today, actually," she went on. "Silly grin stuck to his face, whistling while he works...I don't know what's gotten into him, but I like it."

"Hmm. Good mood? Silly grin? Whistling? Definitely sounds suspicious." He wandered into Will's office, and saw that Will had already seated himself at the long conference table located at one end of the large room. "There he is, the reported Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky."

Will looked up, and indeed, had a grin on his face. "Very funny. I've been called much worse, remember?" He smirked at his oldest friend. "Come in, come in, I'm starving, let's eat."

While they ate, they discussed business, and Will filled Charles in on his conversation with Richard. He _really_ wanted to talk to Charles about Elizabeth, though, to see what he thought of the whole thing. Yes, he had spoken to Georgiana about her, but she was his sister. He wanted to talk to his best friend.

The men were quiet after the talk of business concerns finished up and they enjoyed the rest of their food.

After finishing his lunch, Will sat back in his chair and laced his fingers behind his head. "So, how's your _angel, _by the way?"

Charles looked at Will, used to the ribbing at this point.

"My angel is fine, thanks. She's fantastic," he said, unable to stop the smile on his face. "We get along so well. She's smart...interesting...funny...down to earth...not to mention beautiful." He stopped as he realized he was getting on a roll. He glanced up at Will, blushing slightly, and noticed a peculiar smile on his friend's face.

"What's the look for?" Charles asked.

"No reason. I'm glad to see you happy. Jane's a nice woman," Will said quietly.

Charles was surprised at the serious tone in Will's voice. Usually, all he did was tease Charles mercilessly.

"Are you alright?" Charles asked, curious as to what was going on in his friend's mind. He could tell something was up.

Will pursed his lips and cleared his throat. "Mmhm. Fine. There's something else I wanted to talk to you about, that's all. Something personal."

Immediately Charles stopped chewing and looked at Will. Slowly, he started chewing again, and spoke through a half-full mouth of food.

"Something personal?" he repeated. Will didn't usually talk about personal matters, even with Charles, unless it was something extremely big, or something extremely bad.

"Yes, something personal. Finish chewing before you choke," Will said dryly. He waited patiently while Charles swallowed his food and took a long drink of his water.

"Okay, let's have it. What's up?"

Charles was a little nervous, Will could tell, so he set his mind at ease. "It's nothing bad, it's something good...at least, I think it's something good." He decided to dive right in. "Elizabeth and I went on a date this week."

Charles's eyebrows flew up. "Elizabeth...Bennet? You and Lizzy? Went on a date? Together? This week?" With each question, Charles's eyebrows rose higher and higher.

Will laughed, enjoying the look of shock on Charles's face. "Yes, Elizabeth _Bennet. _Your angel's sister. We went on a date. Together. This week. Monday night, actually." He smiled.

Charles nodded a few times, looking serious, while he quietly processed the information. "Okay, okay. Good." He looked at Will and saw the huge smile plastered on his face. "Oh, okay, it's better than good I guess." He laughed. "You look fairly pleased with yourself."

"I am. I just wanted to get your reaction, see what you thought about it." He looked at Charles expectantly, but his friend said nothing. "So, what do you think?"

Charles shrugged. "I don't know." He paused. "How did this even happen? I mean, I'm not completely surprised..."

Will looked puzzled. "You're not?"

"No. Seriously, Will, you couldn't take your eyes off of her at my party last weekend. You danced with her, spent a lot of time talking to her...it was obvious you were getting along."

Charles went on. "Two weeks ago, you thought she was a nosy beach bum, you wanted nothing to do with her, and she thought you were an arrogant jerk and a complete snob. How did it go from 'hating' to 'dating' within a week?"

Will shrugged. "It just did. The little bit of her that I got to know at your party, I liked. I saw her Sunday night, which wasn't a date or anything, I just stopped by her house, and we ended up going out for ice cream, and -"

"Wait, you went out for ice cream?"

"Yes, Charles, people do go out for ice cream."

"People do. You don't."

"Well, I did." Will stated flatly as he glared at Charles. "Can I continue?"

Charles gestured toward Will, silently asking him to go on.

"Monday night was our actual date. We went to dinner, and it was...nice. We had a good time. We talked on the phone a couple of times, and then I went to her softball game last night."

He looked at Charles expectantly, waiting for the inevitable questions and remarks of disbelief that were bound to start flowing from his mouth at any moment. Instead, there was silence.

Will cleared his throat again. "So, that's it." Realizing that he still hadn't gotten an answer from Charles to his original question, he asked again. "So, what do you think?"

"What do I think?" Charles asked quietly. "Why does it matter what I think? I told you before, she's a nice woman, she's smart, she's certainly attractive...if you like her, go for it." He looked down at his empty plate, then back up at Will, a look of utter disbelief once again gracing his features. "You went to her softball game?"

Will chuckled. "Why is it so surprising that I would go to a softball game? Or go out for ice cream? Am I really such a stick in the mud that you couldn't envision me enjoying either of those two activities?

"I don't think you're a stick in the mud at all," Charles replied after some thought. "I know who you really are, underneath the Darcy arrogance and the snobby attitude." He grinned and laughed as Will rolled his eyes, before becoming serious again. "The fact that you're letting someone else, a _woman_, see that other side of you...that's what's surprising to me. I knew...hoped...that eventually you would meet someone. I guess I didn't expect it to be Jane's sister."

"Neither did I, believe me. Is that okay with you? I'm only asking to be polite, mind you, because actually, it doesn't really matter to me if it's okay with you or not," Will said matter-of-factly.

Charles laughed again, then became somber. "Look, Will, she _is_ my girlfriend's sister. You know I care about Jane very much. I'm just asking that you don't...you know...just be nice to her, okay?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Will felt a flash of annoyance. "Since when have you ever seen me be anything but nice to any woman I've dated?"

"Well, that's just it...you're nice to them, you date them, wine them and dine them...then you dump them. I know how you are."

"Oh, how am I then?" Will was genuinely aggravated now. "Those other women – the few that there have been – were not looking to have any kind of _meaningful relationship _with me, I can guarantee you that. They only cared about what I have, and what I could do for them. I met their needs, they met mine."

He made a conscious effort to keep his voice low and stay calm. He rubbed his forehead and took a deep breath, then looked Charles in the eye. "This is not the same. This is different. Elizabeth is different."

Charles started to interrupt, but Will stopped him. "I know what you're going to ask me, and I don't know _how_ I know. I just _know_."

Charles paused for a moment, looking at Will, before he finally spoke. "Hey, don't forget...I'm dating her sister," he said, with an almost comical puppy-dog expression on his face. "I know what you're going through." They looked at each other and laughed, the tension evaporating.

Charles took a good look at Will, at the expression on his face, and knew that he was seeing the beginnings of a changed man. He reached over to slap him on the shoulder and smiled at him. "Well, then. I think it's great."

_Mrs. D was right, _Charles thought, _something had certainly gotten into Will...and her name was Elizabeth Bennet._

* * *

><p><em>Well, they've made a little progress, don't you think? Reviews are appreciated! Thanks!<em>


	7. Chapter 7

_Thanks to everyone reading and posting reviews! I feel I should give you all fair warning now; this is not a short story (I'm currently writing chapter 35, and still have many more chapters to go), and there will be a good amount of angst further in. It is also rated M for a reason...though, it will be quite a few more chapters before **that** happens. Hope you all stick with me! Thanks again!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

Elizabeth left Woods Hole on Thursday feeling better about work than she had in weeks. Being named Project Manager and overseeing the grant was a huge accomplishment for her, but the amount of paperwork and computer work that went with it was astonishing. She missed being out in the field and getting her feet wet – literally. The marsh at the mouth of the Reserve had long been considered a gold mine for research on climate change, and she was fortunate to have a hand in setting up the framework that allowed scientists to come together and feed off of each other's research.

Today, she had been lucky enough to get outside and lead some people from the Conservation Science Center in Plymouth through the marsh. They were doing a collaborative project, focusing on nitrogen run-off in coastal areas, and how it affects the ability of the wetlands to store carbon. It felt wonderful to be outside in the warm air, trudging around in her boots, feeling the sunshine on her face.

On the flip side of that, Bill was acting even more oddly then he usually did. When she had first arrived in the morning, she was shocked to see that he had brought her flowers. He put them on her desk with a big flourish, and she was speechless. Eventually, she managed to squeak out a thank you, and as he seemed like he was on the verge of asking her out again, she quickly excused herself to go to the ladies room. Coward! She couldn't help it, though...she was tired of turning him down. Why couldn't he get the hint? Especially after seeing her with Will.

The office hens attacked early, then left her alone. She gave them all very perfunctory answers, and was able to make them think that she had shared a lot with them, when actually, she had given them no information at all. She was good at bull-shitting when she needed to be.

Lunch was spent enjoying the rest of her lobster roll. It made her think of Will, and reminded her of the fact that she would get to see him this weekend. In a way, she was glad he had gone to Boston, because she had a feeling that if he was still on the Cape, she'd probably end up seeing him tonight and probably tomorrow night too. A little breathing room was okay...she felt like things were moving a little too fast, like he was trying to sweep her off her feet, and she reallywanted to keep them planted firmly on the ground.

As she rode home, her cell phone started ringing. She pulled off the bike path and took it out of her backpack, noting Charlotte's name on the caller ID.

"Hi Charlotte," she answered.

"Hi Lizzy, how are you?" Charlotte replied, "Are you on your way home from work?"

"Yup, almost home actually. What's up?"

"I told George I'd give you a call...he'd really like to come over to see your darkroom. I was wondering if you'd be around tonight, I thought maybe we'd stop by."

"Actually, tonight works fine, I'll be home all night. Come over whenever."

"Great...he'll be thrilled! Say around seven?"

"Sounds good. See you then."

"Bye Lizzy!"

* * *

><p>At six o'clock on the nose, just as she was about to dive into her dinner, Elizabeth's cell rang, and she was happy to see it was Jane.<p>

"Hi Jane."

"Hi Lizzy. What's up?"

"Not much. How are you? How's Charles?"

"Charles is great, I'm great...we're fine. Umm, so how's work?"

"Work is fine...a little overwhelming at the moment, but it's good. I got to play outside in the mud today, which was a nice change from being stuck at my desk."

"Oh, that's good. You always were one for playing in the mud."

There was a brief silence.

"Soo, what else is new? Anything?" Jane asked.

Elizabeth instantly knew something was up; Jane was never good at being subtle.

"Okay Jane, stop beating around the bush. What's going on?"

"Well," Jane began, "Charles had lunch with Will today."

Immediately, it all clicked into place for Elizabeth. Her sister was snooping for information.

"Are you two dating? Or _something_? Because Will definitely gave Charles that impression." Jane couldn't keep the excitement from her voice.

_Will told Charles? _Elizabeth sighed, knowing she'd have to spill the beans. She couldn't keep Jane in the dark if Charles knew.

"We went out to dinner Monday night, and I've seen him and talked to him a couple of other times, but I really don't know if we're, you know, _dating_."

"Did you kiss him?"

"Oh my God, how old are you? What does that have to do with anything?"

The ear-splitting squeal that came out of Jane's mouth was soon followed by several "I knew it's" and "I told you so's." Elizabeth shook her head as Jane rambled on for a few minutes, basically congratulating herself and Charles for 'fixing them up.'

"You did not fix us up. We were not 'fixed up.' Furthermore, _we_ might not even be a _we._"

"Oh, you're a _we _alright. From what Charles says, Will doesn't do anything by half. It's all or nothing."

_I kind of figured that out_, Elizabeth thought.

As much as Jane wanted to ask her sister a million questions, she knew to tread lightly. The fact that she had even gone out with Will was huge.

"How did this happen?" Jane asked, "You thought so little of him before, I remember everything you said about him...it seems like a pretty drastic change of opinion."

"I know what I said before, and believe me, he knows exactly what I thought of him. We've talked about all that, and decided to put it behind us."

"So _now_ do you find it a little easier to believe that he and Charles could be best friends? I told you he was a nice man, Lizzy."

"I know, I know. I guess I had to find out for myself." She thought about the arrogant, reticent Mr. Darcy, and laughed softly. "Who knew there could be so many sides to one person?"

Jane smiled to herself. "Not to mention that one of his 'sides' happens to be that he's gorgeous!" Both women laughed into the phone. "When are you seeing him again?"

"This weekend, I think. He's coming back to the Cape tomorrow night."

An idea entered Jane's mind. "Why don't you come up here on Saturday? The four of us could all go out. It would be fun!"

Elizabeth wasn't sure that was such a good idea. It seemed entirely too soon to start making such grand plans, and with another couple to boot...even if the other couple was Jane and Charles.

"I don't know, Jane. I don't want to assume too much with Will. I still don't really know what's going on with us."

"Oh, come on Lizzy...it'll be fun. You can stay with me. I bet he'll think it's a great idea."

Elizabeth sighed.

Jane took advantage of her silence. "Charles will call him, we'll take care of everything. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay, but if he says he needs to come back to the Cape, leave it at that, okay?"

"Don't worry, I won't pester him." Jane spoke quietly into the phone. "I'm glad you're seeing someone, Lizzy. Not just because it's Will. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm so excited that it's Will! But really...you're an amazing person. I don't tell you that often enough, but you are. You deserve happiness."

Elizabeth smiled. "Thanks Jane. I'm glad you found Charles, and I hope he realizes what a great catch you are."

Jane giggled. "I make sure he realizes it on a daily basis, believe me!" They both laughed again, and Elizabeth looked at the clock.

"Oh, I have to get going." Her dinner sat mostly untouched in front of her. "Charlotte is stopping by with her new squeeze in a little bit, he wants to check out my darkroom."

"I'll let you go then," Jane said, "but I will definitely call you tomorrow to let you know what's up for the weekend."

"Okay, sounds good. 'Bye Jane. Love you."

"Love you too Lizzy. 'Bye."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth had just finished her dinner and was cleaning up the kitchen when she heard a motorcycle idling in front of her house. She peaked out her bathroom window, and was surprised to see Charlotte pulling off a helmet. Next to her stood George, also removing a helmet. He took hers out of her hands and placed them both on the bike.<p>

She heard them clomping up the stairs, and opened the door to greet them before they could knock.

"Hi Lizzy!" Charlotte called out. "You remember Bill's cousin George, don't you?" She turned to George. "Remember Lizzy?"

"Hi George," Elizabeth said, holding out her hand to greet him. "Nice to see you again."

George reached out to shake her hand. "You as well, Lizzy." He looked around. "This is quite a lovely home you have here. What a spot." He turned to look back out over the deck, to the view of the sand and the ocean. "How did you manage to grab a place like this?"

They all turned to walk into the house. "Its been in my family for years. All these houses along the beach have been in the same families for generations."

"Wow...impressive," George said. Once inside, he noticed the framed beach photographs adorning the walls, and stepped to take a closer look at each one. "These are quite good. Did you take them all yourself?"

"Thank you. Yes, I took them all."

"Lizzy is an awesome photographer," Charlotte said. "She did a family portrait for my family a couple of years ago, it came out beautifully."

"Oh, so you do that sort of thing too?" George asked.

"I do, occasionally...usually just for friends. I don't advertise or anything. I did a wedding a few weekends ago for a co-worker's daughter. That type of thing."

"That's great." George turned away from the pictures to look at Elizabeth again, looking her up and down quickly. _So this is the pretty little thing my cousin has the hots for. _He smirked. _She's way out of his league. _"Shall we head to the darkroom?"

Elizabeth didn't like the way he had looked at her just then. _Yuck. _"Sure, it's just right in here."

She opened the door to the darkroom, which really was only meant for one person, but two could fit if a bit tightly. George went in, followed by Elizabeth, while Charlotte stood in the doorway.

"This is...pretty good," George observed flatly.

Obviously he was not impressed.

"It suits my needs," Elizabeth said, feeling a little defensive, "especially since I don't have to rely on it all the time. I only develop some of my film in here, not all of it."

She watched as George studied all the photos on the walls around him. He zeroed in on a picture of Jane.

"Who is this flaxen-haired beauty?" he asked quietly.

Out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth saw Charlotte frown. "That's my sister, Jane."

"Ah, of course. I can see a resemblance."

He turned and looked at Elizabeth again in a way that made her feel...ogled, for lack of a better word.

He then looked at Charlotte, smiling at her. "The three of you were best friends growing up, I'm sure. A blonde, a brunette, and a redhead. You must have driven all the boys crazy."

"I'm not so sure about that," Elizabeth said. Looking to change the subject, she asked him about what he was currently working on, and he filled her in on his assignment with Boston Magazine. He had heard from Cape Cod Life magazine as well, and was planning on doing some freelance work for them.

"Would you be willing to let me use the darkroom occasionally? I would pay you, of course."

Elizabeth was hesitant to let _anyone_ use it, let alone someone she barely knew. She stalled. "I'd have to think about it, I guess. It depends on how often you'd want to use it. You'd have to show me that you know what you're doing, and you'd have to pay for any supplies you used, of course."

He smiled at her. "Of course I would pay you. Handsomely."

"Well...I'll let you know." She turned to Charlotte. "Thanks for stopping -" The ring of her cell phone interrupted her. She glanced at the caller ID and saw it was Will. Quickly, she picked it up.

"Hi," she said, sounding somewhat rushed.

"Hi yourself...is this a bad time?" he asked her.

"No...well, kind of. Charlotte is here, but she's just getting ready to leave. Can I call you right back?"

"Of course."

"Okay. Five minutes. Thanks." She hung up the phone.

She turned again to Charlotte. "Sorry, I've been waiting for a call. Anyway, thanks for stopping." She glanced at George. "I'll let Charlotte know about the darkroom, and she can let you know...is that okay?"

"Absolutely fine, Miss Lizzy." He held out his hand to her. "Thanks again for showing it to me, it's quite a setup."

Elizabeth shook his hand, letting it go quickly, and turned to give Charlotte a quick hug. "We have to set up a regular running schedule, somehow...can we figure that out soon?"

"I'm off this weekend, let's plan something for then," Charlotte replied.

Elizabeth thought about her tentative plans. "Maybe not this weekend, I might be going to visit Jane in Boston. We'll talk at the beginning of the week, okay?"

"Okay. Have fun in Boston if you go, say hi to Jane for me."

"Bye Charlotte, bye George, thanks for stopping. Drive safely." Elizabeth was surprised that Charlotte had agreed to ride on a motorcycle. She hated them.

Charlotte and George both said their goodbyes, and Elizabeth listened as the motorcycle started up and drove away.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth dialed Will's number.<p>

"Hello again," he answered.

"Hi...sorry about that," she apologized. "Charlotte stopped by with her new boyfriend."

"Oh, really?" he laughed.

"Yes, really. He kind of gave me the creeps. Maybe it's because he's Bill's cousin...it must run in the family."

Will laughed. "Ah, yes, good old Bill. How is he? Did you get asked out on any more dates?"

"Very funny. No, he didn't ask me out...but he did bring me flowers," Elizabeth said to him matter-of-factly.

"What! You're kidding me, right?" Will couldn't keep the disbelief from his voice. "Did he really bring you flowers?"

Elizabeth laughed. "Yes, he did. Very pretty ones, I might add. Beautiful vase." She couldn't help but tease him, just a little.

Will groaned, making Elizabeth laugh more. "Apparently, whether you think so or not, he _is _my competition. I guess I'll have to step it up a little."

"You're doing just fine, believe me," she said, still laughing softly.

"Well, I thought I was, now I'm not so sure." He enjoyed hearing her laugh, and knew she was only teasing him. He closed his eyes to let a vision of her come into his mind, and he wished she was in front of him so he could kiss her again.

He cleared his throat. "Other than your surprise from Mr. Romance, how was your day?"

Elizabeth talked about work, and he could tell that she was thrilled to have spent a good part of it outside, traipsing around in the marsh. He told her about his meetings, and about the progress in RJD's search for an architect to head up their future design team. He also talked about his lunch with Charles.

"I told him we went out to dinner this week. Imagine my surprise when, about an hour ago, he called to let me know that you may be coming to Boston this weekend."

Elizabeth cringed. "I didn't _say_ I was going to Boston. Jane suggested it...she thought it would be fun if I visited Saturday night, and the four of us could do something together...but I know you weren't expecting to stay there this weekend, and I know you probably have to get back to the Cape to see Georgiana, and I don't want to assume -"

"Elizabeth," Will said, interrupting her, "it sounds great. I've already spoken with Mrs. Reynolds, she's leaving for the Cape tomorrow morning, she'll stay until I get back on Sunday. I talked to Georgiana, she's fine with it."

"Oh...you did? She is?" She was surprised; she really thought that Will would want to come back to the Cape. "Are you sure? I don't want you to rearrange your plans for the weekend."

"My only plan for the weekend was to spend as much of it as I could with you," he said quietly. "It makes no difference to me where we are."

His voice, so low and quiet, sent chills racing up Elizabeth's spine. "Alright then, I guess it's been decided. Boston it is."

He smiled, knowing he had discomposed her a little. "What time do you think you'll get here?"

"Oh, um, I have to check the bus schedule, to check departure times. I'll let you know."

"The bus schedule? You're taking the bus?" He sounded shocked. "Why aren't you driving in?"

"I _hate_ driving into the city. I always take the bus when I visit Jane. It's easy...I can read, or listen to music, and before I know it, I'm there. It's quick."

"You're not taking the bus. I'll come and get you, or I'll send a car for you."

"What? No, you're not coming all the way here to get me, only to turn around and drive back again. And there is _no way_ I will let you send a car for me." She rolled her eyes. _Here we go again_.

"Well, I don't want you to take the _bus, _for crying out loud. It's...it's..." he stammered.

"It's what? Public transportation?" She was getting annoyed. "_Please_ don't tell me you're going to be a snob about this. Is this what's going to happen every time I want to do something my way?" It was like a replay of the previous night's conversation. "I'm taking the bus, end of discussion. Done. Finished. Capiche?"

He was silent for a few seconds. "I'm not a snob," he said, sounding petulant.

She laughed. "Yes, you are, a little," she said quietly, "but I think there's hope for you yet."

He sighed. "Okay...you win. Take the bus. I want to know what time you're coming, though, okay?"

"I'll let you know. I'll be at my softball game tomorrow night, so I'll call you when I get home."

Visions of Elizabeth in her softball outfit made him grin. "I can't believe I'm going to miss your game. It may be worth a drive back to the Cape just to watch you bat."

"You're unreal," she laughed. "I have two more games next week, you know."

"Can't wait." He paused. "I'm really looking forward to Saturday...what do you want to do? Go out, stay in? It doesn't matter to me."

"It doesn't matter to me either. You three make a plan, and I'll go along with it. I'm looking forward to it too, a lot."

Will smiled. "I guess I'll talk to you tomorrow night. Goodnight Elizabeth...sweet dreams."

"I'll talk to you then...bye Will."

As she hung up, she realized that tomorrow was going to be the longest day _ever_.

* * *

><p>Bill had been on the verge of falling asleep when he heard George walk in the back door. Sitting up on the couch, he heard George toss his keys on the kitchen counter, and listened as his boots scuffled across the floor.<p>

"Hey George," Bill said, scratching his head, glancing at the clock, and seeing it was after midnight. "How was your night?"

"My night was fantastic. I got to spend it with a hot redhead, what's not to enjoy?" he replied, plopping himself down into a chair across from Bill. "She's wild for me. I'll have her in bed within a week. I also got to see little Miss Lizzy tonight."

Bill's eyes widened slightly. "You saw Elizabeth tonight?"

"Mmm, I sure did," he replied, wiggling his eyebrows at Bill, "Charlie and I went to her house, actually. Nice little place, charming...great location, right on the water. Very cozy. Very feminine."

"What were you doing there?" Bill asked, his curiosity at full tilt now.

"Oh, I was checking out her darkroom. I got to see some of her photos," he said, then paused for a second. "Have you ever met her sister?"

"Um...which one? I believe she has two...Jane and Lydia," Bill answered, not sure which one George was talking about.

"Hm...Jane I think. Yes, Jane. Blonde hair, porcelain skin...mmm mmm. Very pretty," he said, smirking at Bill. "Reminds me of someone else we had the pleasure of meeting not too long ago. Different eyes, but still, similar features."

Bill's stomach turned at his cousin's comments. "No, I've never met her."

"She's stunning. Though, your Lizzy is quite a stunner as well. She looks as though she could be a spitfire. Her eyes alone could drive a sane man crazy."

Bill felt a slight feeling of panic in his chest. "Yes, she's a pretty girl." A thought came to his mind suddenly. "I had the pleasure of meeting her boyfriend yesterday."

"Oh, really? She's taken, is she?"

"She appears to be now, yes. I think it's a fairly recent development. He was quite a tall, intimidating chap."

"Really?" George said. "Well, I suppose it's all for the best. You were aiming a little high, don't you think? She would never go for you. Not without a little...help, anyway." He turned to look at Bill, a smirk on his face.

Bill felt his stomach lurch once again, and he felt the panic starting to increase. "I'm giving up on her anyway George. You're right, it will never happen. She's not interested."

"Well, perhaps I can help her to _become_ interested...there's more than one way to skin a cat, Billy. Surely you know that by now."

Bill closed his eyes. "George, you need to leave her alone, okay? You have Charlotte, have your fun with her. Leave Elizabeth out of this."

George shook his head back and forth, sighing. "I don't know, Billy...I may be seeing her quite a bit for the next couple of months. I'm pretty sure she'll be letting me use her darkroom, which means I'll be in her house, probably alone with her sometimes."

He laid his head against the back of the chair, closing his eyes. "It will be awfully tempting...have you ever stood close enough to her to smell her skin? I stood so close to her tonight...her scent is intoxicating...her body is unbelievable...those eyes. Mmm."

George felt his body reacting to the images flowing through his mind, images of Elizabeth, mingled with images of Charlotte and Jane, and another beautiful blonde he had met not so long ago. He reached down, rubbing himself through his jeans.

Bill swallowed and turned away from his cousin, horrified at where the conversation was going. _How did I manage to involve Elizabeth with George? _He needed to go to bed, get away from George, and figure out how to get out of this situation.

George stood up, still touching himself, totally unembarrassed. He winked at Bill. "Goodnight Billy, I have to go...take care of something. If I don't see you in the morning, have a good day at work tomorrow." He smiled at Bill wickedly. "Oh, and say hi to Lizzy for me."

* * *

><p>Friday morning actually flew by for Elizabeth. She spent a lot of it trying to avoid Bill, but she did manage to get quite a bit of research done, and was hoping that she could scoot out of work early that afternoon. It had rained in the morning, so she had driven the jeep to work, and wanted to run a few errands in town before her softball game started at 4:30.<p>

She had spoken to Jane and had pretty much solidified their plans. Elizabeth would text her later in the day, after she had the chance to look at the bus schedule, to let her know what time she'd arrive in Boston.

Coming back from lunch, she was greeted by the sight of...roses. Everywhere. Pink, white, and yellow roses, filling her office. She stopped short in the doorway, her hand covering her mouth, which was hanging wide open. She looked around and counted ten vases, each vase bearing a dozen of the fragrant blooms. Before she knew it, there were at least five people standing behind her, including Mary, who was tittering away.

"Oooh, Lizzy, how _romantic._..are these from that beautiful man you were with the other night?"

Elizabeth was jolted out of her reverie by Mary's voice. She turned to look at her, mouth still hanging open, and noticed Bill standing there, looking none too happy.

"Oh, umm, I don't know. I don't know who they're from," she said, although she knew _exactly_ who had sent them. "I need to...find the card...I guess."

She was in a state of shock. She propelled herself forward, looking into each bunch of flowers for a card, and finally found that the last vase she checked held not one card, but two.

Everyone looked at her expectantly. _Do they think I'm going to read them out loud? _She snapped out of it. "Okay, everyone, the show's over. Go back to work!"

"Elizabeth Bennet! You have to at least tell us if they're from _him," _Mary insisted.

Elizabeth peeked at the signature on the first card without reading it. "Yes, yes, they're from him," she whispered loudly, shooing them out with her hands, "now go!"

When everyone had left, she shut her door, then sat at her desk to read the cards. They were marked very plainly, #1 and #2. She opened #1.

_'Roses are yellow  
><em>_and pink and white too,  
><em>_Bill is a fool  
><em>_if he thinks he'll win you.'_

_xo  
><em>_Will_

She burst out laughing at his little poem. Typical competitive man, always needing to have the last word. Bill gives her a vase of flowers? Will gives her a roomful. It was such a guy thing. She sighed wistfully as she opened the second card.

_Tomorrow cannot get here soon enough._

_xo  
><em>_Will_

That made her smile. _Short but sweet. _She realized that even though she wanted to take things slowly and stay grounded, she was craving the sight of him, the smell of him. She tucked the cards into her desk drawer and looked up the bus schedule on line. She was determined to leave as early as she could on Saturday morning. The sooner she left, the sooner she'd see him.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth enjoyed her softball game, especially since the Reserve team beat the MBL team. Mary and her brood of hens were concerned, of course, that Will wasn't there, but decided that his show of affection, in the form of roses, was adequate.<p>

After the game, Elizabeth headed home, bringing half of the roses with her and leaving half in her office. She knew that having them there would brighten up her Monday morning. She forced thoughts of work out of her mind, and focused on the weekend. _I wish I could leave now._

It was only seven p.m. _I wonder if there's a late bus leaving tonight, _she thought. She pulled up the schedule on her laptop, and sure enough, there was a bus due to leave at eight-thirty, the last one of the evening.

She called Jane, hoping she would answer. She picked up on the second ring.

"Hi Lizzy, I was hoping you'd call."

"Hi Jane...umm, I have a question. Are you busy tonight?"

"No, not really. Charles has a dinner meeting, so he might stop by later, but that's about it. Kind of a quiet night. Why, what's up?"

"Well...would you mind if I came to Boston tonight? I don't want to mess up your plans or anything. I just thought I'd catch the last bus in...if that's okay. It leaves at eight-thirty." Elizabeth was being impulsive, and knew it, but she wanted to go.

Jane smiled. She had a feeling why her sister wanted to get to Boston, and it wasn't to see her. "I think that's a great idea! I'll pick you up at the bus station."

"Okay, then, I need to go, so I can pack. I'll see you in a couple of hours!"

"Yeah! Bye Lizzy!"

"Bye Jane!"

Elizabeth called Charlotte to see if she could drop her at the bus station, and Charlotte was happy to help. She'd be at Elizabeth's house at 8:10. That gave her an hour to get ready. By 8:00, she was showered, packed, and ready to go.

She had thrown on her favorite pair of jeans – they were worn, faded, hung low on her hips, and had started to tear at the knees – and a simple lightweight purple v-neck sweater. She wore her plain black flip flops, and decided to leave her hair down to dry. As usual, she didn't wear make-up, and wore minimal jewelry; tonight, her watch and a pair of earrings would do it. She had dressed to be comfortable for the bus ride. She knew she wouldn't see Will tonight, but was looking forward to seeing him tomorrow. _Maybe we could have a breakfast date? _

She realized, in her preoccupation with getting to Boston to _see_ Will, she had completely forgotten to call him, as she said she would. She decided to text him from the bus.

Charlotte showed up on time, and by 8:35, Elizabeth was on her way to Boston. After getting settled on the bus, she turned on her iPod and pulled out her phone. She texted Will, knowing full well he might already have plans for the morning.

"_Hi" _was all she sent. Ten minutes later, her phone beeped.

_Hi. Sorry, on treadmill._

_That's okay. Thought maybe you were busy._

_Nope. Whats up?_

_Not much. Coming in to city earlier than i thought. You free for breakfast?_

_YES!_

She giggled at his response. _OK__. Talk to you soon._

_Looking forward to it._

_Me too._

She wanted to thank him for the flowers, but didn't want to do it through a text. She needed to thank him in person. She wasn't normally a 'hearts 'n flowers' type of girl, but his grand romantic gesture definitely had the desired effect. She had to admit, there was some swooning.

As soon as Will got Elizabeth's text, he got Jane's number from Charles, and promptly called her up.

"Hi Jane, it's Will."

"Hi Will. How are you?"

"I'm great, thanks, and you?"

"I'm fine. I'm assuming you're calling to find out what time my sister is arriving?"

He laughed, feeling slightly embarrassed. "I am. She mentioned getting together for breakfast, so she must be taking an early bus. She wouldn't let me go to the Cape to get her, she shot that idea down pretty quickly."

"Oh, I believe it. Lizzy always takes the bus, it's not a big deal. In college, she took the bus or rode the T everywhere. She's used to it."

"That's what she said," _after calling me a snob. _"So, what time does she come in?"

"Actually, she's on her way now, her bus gets in at 9:40. I'll be leaving shortly to pick her up."

"Oh...she's coming tonight? Oh. Okay." He felt a jolt of excitement, and glanced at the clock. He had forty-five minutes before she was due in. "Umm...do you mind...would it be okay-"

Jane cut him off, laughing lightly. "Yes, you can go to pick her up, if you'd like. I'm sure she wouldn't mind."

Will smiled into the phone. "Thanks Jane. I guess I'll see you in a while then."

"You're welcome, Will. See you soon."

Will dashed off to take a quick shower, having just finished a long run on the treadmill. _No time to shave. Oh well. _He threw on a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt and was out the door.

* * *

><p>He arrived at the bus station only minutes before Elizabeth's bus pulled in. He was astonished to feel butterflies in his stomach. He couldn't wait to see her face, to see those eyes that had been haunting his dreams all week. He shook his head and laughed to himself, as he thought back to what Georgie had said about him having a crush.<p>

Five minutes later Elizabeth stepped off the bus, grabbed her duffel bag, and walked into the station. He could clearly see that she was looking for Jane. She scanned the crowd, and he watched her for just a minute, drinking in the sight of her. She looked beautiful, in her faded jeans and a sweater that clung to her body perfectly. He loved the way her hair tumbled down around her shoulders, and he itched to run his hands through it. Suddenly, her eyes locked on his, and he smiled at her.

Elizabeth didn't see Jane anywhere. Her height usually made her stand out, but not tonight. Suddenly, she recognized the pair of warm brown eyes that locked on hers, and saw the smile that made her heart pound. She felt an answering smile emerge on her face that she was sure must have stretched from ear to ear, and felt herself blush.

They walked towards each other at the same time. When they met, he took the duffel bag out of her hands and placed it on the ground. Without a word, he reached out to cup her face and kiss her slowly and softly, letting his hands move into her hair. He moved his lips to kiss her cheek, then pulled her to him and hugged her. She heard him exhale, as if he had been holding his breath. She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest, listening to his heart beat through his t-shirt. Still, neither said a word.

Finally, she heard him murmur "hi" into her hair.

She chuckled and leaned back to look up at him. "Hi yourself." The smile on her face grew again. "That was quite a greeting. What a nice surprise, to see you here. I was expecting Jane."

He smiled. "Yes, well, I persuaded her to let me pick you up. It wasn't hard to do."

"I'm sure it wasn't, believe me." She bent to pick up her duffel bag, and Will promptly took it out of her hands to carry it for her. "I'm perfectly capable of carrying that," she said.

He chuckled, holding up his empty hand, as if to ward off the comments that he knew were going to fly out of her mouth.

"Okay, before this goes any further, I _know_ that you are more than capable of carrying this duffel bag. I _know_ that." He lifted her chin with one hand to force her to look directly at him, seeing the familiar glint in them. "I would like to be a gentleman and carry it for you. That's all. Okay? Can I carry it?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "All you had to do was ask."

She laughed as Will released an exasperated sigh, shaking his head slightly. "So it begins," he murmured happily.

They walked to his car, and once there, Will put her duffel bag in the trunk. They got in, and before he could start the engine, Elizabeth reached over to put her hand on his arm. He turned to look at her, and as he did, she reached up to pull his face toward hers. Her lips met his, and she kissed him softly, caressing his mouth with hers, lingering there, not wanting the kiss to end. She stroked his cheek and felt the growth of stubble, loving the feel of it under her hand. She pulled away from him slowly, and opened her eyes.

His face was so close, eyes locked onto hers.

"What was that for?" he asked quietly, reaching up to touch her face.

"That was for the flowers. A simple 'thank you' did not seem adequate enough. I was completely surprised and overwhelmed." She smiled at him devilishly. "Your little poem was quite inspired."

"Oh, you liked that, did you?" He laughed. "I put a lot of thought into that. I really wanted to convey the right message, you know?" She could clearly see he was teasing her.

Still smiling, he couldn't stop himself from asking. "Did Bill see them?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and moved back from him slightly. "How could he not see them? _Everyone_ saw them. I had people stopping by my office all afternoon." She couldn't help but smile when she saw how pleased he looked, and then it dawned on her. "Those flowers weren't a grand romantic gesture meant to impress me, were they? They were meant to intimidate Bill."

Will just kept smiling, looking like the cat that swallowed the canary. He turned the key to start the engine. "Those flowers were sent to...make you smile. Brighten your day. If they managed to send a little message to Bill, that's just a bonus."

He turned to look at her and saw that she didn't believe a word he said. He laughed again, and was happy to see that she was amused by the whole thing. He programmed Jane's address into his Garmin, and off they went.

"Do you have to go to Jane's right away, or can I keep you to myself for a little while?" he asked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh, umm...I hadn't thought about that." She admired his profile as he drove, expertly weaving through the traffic. "I didn't know you were coming to get me, obviously, so I didn't plan for it." She glanced down at her jeans, suddenly unhappy with her choice of attire for the bus ride. "I didn't really dress to go out."

"You look fantastic. Purple suits you," he said, again glancing at her out of the corner of his eye and smiling. He reached out to take her hand, and pulled it to his lips for a quick kiss. "It was just a suggestion. I can take you to Jane's." He kept hold of her hand.

"You don't mind?" she asked, not wanting to disappoint him.

"Not at all." He could tell she was unsure. "I'm just happy that I got to see you. You've already made my night." He turned to smile at her briefly, then put his eyes back on the road. "Anything else is just icing on the cake."

* * *

><p>Charles had already made his way over to Jane's by the time Elizabeth and Will arrived. Will was going to drop Elizabeth off and leave, but Jane immediately extended an invitation for him to stay for awhile. He accepted without hesitation.<p>

"It's still early, we were about to crack open a bottle of wine," Jane said. "Stay and join us."

Elizabeth spoke up. "We don't want to interrupt any plans -"

"Yes, we do. We're interrupting. Sorry," Will said quickly. He smiled at Charles and slapped him on the back. He was not about to pass up the chance to spend a little more of his evening with Elizabeth.

With a look of resignation on his face, Charles said, "I expected no less from you." Will frowned at him. Charles laughed. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Of course we don't mind. I knew I'd have to share Jane with Lizzy this weekend."

Jane turned some music on low and put out some cheese and crackers. The four sat around in the living room, enjoying easy conversation.

Elizabeth was surprised to hear that Will and Charles had been friends for pretty much all of their lives. They grew up only a few doors away from each other, and had been inseparable friends since Will, at the age of five, had told Charles that he "talked too much," to which Charles had replied, "Well, I always have something to say."

Elizabeth and Jane, indulging in a bit more wine then the men, who had to drive, thought this was hysterical. At this point, the sisters were sitting next to each other on the floor, laughing away at the memories that Charles and Will were reliving. Using their slightly "buzzed" state to his advantage, Will finally convinced Jane and Elizabeth to entertain them with some stories of Monday Night Madness.

Jane glanced at her sister, trying to detect any uneasiness. A shadow passed briefly over Elizabeth's face, but as quickly as it was there, it was gone. Jane knew of one story, at least, that would make them all laugh.

"Oh, Lizzy, remember when we celebrated your birthday there one year? How old were you turning?"

"Ugghh," Elizabeth groaned, "It was my twenty-first! How could you forget that?" She rubbed her forehead, closing her eyes. "I get a hangover just thinking about it."

They all laughed. "What exactly did you do?" Will asked, curious about their exploits.

Jane laughed. "You'd be better off asking what she _didn't_ do!"

Elizabeth shook her head and groaned more. "I have vague recollections of it...sort of like watching some very old home movies." She smiled weakly. "Put it this way...it was the first, and last, time that I drank tequila."

"Yes, we discovered that Lizzy becomes quite uninhibited when she snuggles up to Jose Cuervo," Jane chimed in, laughing.

Will's ears perked up at this. "Really?" he said, a look of astonishment gracing his features. Then he remembered something. "You didn't want to drink a margarita at Wicked that night...are we about to find out why?"

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open slightly. "I can't believe you remember that."

"Now I'm glad I do," Will said, smiling.

Elizabeth covered her face with her hands, feeling mortified. "Please don't make me relive that night."

"Oh, there's no going back now," Will laughed. "I want the whole story."

He sat forward on the couch, pulling Elizabeth toward him so that her back was against the bottom of the couch and she was sitting between his legs. He looked down at her and reached to lightly massage her shoulders. "You can't keep your face covered – I won't be able to see you blush."

Charles and Jane laughed, and Will was pleased to see that when Elizabeth put her hands down, a light shade of pink was already creeping up her neck, rapidly reaching her face.

Elizabeth sat up straight, a somewhat comical look of defiance on her face. She folded her arms in front of her. "Fine. I got a little carried away dancing. Destiny's Child came on, and they were one of my favorite groups back then."

She took a sip of her wine, and her eyes opened wide. "You pulled the table back out onto the dance floor," she said, pointing at Jane, "_You_ were my bad influence! You and Jose ganged up on me!"

"What was the song you danced on the table to?" Jane asked, trying to recall its name. "You were shaking your booty like there was no tomorrow. _Beyonce_ you were not."

"It was 'Independent Women.' The owner threatened to call the police if I didn't get down," Elizabeth chimed in, now starting to laugh herself.

"Yes, and what was your response to his request? Hmmm? You reached out with your foot and rested it on his chest!" Jane said.

"You were egging me on!" Elizabeth replied, once again pointing her finger at Jane.

Upon hearing this, Will's jaw dropped open comically. "You did what?"

Elizabeth grimaced. "It wasn't pretty. At least, I've been told it wasn't pretty." She laughed and shrugged. "I just gave him a little shove...which made me lose my balance...which made me fall off the table. Nothing huge."

Jane was in hysterics. "The look on your face when you landed flat on your ass was priceless." She wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. "Needless to say, we were escorted out."

Elizabeth sighed, still laughing a little. "That was quite a night, and I had the bruise on my bum to prove it."

"Is this what we can expect when the two of you get together?" Charles asked, pulling Jane up to sit with him on the loveseat. He wrapped his arms around her and planted a kiss on her temple. "Seems like you ladies could get into some serious trouble if left unchaperoned. Will?"

"They are definitely trouble...and that was only one story." He looked at Elizabeth. "Was that the best one? Or maybe, the worst one?"

Elizabeth laughed again. "Depends on how you look at it, I guess. Don't worry, we don't do things like that any more...right Jane?"

Jane tried to look serious. "Oh no...not at all. We love to dance, we always will, but Jose Cuervo is no longer an acquaintance of ours."

"I think I may be kind of sorry about that," Will said jokingly, smiling at Elizabeth.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes at him. "Believe me, you're not sorry about that."

She stared at him for a few seconds as he smiled at her. Sometimes, his looks caught her off guard and knocked her slightly off balance. Noticing her stare, he wiggled his eyebrows and succeeded in making her blush as she grinned and looked away.

Will glanced at his watch. It was well after midnight. "Time for me to go, I think." He glanced at Elizabeth. "What's the plan for tomorrow?"

Jane and Charles looked at each other, and Jane spoke up. "Well, we weren't sure what you guys would want to do...I'd like to make dinner for us, at Charles's, if that's okay...or we could go out, if you'd rather do that." She looked back and forth from Will to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth shrugged. "I wouldn't mind staying in...what do you think?" she asked, looking at Will.

"That's fine with me. Although, if Jane doesn't mind, I'd like to steal you away for a few hours tomorrow afternoon," Will said, turning to look at Jane.

"Of course you can steal her, if she wants to be stolen." Jane looked over to Elizabeth, who just nodded her head, smiling.

The four stood up, and Elizabeth helped Jane carry the wine glasses and the empty wine bottles into the kitchen. As the men waited in the living room for their return, they could hear the women talking quietly and laughing with each other.

Will looked at Charles with an expression of helplessness. "What have we gotten ourselves into?" he asked, shaking his head.

Charles laughed at the look on Will's face, knowing his face probably bore the same expression. "You're asking me?" He gave another short laugh. "We better buckle up, because I think we're in for one hell of a ride."

As they laughed at each other, the girls came back into the living room.

"What's so funny?" Jane asked.

"Oh, nothing," Charles said, clearing his throat and becoming serious. "Will can be pretty funny sometimes. That's all."

Elizabeth looked at Will suspiciously. "Hm. Well, come on funny man, I'll walk you out." She wanted to say goodnight to Will in private, and give Jane the chance to say goodnight to Charles in private as well. She looped her arm through Will's, and they headed out the door and down to the street, where Will's car was parked alongside the curb.

When they reached the car, Elizabeth turned and leaned back against it, but just as quickly sprang up and away from it. "Oops, sorry."

"For what?" Will asked.

"It's a nice car, I feel like I shouldn't touch it."

"Don't be silly, it's just a car." He moved as close to her as he could and leaned over her, forcing her to back up against it. "We don't want you falling over." He smiled down at her.

She felt herself flush slightly, both from the effects of the wine, and from the feel of the heat coming off of his body. "Jane and I can get a little crazy sometimes, especially if there's wine involved."

"Or tequila, I'm told," he said, reaching out to put his hands on her waist. "That, I would love to see."

"Oh no, you wouldn't, really."

"I don't know...something about having your foot on my chest kind of appeals to me," he said teasingly, smiling down at her.

Once again, she was struck by how absolutely handsome he was, and in the soft glow from the streetlights, she could see the days growth of beard on his face and the gleam in his eye. Feeling relaxed from the wine and no longer able to resist, she reached up with both hands to trace his eyebrows, letting her fingers stroke them lightly, then lowering them to stroke his cheeks, and eventually slide them all the way back up to run through his hair.

As she did this, she watched his face soften. He closed his eyes and exhaled, clearly enjoying her ministrations. Her hands dropped down to his shoulders, and slid down to flatten out across his chest. _He even makes a plain black t-shirt look amazing, _she thought_._

She let her hands softly caress their way back up to his shoulders, then down his arms and back up again, loving the feel of the hard muscles contained there. Reaching his neck, she stroked her thumbs along his jaw, and he finally opened his eyes to look at her.

His eyes were glued to hers, and all traces of teasing and laughter were gone. He lowered his mouth to hers, caressing her lips slowly and softly with his, over and over again. She deepened the kiss, letting her tongue run along his lips before it met and tangled with his. He leaned into her, pressing her up against the car, and moved one hand up behind her head to hold her as their kisses became more passionate. The other hand stroked down her cheek and along her jaw, then lower as his fingers traced the outline of the v-neck of her sweater, up and down, back and forth.

Moving her hands to his waist, she reached up under his t-shirt to place her hands on his bare skin. She felt him inhale sharply at her touch, and let her hands wander up and down his broad, muscular back, enjoying the smoothness of his skin and the feel of his muscles. He broke away from her mouth, moving his lips to her neck, working his way to her ear with open-mouthed kisses.

They were startled out of their romantic haze by a car full of teenagers driving by, yelling, whistling, and whooping out the windows at them.

Elizabeth dropped her head onto Will's chest, laughing softly, feeling herself blush lightly. "Well, that's embarrassing," she said quietly.

Will reversed their positions, so he was leaning against the car, and pulled her up against him to hold her. "Why are you embarrassed? I'm certainly not," he said, as he leaned down to nuzzle her neck.

"We got caught making out in the street like a couple of kids!"

He lifted his head. "Wanna get in the car?" he asked her, and she looked up at him to see the glint back in his eyes and a devilish smile on his lips.

Her stomach flipped. "As tempting as that sounds, I think I'm much safer out here," she said, returning his tease.

"Definitely," he said, gazing into her eyes, only inches away from his.

She leaned into him and pressed one more soft, slow kiss onto his lips. He reached up to run his hands through her hair, loving the feel of the silky strands running through his fingers. She slowly broke away and smiled at him as he continued playing with her hair. She sighed and closed her eyes, enjoying the feelings he was evoking.

"I think you're much safer out here as well," she said quietly, opening her eyes and smiling slightly.

He reached down to kiss the tip of her nose. "Do we still have a breakfast date tomorrow?" he asked her.

"Hmmm...what would you say to a lunch date instead? I know that Jane and I will be up for at least a couple more hours...would that be okay?"

"Of course. I'll be here to pick you up at noon on the nose, how's that?" he asked, mentally counting the hours already. "We can spend the afternoon together, if you want, before dinner with Charles and Jane."

"That sounds perfect." She reached up to kiss him again, placing her hands on his shoulders and pressing her body to his.

He groaned softly, returning the kiss, then slowly moved his mouth to her cheek, kissing her there, then on her temple. He held his forehead to hers. "Goodnight Elizabeth. Sweet dreams."

"Goodnight Will. See you tomorrow." She backed away from him, then walked to the doorway of Jane's apartment building. Turning to catch one last glimpse of him, she saw that he was still leaning against the car, watching her. She gave a quick wave and he waved back, and she saw him push himself off the car to walk around it and get in.

On her way down the hallway to Jane's apartment, she saw Charles coming towards her. His hair was mussed and his clothing was disheveled. Elizabeth knew she probably looked in a similar state. As they passed each other, they couldn't help but share a knowing grin.

" 'Night Lizzy."

" 'Night Charles."

* * *

><p><em>So, they're getting a little cozier, hmm? Next chapter will see them spending a little time together in Boston. Thanks for all the reviews, keep them coming!<em>


	8. Chapter 8

_I thought it would be best to move their weekend in Boston along a little bit, though it spills over into the next chapter as well. Some have been questioning whether the angst that comes later in the story will involve our couple...yes, it definitely will! But, it comes much later...and don't forget, the story will have a happy ending when all is said and done. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing! I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

As expected, Elizabeth and Jane stayed up talking, indulging in a bit more wine. Jane wanted to find out more about how everything came about with Will. Elizabeth filled her in, starting with his unannounced visit the day after the cookout, when they went out for ice cream, and ending with the softball game.

"Is it surprising to you, that all of this has happened?" Jane asked her.

"You could say that...I'm definitely surprised." Elizabeth smiled at Jane, shaking her head a little, then her smile faltered slightly.

"What's with the frown?" Jane asked, not liking the look on Elizabeth's face.

Elizabeth tried to brush it off. "It's nothing...it's not really a frown. It's just..." she looked at Jane and swallowed, not knowing how to explain what she was feeling.

"I feel like everything has moved too quickly. Last week at this time, I thought Will was rude and arrogant. I thought he was a jerk." She paused, pursing her lips. "He sent me ten dozen roses today." She looked at the clock on the wall. "Well, technically, yesterday."

Jane's eyes flew open wide. "Ten _dozen_? One hundred twenty roses?" she asked incredulously.

"Yes. One hundred twenty. Sixty of them are still in my office, and the other sixty are now at my house." Elizabeth looked at Jane and half-smiled.

"That's amazing. Wow." Jane looked at Elizabeth. "Why don't you look happier about it?"

"I...it's just...how do you go from thinking that someone is a nobody, wanting nothing to do with them, to wanting to send them an entire floral shop?" She shook her head. "How did _I_ go from thinking he was an arrogant ass last week, to sitting at my desk today, missing the smell of him? It's completely irrational."

Jane, sensing her sister needed to talk, remained silent.

"It's just been so long," she said quietly. "I haven't felt this way since..." she looked at Jane, her voice trailing off. She took a deep breath. "I haven't felt like this in a long time. I feel overwhelmed."

She took another sip of wine while she tried to organize her thoughts.

"The thing is, it's not making me want to back off. If anything, it's making me want to get closer to him." She turned to look at Jane. "There's a part of me that is convinced that I'm just some passing fancy for him. That he's infatuated, and eventually he'll get bored. What if that part of me is right?"

Jane knew that Elizabeth was hoping she could provide her with some words of wisdom, some insight. Charles had told Jane a little bit about the conversation he had with Will over lunch. She knew that he didn't want to say too much, because he didn't want to betray Will's confidence. In turn, Jane didn't want to say too much to Elizabeth, feeling like she would betray Charles' confidence.

"Lizzy...maybe you're over-thinking everything," Jane said slowly, thinking about what to say before she said it. "I know it's only been a week, but it's obvious that he likes spending time with you. Of course he's infatuated! Aren't you, with him?"

Jane laughed softly. "I'm still infatuated with Charles. It's the 'new romance' thing, you know how it is...you see him, you feel all giddy and warm...I still feel that way when I see Charles walking toward me, or when he looks at me a certain way." She paused. "Calling it 'infatuation' doesn't make it any less valid. It doesn't mean it's not a real emotion. And it certainly doesn't mean it's not going to grow into something more. It has for me."

Elizabeth sighed. "It doesn't mean it _is_ going to grow into something more either."

"Lizzy," Jane said, sounding a bit exasperated, "you have to relax. Sit back and enjoy the ride."

"Sit back and enjoy the ride," Elizabeth repeated quietly, smiling a little at the thought. She looked up at Jane, and smiled slyly. "Giddy and warm is right! He certainly does make me feel like that. It's very...nice."

Jane returned the smile, and the seriousness of the moment dissipated. They talked and laughed until the wee hours, and finally dragged themselves off to bed.

* * *

><p>Saturday dawned gray and dreary. Showers threatened, but Elizabeth was determined not to let the weather dampen her mood. Before drifting off to sleep, she had replayed Jane's words in her mind, over and over. <em>Relax. Sit back and enjoy the ride<em>. She wasn't sure she could, but she had decided to try. So what if they had only been seeing one another for a week! Obsessing and worrying over what may or may not happen was useless...she was enjoying herself and the time she spent getting to know Will, and that was that.

After having coffee with Jane, she hopped in the shower to get ready. It was cool out, so she chose to put on her khaki capris and a white cap-sleeve top. She grabbed her light-blue cardigan in case it got chilly. She had no idea where they were going, but didn't want to take a chance that she would be under-dressed. She left her hair down, but decided at the last minute to put it up. The damp weather would only make it frizzy.

As noon drew closer, Elizabeth felt slightly anxious. She noticed Jane watching her as they stood in the kitchen.

"What?" Elizabeth asked her sister.

Jane laughed. "Nothing. You look nervous. Are you?"

"No, I'm not nervous. Why would I be nervous? It's not like it's our first date or something." She paused for a second, looked down at herself, then back up at Jane. "Do I look okay?"

Laughing again, Jane rolled her eyes. "You look beautiful, as always. I love your sweater...you may be going home without it."

The doorbell rang, and Elizabeth purposely walked slowly to the door, trying to give the appearance of nonchalance.

She opened it, and saw Will's face light up at the sight of her. "Hi there," he said quietly.

"Hi," she replied, feeling inexplicably shy. She took in the sight of him, looking very manly in his faded denim cargo shorts and dark brown short sleeve polo. The color intensified the color of his eyes, and she found herself staring.

He cleared his throat. "Can I come in?" he asked, smiling softly at her.

"Oh...sorry...yes, come in." _Idiot._ "Umm, I'm ready to go...let me just say bye to Jane."

Just then, Jane came strolling into the living room. "Hi Will," she said casually, "how are you?"

"Fine, thanks. You? Did you ladies have a late night?" he asked.

Elizabeth and Jane laughed. "We did," Jane replied, "we were up past three, I think."

"Good thing we did switch breakfast for lunch," Will said, gazing at Elizabeth. "You would have been face down in your eggs." He took in her appearance, thinking that she looked beautiful, as usual.

She laughed. "You're probably right. Lunch is a less risky meal."

"Where are you guys off to?" Jane asked.

"Well, it depends on what Mother Nature has in store for us today," Will said, glancing towards a window.

"Mmm, it does look like rain," Jane replied. "Well, whatever you do, make sure you leave room for a good dinner. Charles and I are heading to Copley Square to hit the farmer's market."

"Unlike me," Elizabeth chimed in, looking at Will, "Jane can actually cook. Quite well. You're in for a treat."

"Can't wait," Will said. He turned to look at Elizabeth. "Ready?"

"Ready," Elizabeth said, smiling up at him. She grabbed her purse and out they went.

* * *

><p>As soon as they were in the car, Will leaned over to kiss Elizabeth, who was trying to get her lips to cooperate, but was having a hard time subduing her smile. Eventually, his lips won, and she kissed him back.<p>

He sighed and nuzzled her cheek. "You smell delicious."

"Thank you," she replied, feeling goosebumps crawl all over her body.

"Are you hungry? We could go to lunch first, or wait a bit. It's up to you."

"Actually, I am hungry...I only had coffee with Jane this morning, so my stomach is protesting with some pretty loud grumbles."

"I'm hungry too. Lunch it is."

They wound their way through the city, and as they drove, Will asked for details about Elizabeth's softball game. He was amused to see how happy she was that they won, and he loved how animated she became as she rattled off her stats like a pro. They pulled into a parking garage off of Seaport Boulevard, finally found an empty spot on the fourth level, and headed down to the sidewalk.

"Where are we going?" she asked him as they walked.

He reached over and took hold of her left hand with his right. "We are going to one of my favorite places that I actually haven't been to in a while. The Barking Crab, down by the water."

"Oh, I haven't been there in so long!" Elizabeth exclaimed, happy about his choice. "I love that place."

Will smiled to himself, clutching her hand tighter. Somehow, he knew that it would be the perfect place for them to go. He wanted to go to someplace low-key and fun, instead of upscale and stuffy. Just in case, he asked, "Are you sure it's okay? We could go someplace nicer, fancier, if you'd like."

She looked at him and smiled. "It's perfect."

"Are you sure?"

She laughed at him and pulled his hand up to her lips, kissing his knuckles "I'm sure." She'd be happy with Burger King right now, truth be told. She didn't really care where they went, she was just happy to be with him.

They made it to the restaurant, which was noisy and fairly full. After a short wait, they were led to a table by a waitress who couldn't have been more than twenty-one or so. Elizabeth had to stifle a laugh as she watched the young girl blatantly check Will out.

"My name is Sandra, I'll be serving you today," she said, handing them both menus but looking only at Will, "Can I start you off with a drink?"

Will looked at Elizabeth, waiting for her to order first.

"Oh...a beer? What have you got on tap?"

Sandra sighed, and unenthusiastically rattled off a list of beers.

"Guinness is great," Elizabeth said, biting her lip to keep herself from laughing.

"Guinness sounds good to me too," Will said, looking at Elizabeth oddly.

Sandra winked at Will. "I'll be back in a few minutes with those." She smiled and sauntered away.

"Okay, I must have missed something. What happened?" he asked, completely unaware of what had struck Elizabeth as funny.

"Sandra thinks you're hot," Elizabeth said. "She was totally checking you out."

"Oh please," Will said, rolling his eyes slightly and shaking his head. "Can we just look at the menu?"

Elizabeth smiled at his embarrassment, and reached under the table to rest her hand on his thigh, keeping her eyes on the menu and trying not to laugh.

He turned to look at her for a few seconds, watching how she was nibbling on her bottom lip to keep from laughing outright. _I'd like to nibble on that lip as well_. He sighed, and turned his attention back to the menu, but reached under the table to cover her hand with his.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her smile grow a little, and he turned to look at her again. At the same time, she looked up at him, and they ended up laughing together, feeling a bit like awkward teenagers.

"See anything you like?" he asked innocently, referring to the menu.

This struck Elizabeth as incredibly funny, and she started laughing again. "As a matter of fact, I do." She pursed her lips together, trying to study the menu.

"You're teasing me," he said, smiling at her. She turned to look at him again, and seeing that

now-familiar sparkle in her eyes, he felt his stomach twist.

"You're an easy target sometimes," she said, smiling. "I can't help myself."

He leaned toward her, stopping only inches from her face. "I can't help myself either," he whispered, and leaned in to give her a soft, sweet kiss.

Sandra chose that moment to make her appearance with their beers, placing them on the table forcefully. "Here we are!" she said, a little too loudly. Elizabeth and Will pulled away from each other, but their gazes remained locked.

After a moment, the waitress spoke again. "So, have you decided what you want?"

Will smiled, still unable to tear his gaze from those beautiful eyes. _I know what I want, _he thought to himself."Umm, no, we really haven't had a chance to look too closely at the menu." He turned and smiled up at Sandra. "Can you give us a few more minutes?" he said sweetly.

She instantly smiled back. "Sure. Take your time."

Will turned back to Elizabeth, still smiling, his face close to hers. "We should really decide what we want...to eat."

She smiled in return, hoping her heart would soon return to a normal rhythm. It felt as though it was about to leap out of her chest. "Mmm...I guess we should."

They ended up ordering some mussels and a large garden salad to share. They didn't want to over-indulge, per Jane's orders.

As they ate, Will took the opportunity to learn more about Elizabeth's parents. She knew the story of his, but he really didn't know anything about hers.

"What does your father do?" Will asked.

"Not much, now. He retired two years ago. He taught biology at the high school." She smiled, and her face softened. "My dad is great. He was always so supportive of Jane and me. He's that way with Lydia too, but I think his patience is wearing thin with her. I know he wants her to find her own way, but I'm sure he thinks it's time for her to figure out what she plans on doing for the rest of her life. He worries about her a bit."

"Is he the reason you got into environmental science?" he asked, curious.

"I suppose, indirectly...he always taught us to respect the ocean, to respect the power it holds. When we were little, and learning to swim, he made us pass _his_ swimming test. We had to prove that we could handle ourselves in the water without fear."

She paused briefly. "I guess I just grew to love it, and during high school, we had our 'career days' and things like that, and I remember visiting all the scientific centers in Woods Hole. The work they did there was so interesting to me, it all just seemed to click into place."

"That must have been a good feeling," Will said, "knowing what you wanted, and being encouraged to go after it." He smiled a little wistfully.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gone on like that."

"Oh, don't be sorry. It's fine. I love running my father's company, I do. It's opened me up to a lot of things, and I've met a lot of good people. I enjoy what I do." His smile widened a little. "And, I never would have met you if I was off being a musician somewhere."

He reached out to gently stroke her cheek.

"What about your mother?" he asked, putting his hand down.

Elizabeth sighed, smiling and shaking her head.

"My mother. Where do I begin?" She let her thoughts take shape, choosing her words carefully. "She's...unique. She loves her daughters, and we love her, but...sometimes she can be a little too...overwhelming. Enthusiastic. She can be a bit much."

Will thought back to Charles's party, remembering the look on Elizabeth's face as Mrs. Bennet came climbing up the stairs to the deck, calling out to her.

"Jane is the apple of her eye, the beauty. She loves that Jane is a city girl, she thinks it's so glamorous. Parties, clubs, posh society...little does she know that Jane doesn't have much to do with any of that. Now that Jane is dating Charles, a hot shot lawyer...lets just say my mother is over the moon." She gave Will a knowing glance before continuing.

"Lydia can do no wrong in my mum's eyes. According to my dad, Lydia is the spitting image of her at that age...not just in looks, either. Personality, attitude...she's a doppelganger. I think my mum sees so much of herself in Lydia, she can't see anything else."

Elizabeth sighed, smiling wistfully. "Me, on the other hand...I'm the homely, geeky scientist daughter that works in Woods Hole with all the hippies and plays softball and rides her bike to work, no boyfriend anywhere to be found." She laughed softly. "Not exactly every mother's dream."

_Homely? No boyfriend?_ Will looked at her wide-eyed for a moment, debating whether he should correct her description of herself, and decided to let it go...for the time being. "She has obviously never seen your batting stance," he said, trying to make her smile. It worked.

"She's a good mother though. My dad has a lot of patience, let me tell you. They sold their house in Falmouth last year, and bought a nice condo in Mashpee. The public library is just down the road, and my dad got a little part-time job there. If he didn't have that, I think he'd go crazy." She laughed. "He even goes there on his days off, to "volunteer." I think he needs an occasional escape, if you want to know the truth."

She looked at him and saw that he was listening to her intently, and suddenly she felt bad.

"I really shouldn't complain. You must think I'm incredibly selfish, going on about how my mother can drive us crazy. I know that I'm lucky to have her. I'm lucky to have both of them."

"You are lucky, but that doesn't mean they can't drive you crazy sometimes. I still miss my mother. I miss my father too, but I'd be the first one to say that he could be a difficult man when he wanted to be. He pushed me hard, especially after my mother died, and I resented him for it a lot. Now, looking back, I'm glad he did." He smiled. "Georgiana views her memories of him through rose-colored glasses. She forgets how tough he could be."

Will looked at Elizabeth, and seeing the sadness on her face, he decided that the conversation had gotten entirely too serious. "Okay, enough of that. No more talk about parents." He popped the last mussel into his mouth, and offered her the last bite of salad. "What would you like to do?" He glanced at his watch. "It's only two-thirty, so we have a wide-open afternoon in front of us."

Elizabeth turned to look outside, and noticed the first drops of rain hitting the windows.

"Whatever it is, it's going to have to be an indoor activity," she said, turning to look at him.

He had a wicked gleam in his eye, and she instantly realized what he was thinking. She reached over to swat his arm. "Now who's teasing who?" she said, feeling her face get warm.

He only smiled, not saying a word, keeping his eyes glued to hers. She felt herself becoming flustered.

"Okay, obviously, I'm going to have to think of something without your help."

"You don't want to hear my idea?" he said innocently. "It's a good one, I promise."

She laughed. "I bet it is."

Sandra made her way back to their table. "All set you two?" she asked, once again looking only at Will.

"I believe we are, Sandra, thank you," he said. "I'll take the check please."

She smiled sweetly at him. "Are you sure I can't get you anything else?"

"Ahh, no...the check will be fine. Thanks."

As she walked away, Will turned to look at Elizabeth, noticing the gleam in her eye. "Don't start."

"I didn't say a word," Elizabeth said, suppressing a grin.

"Do you have any ideas yet?" he asked, "Or do you need my help?"

"I know what I want to do. I haven't done it in a while..." She looked at him and leaned toward him, flirting a bit. He leaned in toward her.

"What would that be?" he asked quietly, knowing she was only teasing him.

"I would love it if we could...go to the aquarium." She crinkled her nose, then smiled up at him sweetly.

He chuckled at her expression. "The aquarium? That's really what you want to do?"

"Yes, but only if you want to. I haven't been there since I was in college." She hesitated. "If you don't want to go, it's fine. I can go another time, it's not a big deal. Would you rather do something else?"

"I would like to go to the aquarium. With you." He smiled at her. "I can't remember the last time I was there."

Sandra came over with the bill, and soon they were walking quickly through the light rain that had begun to fall, to the parking garage. For an early June day, the air was chilly, and they were both slightly damp by the time they reached the car.

As they climbed in, Elizabeth shivered slightly and pulled her sweater closer around her.

"Brrr," Will said, "it certainly doesn't feel like spring." He looked over to Elizabeth, and his heart skipped a beat. The dampness had made a few curls spring loose from her ponytail, and her cheeks were pink from the chill. She looked beautiful.

He turned his body toward her, not starting the car yet. "Can I say something?"

She looked at him curiously. "Sure."

"You could never, ever, in a million years, be 'homely.' It's just not possible," he said quietly.

Her face pinked even more, and she opened her mouth to say something, but he stopped her.

"Wait. Can I say something else?"

She nodded.

"You absolutely _do_ have a...a 'boyfriend.' If you want one...if you want me-"

Before he could finish his sentence, she leaned over the center console of his car and gently pulled him toward her, kissing him softly. He kissed her back without hesitation, and his mouth became more insistent and urgent on hers. He reached over and placed his hands on her waist, pulling her as close to him as he could.

Elizabeth leaned into him, reaching up to cup his face, and slowly pushed her fingers into his hair. She let her hands travel down his neck, stroking his skin lightly, then over his chest and lower, until she was able to reach under his shirt to feel his bare skin. He was so warm. She heard him groan softly as she ran her hands lightly over his chest and stomach, following the path of the soft hair that was sprinkled there.

Will pulled himself away from her mouth and moved to her beautiful neck, pulling her closer to him, wanting to feel her pressed up against him. He was in _heaven_. The smell of her, the taste of her, the _feel_ of her, was more than enough to push him over the edge. He knew they couldn't get too carried away here, in his car of all places, but she was so responsive to him...he wanted so much more. _Thank God for tinted windows. _

He began to caress her sides, but moved his hands to slide under her shirt. She gasped a little at the contact of his hands on her bare skin, and he immediately lifted his head to kiss her again, drinking her in.

He let his hands drift up slowly, giving her the opportunity to stop him if she wanted, but her only response was to alter their kiss, making it slower and more sensual, the initial feeling of urgency passing.

His hands reached her breasts, and he felt the silk and lace of her bra. He let his fingers trace over the contours of her body lightly, and she sighed softly. He broke the kiss, pulling back slightly to look at her, both of them breathing heavily.

She reached a hand up to stroke his face, then leaned in to gently pull his bottom lip into her mouth, nibbling on it before kissing him thoroughly again.

He kept kissing her, as slowly and sensuously as she had kissed him. He was becoming completely and utterly consumed; the car, the garage, the city noises, everything disappeared...there was only her. His hands stroked her breasts over the material of her bra, and he moved his thumbs back and forth over her nipples, feeling them harden under his touch. She moaned quietly, and he thrilled at the sound.

As much as Elizabeth was loving every sensation that was coursing through her body, she knew that they were close to letting things go too far. _It's too much, too soon...isn't it_? Even if it was, she couldn't deny that it felt _fantastic_. His mouth...those lips...were wonderful, she loved kissing him, and his hands were so gentle and warm...she felt like every nerve ending in her body was tingling with anticipation.

She slowly began to pull away from him, pressing small kisses along his jaw, letting the fog lift from her brain. She slowed her hands, moving them lazily down his torso and eventually, out from under his shirt. He understood what she was doing, and moved his hands away from her breasts and back down her sides until he was once again holding her waist, moving his thumbs in lazy circles there that still seemed to incite little zaps of desire in her body.

Elizabeth moved her mouth back to his, giving him another soft, slow kiss, and they slowly broke apart. He opened his eyes to look at her. Her lips were impossibly red, and he felt his pulse jump and kick in again. She opened her eyes, and they were filled with desire, there was no mistaking it. They were dark green, the color so intense he didn't trust himself to look at her anymore. He closed his eyes and sat back against his seat, ran a hand through his hair, and took a deep breath. He wanted to say something, but didn't trust his voice.

Elizabeth found her voice first and tried to find humor in their situation. "I don't know about you, but I'm not cold anymore." She smiled shyly, and he laughed quietly, reaching out to caress her face.

"Me either. In fact, I think I need to cool off." He opened the car door and climbed out, shutting it behind him. He stood with his back against the door, willing his body to calm down. He was in an undeniable state of arousal and needed to feel the cool air. He took several deep breaths as he stood outside, trying to think of anything but the woman in his car.

He heard the passenger door open, and knew that temptation was about to stare him in the face again.

Elizabeth walked around to where Will stood, wanting to make sure she hadn't let things get too far. He had left the car so abruptly.

"Are you alright?" she asked, keeping her distance.

He turned to her, and saw that her face was filled with apprehension. He smiled at her, offering reassurance.

"I'm fine," he said softly. "I just needed some air. I need to get my wits about me before I take us out into traffic." He paused and shrugged lightly, smiling sheepishly. "I've been wanting to do that since I picked you up."

She smiled back at him, then sighed and shook her head slightly, struggling to put words to the thoughts racing through her head.

"This is all happening so fast...everything. I am unbelievably attracted to you. Not just physically...it's everything about you. It's as if you're a giant magnet, and I'm just a little piece of scrap metal, getting pulled in." She felt her eyes prick with tears, and forced them away. "I just don't want to rush. I don't want to jump in over my head too quickly." _I don't want to get hurt_.

He was watching her intently as she spoke, and he could tell she was honestly trying to put her feelings to words. He needed to do the same. He reached for her hands and pulled her close to him, making her look at him.

"I cannot stop thinking about you. Since last Saturday, you have completely consumed my thoughts." He watched the expression on her face change from one of apprehension to one of surprise. "I will go at your pace. I won't rush you, I won't push you." He smiled that devastating smile. "As much as I enjoyed that, I wouldn't have let it go too far. I know it's too soon."

He reached up to caress her face, then reached behind her with both hands to release her ponytail and run his hands through her hair. "I love your hair, do you know that?"

She blushed self-consciously. "I'm sure it's a mess right now."

"No, it isn't. It's perfect. It's beautiful...you're beautiful. Will you leave it down? Don't put it back up." She nodded, and he pulled her towards him to kiss her, one last long kiss, as he continued stroking her hair.

She thought for sure he would be able to hear her heart pounding away, as it beat out a staccato rhythm in her chest.

This time, he broke the kiss and lifted her chin to make her look at him. He knew it would be a while before his body finally felt like it was returning to normal.

He stared into her eyes. "I meant what I said. I know this is all happening fast...but I also know that I'm enjoying everything that's happening between us. Whatever it is, I like it. I want to see where it goes."

She nodded, and tried to find her voice. It came out in a whisper. "Me too."

They kissed again, slowly and sweetly, happy that they felt the same way about each other.

Finally, they broke apart. Will nuzzled her cheek. "So we're off to the aquarium?"

She nodded and smiled at him. "We're off to the aquarium."

He walked around with her to the passenger side and opened her door. She slid in and he closed it behind her.

As he walked around to his door, he thought about what she had said, about jumping in too fast, and only one thought came to his mind; _too late for me, I've already jumped...and I'm completely over my head._

* * *

><p>They had a great time at the aquarium, wandering around slowly, oblivious to the crowds and the kids rushing around them. Will felt the need to touch Elizabeth constantly...he couldn't control it. He would put his arm around her waist or shoulders, or hold her hand, or slide a hand up under her hair to lightly grasp the back of her neck...it didn't matter. He wanted the contact, and thankfully, she didn't seem to mind. She leaned into him, or held his hand tightly, and he thought that she seemed to need to touch him too.<p>

He took advantage of the crowds by standing behind her when they were looking at the different tanks, wrapping his arms around her waist so he could hold her to him. It was the perfect way to sneak in a kiss to her neck or cheek. The aquarium was not a brightly lit place, and he took full advantage of it.

They left two hours later, and Will felt like he had been to school. Elizabeth was so knowledgeable about so many different things they had looked at...he was amazed. Once again, her enthusiasm struck him, and she completely drew him in as she would quietly explain something to him. Everything seemed to fascinate her, which in turn fascinated him.

As they walked back to the car, Will's cell phone rang, and he saw it was Charles.

"Hey Charles, what's up?"

"Hi Will. How's your afternoon?"

"Couldn't be better."

"Great. Glad to hear it. Hey, umm, I have a little...issue. Well, not really an issue, but ummm...a little wrench in our plans for tonight."

Will didn't like the sound of Charles's voice at all. "What kind of wrench?"

"Well, Caroline called this afternoon...Jane and I were at my place after we went to the farmers market, and I was in the shower, so Jane answered the phone."

Will knew what was coming before Charles had the chance to finish.

"Let me guess," Will said in a flat tone of voice, "will there be a fifth for dinner?"

Charles sighed. "I'm sorry. Jane was just trying to be nice, and once she mentioned that you were coming over for dinner, Caroline went on and on about having nothing to do...Jane felt bad."

Will frowned. "It's fine, it's fine. Don't worry about it. What time should we be over?"

"Oh, umm...anytime, I guess." Will was distracted by Elizabeth tugging on his hand. She wanted to know if Jane was at home or with Charles.

"Hey, is Jane with you now?" Will asked.

"No, she's home."

"She's home," Will said to Elizabeth. He got back to his conversation with Charles. "We'll be over in a little while. Let me know if you need me to pick up anything on the way over."

"Thanks, I'm pretty sure we're all set. I'm really sorry Will. I'll see you when you get here."

"Yeah, we'll see you in a while. Bye."

Will tucked his cell phone into his pocket and remained silent. Elizabeth noticed his change in demeanor, as well as the stony expression on his face.

"I heard you say there may be a 'fifth'. Is someone else coming to dinner?" She was hoping she was wrong, as she would have liked it to stay just the four of them.

"Yes. Charles's sister, Caroline, is joining us," he said, his tone clipped and short.

"Oh...that's okay, right? It's just his sister." Elizabeth still didn't like the look on Will's face. "If she's his sister, she must be a nice person..." she hesitated as she saw Will shake his head slightly and frown to himself. "Is she _not_ a nice person?"

"I wish I could explain the type of person that Caroline is. Unfortunately, she must be experienced. You need to meet her and experience her to fully understand her. Even then, understanding her is questionable."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. "Oh."

They walked the rest of the way in silence. When they reached the car, Will was about to open the passenger door for Elizabeth when he took a second to give himself a mental shake. He reached up to hold her face in his hands.

"You know what?" he said quietly. "I have had a wonderful afternoon. I'm sorry I got so distracted just then." He stroked her cheeks with his thumbs, then moved his hands back into her hair, pulling it down around her shoulders. He was becoming addicted to the feel of those soft curls. "I couldn't care less about Caroline being there tonight. You're the only person I'll be looking at anyway."

She breathed a sigh of relief and smiled up at him. She had instantly feared that their nice evening together was going to be tarnished. He leaned in and softly kissed her, holding her head, deepening the kiss slowly. After a minute, he pulled away from her, and smiled down into her eyes. "Thank you for spending the afternoon with me."

"You're welcome...I had a wonderful time too." She reached up to touch his cheek, and stood on her tiptoes for another quick kiss. "Thank you for indulging me." That familiar teasing glint came into her eyes. "I could get used to being indulged."

"That's what I'm hoping," Will said, as he smiled down at her. He opened the door and let her in, then walked around to his door, smiling from ear to ear. _Not even Caroline can put a damper on this day._

* * *

><p>Will dropped Elizabeth off at Jane's. They had agreed that she would ride over with her sister, and Will would meet her there. After a somewhat lengthy parting kiss, he was on his way home to change and Elizabeth was on her way up to Jane's apartment.<p>

Jane let her in, and the sisters sat for a moment and chatted, Elizabeth about her afternoon with Will, and Jane about her trip to the farmer's market with Charles.

"He is impossible to shop with!" Jane exclaimed, smiling as she talked. "He has a huge appetite, and wanted to buy everything that we saw. We did pick up some gelato for dessert. Everything was so fresh. I think I'm just going to shop there from now on."

"Mmm, I'd like to check it out. Maybe we can go back tomorrow. What are we having for dinner, anyway? You haven't told me," Elizabeth said.

"Well, I was going to do fish, but then decided on a chicken dish...it has crab meat in it, and you serve it with hollandaise. I've made it for Charles before, and he loved it. Does that sound okay?"

"It sounds great. I hope you'll let me help you in the kitchen," Elizabeth offered, knowing it was the last thing Jane wanted.

"Oh, umm...sure...you can boil water for the potatoes. No real cooking though. Sorry." She smiled, and Elizabeth laughed.

"Don't worry, I'll stay away from the oven and the stove." Her cooking talent – or lack thereof – was well known in her family.

Elizabeth looked down at her clothes. "I need to change. We got caught in the rain, and even though I'm dry now, I want to get out of these clothes. Plus...I think I want to dress up a little. I brought a sundress with me...I'll probably be chilly, but I'd really like to wear it."

Jane smirked at her sister. "I'm sure Will would be more than happy to keep you warm."

Elizabeth smiled. "True!"

Forty-five minutes later, they were ready to go. Elizabeth's dress was new. She had bought it at The Loft at the end of last summer and had never had the opportunity to wear it. It was a slubbed cotton tank dress, in a beautiful shade of green that highlighted her eyes and showed off the beginnings of her tan. It had a deep v-neck, a plunging back, and an empire waist, and the flowing skirt fell to just above her knees.

She felt very girly in it, and loved the way it looked on her. She topped the outfit off with dark cream colored sandals that had little crystals in the straps. She wore small silver hoop earrings, and that was it. She left her hair mostly down, pulling only the sides up to gather in a silver clip at the back of her head.

Jane looked stunning, as usual, in a simple short a-line skirt in a vivid blue that matched her eyes, and a sleeveless white blouse. Her blonde hair fell perfectly straight, and was beautiful and shimmery.

"Oooh, nice dress Lizzy," Jane said, "I've never seen it. New?"

"Thanks. It's kind of new, it was on last year's sale rack. I had to have it."

"You look hot. Will is going to flip when he sees you."

Elizabeth smiled saucily. "I know." She laughed. "You look great too. Love that skirt." Together, the sisters made a striking pair. "We should go, we don't want to deprive them of our presence for _too_ long."

Jane laughed with her. "You're right, let's go."

As they headed out into traffic, Jane apologized to Elizabeth.

"I'm sorry about the whole Caroline thing...I really just thought I was being nice." She sighed. "Charles just about died when I told him I had invited her over. I told her that you were visiting, and that Will was coming over, and she was practically begging me for an invitation. I felt bad!"

"Don't worry about it," Elizabeth said, "I'm not. She can't be that bad...although, Will didn't have great things to say about her. I mean, he didn't say anything nasty...he just said she needed to be 'experienced'."

"I wish I could tell you more about her. I've only met her a few times. She seems friendly enough, I guess. A little standoffish."

Jane didn't want to tell Elizabeth that Charles had said there was a little bit of 'history' between Will and Caroline... "Nothing serious," he had added, but he indicated that Caroline felt like there was a chance at a future with Will, even though Charles knew it would be a cold day in hell before Will had any type of a relationship, other than friendship, with his sister.

"Oh no, what did I do?" Jane had asked Charles as they discussed it, now worrying that she had put the wheels in motion for their cozy dinner to turn uncomfortable.

"Don't worry about it. She won't do anything embarrassing." He smiled at Jane, teasing her. "Not only does she think she has a chance with Will, but she still thinks that some day, Georgiana and I will find our 'happily ever after' – with each other." He laughed when Jane's eyes flew open, a look of astonishment on her face.

"That is _not_ going to happen," she said defiantly, hands on her hips. "Does she live in a fantasy world?"

Charles wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him. "Yes, she does. Caroline's life is all about money, and what other people can do for her. She's probably one of the most shallow people I know. And believe me, I know a few."

Jane thought for a moment, a puzzled look on her face. "Are you sure you weren't adopted?" she asked, shaking her head slightly.

Laughing, Charles bent down to kiss her. "I'm positive I wasn't." He kissed her again, lingering at her lips, until he felt her relax against him. "Besides, eventually she'll realize what I already know," he whispered.

"And what's that?" Jane asked quietly, her blue eyes looking up into his.

He pulled away slightly, gazing back at her warmly. "I've already found my happily ever after."

* * *

><p>Will and Charles were already settled at Charles's apartment, basically biding their time, waiting patiently for the women to arrive. They had each cracked a beer, and Charles was good-naturedly ribbing Will about Caroline and her "intentions." Will eventually gave in and had to laugh, seeing that there was, indeed, some humor in the situation.<p>

"You should laugh now," Charles said, "because I can guarantee you that the laughs will be few and far between when Caroline gets here. I don't think she knows Elizabeth is your...umm...what is she?"

"What do you mean, what is she?" Will asked, puzzled over Charles's question.

"Is she your girlfriend? What's the deal?"

"Yes. She is. Elizabeth is my girlfriend," Will said emphatically, trying the phrase out and liking the way it sounded. He smiled to himself.

"Well, everyone better duck when Caroline finds out," Charles said, laughing. "The shit is going to hit the proverbial fan."

"What is that, a warning?" He laughed along with Charles. "She still thinks there's a chance for you and Georgie, too, you know."

"Oh no, I'm going to set her straight on that as soon as possible." Charles paused for a minute, turning serious. "Speaking of Georgie, how's she doing? Any progress?"

Will sighed. "You know, around the house, when it's just her and I, or when Mrs. R is visiting, she's just like the old Georgie. I just can't get her to do much, or go too far from the house. She walks down to the beach occasionally, but that's it."

"Give her time, Will. She just needs to gain her confidence back, and feel safe again. Her world was rocked pretty hard."

"I know." Will could feel his blood pressure shoot up just thinking about it. "I swear, if I ever have the opportunity to get my hands on that bastard, I'll beat the shit out of him. Then I'll kill him."

Charles watched as Will visibly tensed; a muscle tightened in his jaw, and his hands clenched. "No, Will, you won't, because that wouldn't do anyone any good. Especially Georgie...she doesn't need to have her brother thrown in jail."

"No court would convict me."

"If only that were true. If it was, I'd be right next to you, pummeling the pervert, believe me." He paused. "Look, we've talked about this before-"

"I know, I know," Will interrupted, "I'm working on it, I am. I'm trying to let it go. Don't worry, I would never do anything stupid." _Unless I was sure I wouldn't be caught. _

* * *

><p>By six o'clock, Jane and Elizabeth had arrived at Charles's penthouse apartment. Will felt his stomach drop as he helped Elizabeth remove her jacket, her back to him. Her shoulders were bare, except for the small twisted straps that held up the dress. Those smooth shoulders, and the v-shaped bit of bare skin that peeked out from beneath her long tresses, were the first things he laid eyes on.<p>

Seeing that Jane and Charles were completely absorbed in greeting each other, he moved her hair aside and leaned down to place a soft, warm kiss between her shoulder blades. He smiled to himself as he saw goosebumps appear in reaction to his touch, and heard her soft intake of breath.

She turned around to face him, and if possible, his stomach plunged even further. She was unbearably beautiful and sexy in her dress, and he found himself completely speechless, his mouth hanging slightly open, completely useless at the moment.

She smiled at him, and he recognized the teasing glint in her eyes. "Thank you," she said, whispering as she leaned toward him.

It took him a few seconds to find his voice. "For what?" he whispered hoarsely, unable to tear his eyes away from hers.

She laughed softly. "For telling me how nice I look."

He laughed softly in return, shaking his head, enjoying the sparkle in those eyes, made so much greener by the shade of her dress.

"Apparently, I don't always have to use my words. Though, I do have to say it. You look unbelievable. Gorgeous." He reached out to stroke her cheek, and leaned down to kiss her softly, caressing her lips lightly with his, until he heard Charles clear his throat.

"Can we at least move out of the entryway and into the living room?" Charles asked with a hint of teasing in his voice, and they all agreed it was probably a good idea.

Elizabeth admired the sleek, contemporary feel of Charles's penthouse apartment. The furnishings and artwork definitely gave the impression that it was a man's home, but touches of Jane could be seen here and there...a framed photo of the lovebirds on the mantle over the gas fireplace, fresh flowers throughout the living room and dining room, and little things that Elizabeth could see that she knew had Jane's touch.

Charles took Elizabeth out to show her the balcony, and Elizabeth admired the view of the city below. Jane and Will came out to join them, and the four of them remained on the balcony for a few more minutes, until the breeze and the damp weather drove the women in.

"Come on, Lizzy, you can help me in the kitchen," Jane said, not quite seriously.

Thankfully, Jane had the foresight to do most of the food preparation when she and Charles had returned from the farmers market. The chicken breasts were rolled and stuffed and only needed to be baked. The asparagus was already washed and trimmed, waiting to be sauteed, and the baby red bliss potatoes were scrubbed and waiting to be boiled.

Jane set out some fresh vegetables on a platter, along with some freshly made dip, and pulled the wine out of the refrigerator. She asked Elizabeth to grab the wine glasses, and they headed back out into the living room. The men had come in, and looking at Will, Elizabeth had a sudden desire to run her fingers through his hair, now tousled from the wind. He was devastatingly handsome and masculine in his black pants and burgundy colored button-down shirt. Elizabeth realized that as much as she loved him in jeans and a t-shirt, he was even more irresistible when he dressed up. _I would love to see him in a tux,_ she thought.

Will caught her staring, and grinned at her, dimples and all. She smiled back, and he walked over to help her with the glasses, planting a quick kiss on her lips. Charles poured them each some wine and they toasted to a happy weekend. They all sat comfortably in the living room, nibbling on the appetizer and enjoying quiet conversation.

After a little while Charles glanced at his watch, silently wondering when his sister was going to gift them with her presence. He thought that it was more than a little rude that she was running late and hadn't even called, so he figured he'd give her another twenty minutes or so, then they'd start dinner without her.

Jane and Elizabeth headed back into the kitchen. Jane checked on the progress of the chicken, and started the sauce. She got the asparagus simmering, and checked to see if the potatoes were done.

"What can I do?" Elizabeth asked, feeling a bit useless.

"Umm...you can stand there and keep me company," Jane said sternly. "Oh, and you can turn the potatoes off. They're done."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but did as she was told.

As they chatted in the kitchen, they both heard the doorbell ring, followed by a woman's voice.

"She's heeeeeeeere," Elizabeth said quietly in a sing-song voice, causing Jane to crack up.

"Shhh, Lizzy, be nice. I think tonight will be the longest time I've spent in her company, so I'm just as curious as you."

"It's not the _good_ kind of curious, though," Elizabeth continued to whisper, laughing. "It's the kind of curious you feel when you're driving past a car accident, and you can't help but look."

Jane started laughing all over again, in turn making Elizabeth laugh even harder, both of them trying to be quiet and not give away the fact that they were both in the throes of a giggle fit.

At that moment, Charles walked into the kitchen and stopped short at the sight before him. He couldn't help but smile at the sisters. "What's going on in here? Have you two been drinking something stronger then wine?"

That comment did nothing to settle them, and with a quietly muttered, "Oh boy," Charles returned to the living room. Once Elizabeth and Jane had their wits about them, they both headed back out to join the rest of the party.

* * *

><p><em>Moving forward! The next chapter will finish up their time in Boston, as well as Part 1 of the story. Thanks again for reading, and please review, I'd love to hear what you're thinking!<em>


	9. Chapter 9

_This is the last chapter of Part 1, so I thought I'd post today...lots of you are wondering how Caroline will react, and I didn't want to keep you waiting! Thanks for reading, and keep those reviews coming!_

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><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

Elizabeth instantly recognized Caroline from two places: she was in a photo with Will that she saw when she Google'd him, and she was the woman at Charles's cookout that had been wearing the garish burnt-orange Kentucky Derby get-up. Hence, the first thing Elizabeth noticed upon entering the living room was Caroline's outfit. She wore a vivid fuchsia sundress with matching pumps. It was so bright it seemed almost neon. Her dark hair was swept up into a sleek chignon, and large diamond pendants hung from her ears.

The second thing she noticed was the vice-like grip that Caroline had on Will's arm. The last thing she noticed was the look on Will's face; the stony expression she had seen earlier in the day had made its return appearance. He was clearly not thrilled that Caroline was hanging on him.

Although she was not happy to see Caroline clutching Will so tightly, she was not one to play the jealous..._girlfriend_.She smiled to herself, liking the way that sounded. She stood next to Jane, waiting for someone to make an introduction.

Thankfully, Charles spoke up. "Ahh, the chefs have returned from the kitchen." He turned to look at his sister. "Caroline, you know Jane, of course. This is Jane's sister, Elizabeth Bennet. Lizzy, this is my sister, Caroline Bingley."

Elizabeth was about to extend her hand, but changed her mind. It was quite clear that Caroline wasn't going to relinquish her hold on Will's arm any time soon. Caroline briefly focused her gaze on her, and she noticed that the siblings shared the same vivid blue eyes. _How is it that Charles's eyes are so warm, yet his sister's are like ice?_

_The little chit from the party, _Caroline remembered. "Yes, Eliza...I believe I may have seen you at my brother's party at his home on the Cape. You live there, don't you?"

"Yes, in Falmouth."

Caroline gave Elizabeth a look that could only be described as condescending, giving her dress and appearance a once-over, and then obviously dismissing her. "Hmm. Yes. How lovely. The Cape is such a quaint, quirky little place. It does amuse me."

"We aim to please," Elizabeth said, managing to sound sincere, but she saw Jane's eyes widen slightly as she said it. Will's lips twitched and his eyes softened as he looked at her.

Caroline turned to Will. "We _do_ miss you in town, Darcy, when_ever_ will you be back to stay? You know the scene isn't quite the same without your _commanding _presence." She paused to smile up at him and flutter her eyelashes. "The Art's Alive fundraiser will be simply _dreadful_ without you, darling. Please say you'll be there. I can't _imagine_ attending without you."

Will managed to pry Caroline's fingers from his arm, and stepped away from her slightly, moving toward Elizabeth.

"Actually, I plan on spending as much time as I can on the Cape. I've discovered that it's full of hidden treasures," he said, smiling and turning to glance at Elizabeth briefly. "Of course I'll be here for the fundraiser. I'm sure we'll run into each other there."

"Oh, yes, the Cape is..._quite_ full of treasures, I suppose," she said. "I would truly _love_ to spend more time there, enjoying the..._invigorating_ salt air." A forced smile graced her face, looking almost painful.

Charles rolled his eyes, knowing full well his sister couldn't stand the Cape.

"Lizzy," Jane interrupted, "will you help me with the table?"

"Of course," Elizabeth said, quite ready to bow out of the awkward conversation that was happening.

Jane and Elizabeth set the five place settings around the table, sending each other sidelong glances, but not wanting to say much, other than what they needed to about the table and the food. They went into the kitchen, and Jane began to put the food on different platters. The asparagus was finished with a light dressing of balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and sprinkled with a touch of salt. The potatoes were drizzled with butter and sprinkled with fresh dill, and the hollandaise sauce was poured over the chicken.

Everything looked so delicious, and Elizabeth felt a twinge of jealousy. _I wish I had this talent!_

Elizabeth and Jane carried the platters in to place on the table, while Charles poured Caroline a glass of wine and topped everyone else's glasses.

Everyone got settled into their seats at the beautifully set table. Will felt a little badly that Elizabeth was stuck next to Caroline, but he knew that Caroline's hands had a tendency to...wander...under tables, so he figured that Elizabeth was safer sitting next to her than he would be. _Ho__w pleased Caroline would be to know that she has something in common with Lydia Bennet,_ Will thought, smiling to himself.

They passed the platters around, and conversation was pleasant enough as everyone enjoyed their meal. Elizabeth felt Will's hand squeeze her knee under the table, and she pressed her hand on top of it, giving him a quick smile. He smiled back at her, and she saw that his previously stony expression was gone, and the twinkle was back in his eye. Her eyes traveled over his face, absorbing his features, lingering on his lips.

As Jane, Charles, and Caroline were distracted with their own conversation, Will leaned toward Elizabeth. "Asparagus in my teeth?" he whispered, grinning at her.

She stifled a laugh, not wanting to draw attention to them, and felt her face warm. "No," she said innocently, keeping her voice low and her eyes trained on his. "You're just very handsome, and sometimes it's hard not to stare at you." As she spoke, she stroked his knuckles with her thumb, still holding his hand under the table.

It was Will's turn to blush slightly, and Elizabeth was happy to see that she could rattle him as well as he rattled her. He leaned over to give her a soft, lingering kiss, and she smiled against his mouth.

"What _are_ you two whispering about?" Caroline interjected, turning to them in time to see Will kiss Elizabeth. "Oh! Obviously, it's a private conversation."

Caroline was in shock, but tried not to let it show. _He was kissing her! Why is he kissing her? _She turned back to Jane and Charles so she could get her thoughts together. _What did I miss? How did this __happen?_

The talking ebbed as everyone finished their dinner, though there were still quite a few comments on how excellent the meal was. Caroline, for the most part, was quiet, until she decided to strike up a conversation with Elizabeth.

"So, Eliza...please tell me about...what it is that you _do_ on the Cape?"

Elizabeth's eyebrows flicked up briefly. "I prefer Elizabeth, actually. I work at the Woods Hole National Estuarine Research Reserve. Right now, I'm involved in a project that is studying the effects of climate change and greenhouse gases on coastal areas."

"Oh, that sounds _fascinating_," Caroline cooed, smiling at Elizabeth.

Charles looked at Caroline, then turned his gaze to Will, who was looking at Caroline with an expression of complete shock on his face.

Will then turned to look at Charles, and seeing the expression on his face, and knowing his own was probably the same, he almost cracked up.

"And what is it that one _d__oes_ on the Cape to keep oneself busy, outside of…work?" Caroline asked. "I can't imagine that there is much there in the way of society or culture."

"On the contrary," Elizabeth replied, her eyebrows arched in amusement. "The Cape has an astonishing array of museums and cultural centers, and boasts of being the residence of several well-known artists, both living and deceased."

She paused to wait for Caroline to reply, but instead of saying anything, Caroline only offered a slight roll of her eyes. Elizabeth, feeling piqued, continued.

"The Cape is also home to several nationally recognized musical and theater companies, including the College Light Opera Company, which is based in Falmouth. We actually have an advantage over the big cities in that the productions here are performed at wonderfully intimate venues." She gave Caroline a patronizing smile.

Caroline shrugged, looking unimpressed. "Still, you must agree that the Cape is lacking in proper society. It can't compare to the city at all."

Elizabeth's lips pursed, and she thought, "_who cares_?" She felt Will rub her knee under the table. "Well, I suppose that depends on your definition of 'society.' If you mean all those fancy dinners and balls and benefits, it probably comes fairly close to matching city society. There are always events to attend, if one is inclined that way. Don't forget, the Cape is known to be a playground for those Boston society types, especially in the summer." She squeezed Will's hand under the table and gave him a warm smile.

Caroline didn't miss the intimate look, and smirked at Elizabeth. "Obviously."

Elizabeth was about to launch into a retort when she heard Will clear his throat, and felt him apply gentle pressure to her knee again.

Will realized that this was starting to spin slightly out of control, and thought that now would be a good time to change the subject. "Elizabeth and I actually visited the aquarium today. I haven't been there in ages."

"_Really_?" Caroline interjected, a little too enthusiastically. "I haven't been there since I was a little girl. It's such a...touristy thing to do."

"It was great, I haven't been there in years myself," Elizabeth said.

"And what do we have planned for tomorrow?" Caroline asked the group.

"We?" Charles and Jane asked the question simultaneously.

"Well, _we_...meaning _you_. What do _you_ all have planned for tomorrow?" Caroline said, pasting a smile onto her face.

"Well, Lizzy would like to go to the farmer's market at Copley, where Charles and I shopped today," Jane said, "so we might do that."

"Oh...umm...Will and I have some plans for the two of you tomorrow, so leave your afternoon free," Charles said casually.

"What kind of plans?" Elizabeth asked, eyes brightening as she turned to look at Will.

"You'll find out tomorrow," Will said, smiling at her. "It's a surprise."

"Maybe we can go to the market in the morning?" Jane asked Elizabeth.

"That would be great," Elizabeth replied, "I'd love to see what they have."

"Would you girls mind if I joined you?" Caroline asked. "I've never been to a farmer's market before. I'd love to experience one. It sounds so..._earthy_."

Once again, Will and Charles looked at each other, neither quite believing what they were hearing.

"Oh, sure...we'd love for you to come," Jane replied, somewhat hesitantly. "Wouldn't we Lizzy?"

"Sure. We'd love it. Absolutely." Elizabeth smiled flatly at Jane, who gave her a beseeching look.

After dinner, as everyone cleared the dishes, Charles insisted that they leave everything in the kitchen for him to clean in the morning. He wanted everyone to relax. He turned on the gas fireplace and dimmed the lights slightly, instantly making the room cozier. Caroline excused herself to go to the bathroom, and Jane and Charles headed into the kitchen with the excuse of needing to pick out a new bottle of wine.

Will, seizing on this brief time alone with Elizabeth, took her by the hand and quickly led her over to the couch, pulling her down onto his lap and encircling her waist with his arms. The sudden move surprised her, and she let out a squeal.

"What are you doing?" she asked, already knowing the answer by the look in his eye.

"Spending some quality time with my girlfriend," he answered, smiling at her. "I haven't even had a chance to kiss you properly tonight."

"What are you waiting for?" Elizabeth whispered, reaching up to stroke his cheek.

With that, he lowered his lips to hers, letting his hand rest on her bare thigh where her dress had crept up slightly. He stroked his hand lightly there, letting it stray under her dress just a little, as his mouth caressed hers slowly. They deepened the kiss, and Will felt that instant response from her that he was beginning to know. His heart began to pick up its pace in his chest, but eventually, he lessened the kiss, letting his lips feather light caresses over hers, then moving to plant small kisses along her jaw, up to her ear, where he nuzzled her and inhaled the scent of her skin and hair. The effect she had on him made him dizzy.

Elizabeth was acutely aware of his hand stroking her thigh, causing coils of sensation to spread through the rest of her body. She let her hand slip down from his cheek to his neck, resting it just inside the collar of his shirt, feeling the warmth of his skin. She wrapped her other arm around his shoulders.

As much as she would have liked to continue kissing him and touching him, she knew that reality, in the form of one Caroline Bingley, would be intruding again at any moment. As Will nuzzled her neck and hair, she heard him sigh, and felt him squeeze her closer with the one arm still wrapped around her waist. He had yet to remove his hand from her thigh, and she wasn't in any hurry for him to do so.

"That was an awfully big sigh," she whispered, as she leaned back to look at him, their faces only inches apart. He had moved his hand from her waist to her hair, running his fingers through it and playing with it. She felt him undo the clip in the back, so that it all tumbled down around her shoulders.

She smiled at the devilish look on his face. "You are pathetic," she teased softly.

"When it comes to your hair, I suppose I am. I have dreamed about this hair," he whispered, as he watched the dark brown strands glide through his fingers, "and your eyes. Beautiful dreams."

Elizabeth's heart pounded at his admission, and she couldn't think of anything to say. Seeing her reaction, he leaned in to kiss her again, so gently and lovingly that it took Elizabeth's breath away. He slowly pulled away from her, and leaned in to rest his forehead on hers, a look of pure contentment on his face, mirrored by hers.

"So...about this surprise..." Elizabeth whispered, placing warm kisses along his jaw, working her way to his earlobe, "can you give me a little clue? Please?"

Will leaned his head back against the couch. "No, you're not getting anything out of me. Nice try though." He laughed when Elizabeth pouted.

It was at that moment that Caroline, Charles, and Jane all walked back into the living room.

"Well, you two certainly look _cozy_," Caroline said, sounding completely nonchalant. "Are you-"

"Yes, we are," Will said, smiling brightly and once again squeezing Elizabeth's waist.

"Oh, I had no idea that you were...are...a couple. What a surprise. I assume that you are one of the 'hidden treasures' to which Darcy was referring. How _sweet._"

Elizabeth finally managed to lift herself off of Will's lap, and smoothed her dress down, flattening out imaginary wrinkles. "I think so," she said, turning to smile down at Will. He stood up and wrapped an arm around Elizabeth's shoulders.

"Well, I think it's just _wonderful_," Caroline oozed.

"I think it's time for some delicious gelato, what do you say?" Charles said rather loudly, still trying to figure out what Caroline was up to, because it was obvious to him that she was up to something. Never, ever, had she thought it was '_wonderful_' that Will was dating someone.

"Oooh, I'd love some," Caroline replied.

Jane, who had been standing next to Charles, silently observing the whole awkward scene as it unfolded, spoke up. "Coming right up!" She grabbed Charles's hand and pulled him toward the kitchen.

Will's cell phone rang, and he looked at the caller ID. "Oh, I should take this, it's Georgie," he said quietly to Elizabeth. "Sorry."

"It's fine, go ahead," she said. She watched as he turned and walked down the hall, watching his retreating figure, and once again admiring how attractive he looked in his black pants and dress shirt.

That left Caroline and Elizabeth standing in the living room. Elizabeth turned and sat on the couch, and Caroline lowered herself into a plush chair.

"So, you and Darcy are a new couple? How sweet," Caroline said. "How exactly did you meet?"

"We met through Jane and Charles, of course," Elizabeth replied, not quite understanding how Caroline couldn't figure that out on her own. "They invited me over for dinner a few weeks ago, while they were on the Cape, and Will happened to be there."

"Oooh, a little matchmaking scheme, perhaps?" Caroline asked, leaning in and looking as though she hoped Elizabeth would share some confidences with her.

Elizabeth smiled warily. "I'm not sure. I must say, though, Will made a horrible first impression. I thought he was an arrogant jerk."

"_What_?" Caroline exclaimed, completely aghast. "You thought Darcy was arrogant? An arrogant _jerk_? I...I just can't believe it," she sputtered. "Not Darcy. Why, he's...he's-"

"He's not." Elizabeth quietly finished her sentence for her, seeing as she was having a hard time doing it herself. "I know that now. I have since come to find out that he is just the opposite."

"Well, _yes_, he is. The opposite, I mean." Caroline checked herself, realizing she may be giving too much of herself away. "You two make a _delightful_ couple. I'm thrilled for you both."

"Thank you," Elizabeth said.

An awkward silence followed. Will came back into the room, just as Jane walked in, Charles right behind her, carrying a tray with the gelato, bowls, and spoons.

"That was Georgie," Will said, looking at Charles, "Mrs. R's sister had a heart attack."

"Oh no," Charles replied, immediately concerned. "Is she okay?"

"She's in the ICU at Mass General. I've called a car service on the Cape to pick Alice up and bring her straight to the hospital," Will said quietly. "It should be on its way already."

"That's very generous of you, Darcy," Caroline said. "Not everyone would be so attentive to the hired help."

Will shot her a look that spoke volumes. "Alice Reynolds is far more than the _hir__ed help._" His tone was icy.

"Oh yes...of _course_, Darcy. I meant...it's just...very nice of you," Caroline said, her voice trailing off at the end. She looked flustered.

"Anyway," he said, ignoring Caroline, "she's anxious to get to Mass General to see her sister and her brother-in-law, of course. I told her to call me when she arrives, regardless of the time."

Elizabeth could see that he was worried, and she knew he would be until he heard from Mrs. Reynolds and knew that she had arrived safely. She walked over to him, reaching around behind him and rubbing his back lightly with her hand. He managed to smile slightly, and reached out to put his arm around her.

"Well, if there's anything Jane and I can do, let me know," Charles said, "we'd be glad to help in any way." He had grown up around Mrs. R as well, and was just as fond of her as Will.

"Absolutely," Jane concurred.

"Thanks," Will replied quietly, nodding at both of them. "Well, we should dig in to the gelato," he said, trying to lighten the suddenly serious mood. "We don't want it to melt, right?"

"Yes, dig in, dig in everyone," Jane echoed.

They all grabbed bowls and spoons, and tried the four different flavors that Jane and Charles had picked out. Will decided he needed to sample Elizabeth's, making her feed him a spoonful, after which he offered to feed her a spoonful of his. He scooped up a small amount on his spoon and made as if he was putting it in her mouth, but instead, planted it on her nose. Elizabeth's mouth dropped open as she gasped, then she started laughing. She watched Will's face as he slowly leaned in towards her to kiss it off of the tip of her nose, laughing as he did so.

Charles had been discreetly watching Will a lot throughout the evening, taking advantage of the opportunity to observe him with Elizabeth. He was literally amazed at his friend's behavior. He'd never seen him so attentive, so affectionate, with a woman. So relaxed. He was just being himself. Charles smiled inwardly. _She's the one_, he thought. It was obvious Will, and Elizabeth, were both happy with their blossoming relationship.

When dessert was finished, Caroline abruptly stood from her chair, saying she needed to leave.

"Thank you, Jane, for inviting me to dinner, it really was marvelous," she said, turning to smile at Jane. "Call me in the morning, I'm already looking forward to our stroll in the market."

"You're welcome, Caroline...we're glad you came," Jane said. "We may go on the earlier side tomorrow, I hope that's okay...say around nine?"

Caroline blanched. _Nine_? "Oh, that's fine, I'll be up and about long before then," she replied, trying to sound enthusiastic.

"Great. I'll call you in the morning," Jane said, smiling.

Caroline turned to Elizabeth. "So very nice to meet you, Eliza...Elizabeth," she said, catching herself. "What a pleasure to meet a member of Jane's family."

"Nice to meet you too, Caroline," Elizabeth replied. "See you in the morning."

"Yes...in the morning, bright and early!" Caroline said cheerfully. She turned to Charles. "Goodnight Charles," she said, kissing the air next to his cheek, then turning to Will to do the same...but this time, her lips actually made contact with Will's cheek.

Charles looked down and cleared his throat, obviously concealing a laugh. He looked back up at Will, who was staring straight ahead.

"Goodnight Caroline," both men said at the same time.

"Drive safely sis," Charles said, ushering her to the door. "Talk to you soon."

As soon as she was gone, Charles turned to the group and let out a huge exhale. He looked at Will and started to laugh. "Lipstick on your cheek, pal. Not quite the look for you."

Will rolled his eyes. "For crying out loud," he said, rubbing at his cheek.

* * *

><p>The rest of the evening passed quickly, the two couples chatting comfortably in the living room, enjoying the glow from the fireplace. Soon, though, Jane and Elizabeth were unable to hide their yawns.<p>

"You shouldn't have stayed up so late last night," Charles admonished them jokingly. "What if we wanted to take you ladies out dancing right now?"

Both girls lit up at the thought. "Really?" they both said, looking very excited at the prospect.

"Well, no...not really," Charles said, laughing. "But I can see that it would have been okay with both of you."

"We're always up for dancing, right Lizzy?" Jane asked her, smiling.

"Of course," Elizabeth replied, "we would've gotten a second wind immediately."

"I don't doubt that," Will said, as he stood and held out his hand to help Elizabeth up off the couch.

Jane and Charles rose also, and the four headed toward the entry of the apartment. Will helped Elizabeth on with her jacket, smiling when he thought of his reaction as he took it off of her when she first arrived. He reached into his pocket, and his fingers closed around the silver clip that he had removed from her hair earlier in the evening, toying with it briefly.

Jane and Charles had begun to discuss something about the apartment, and had walked back into the living room. Elizabeth saw this as an opportunity to prod Will about their surprise.

"Are you going to tell me what it is?" she asked him.

"What what is?" he asked her innocently, smiling down at her, reaching to encircle her in his arms.

"You know what I'm talking about, don't play coy with me," she said in a mock-serious tone.

He released one arm from around her waist and reached behind himself to pull his wallet out of his pants pocket. He reached back around her waist, wallet in hand, and she could feel him fumbling for something inside of it. Letting her go, he held up some tickets. As she reached for them, he held them up high above his head.

"Kiss first," he said, teasing her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a passionate kiss on his lips, pushing him backward until he was up against the wall, not caring one bit if Jane and Charles walked in on them or not.

When she eventually dragged her lips away from his, he could do nothing but smile at her, totally speechless. He felt drugged. She giggled at his reaction as he handed over the tickets. She read them and squealed with delight. "We're going to a Red Sox game?"

He nodded and smiled at her obvious glee. "We are. One o'clock against the Orioles."

"Oooooh thank you thank you thank you!" she said, throwing her arms around him once again.

"You're welcome," he laughed, hugging her back. "I thought you'd like that. Did you bring your pink hat?"

"Of course I did, it's at Jane's," she said, as she stared at the tickets she held in her hands.

"I'm glad you're excited," he said.

"I haven't been to a game in such a long time, I can't wait!" She hugged him again. "This has been a perfect weekend."

"It's not over yet," he said, smiling down at her.

* * *

><p>The trip to the farmer's market the next morning was unexpectedly enjoyable, at least to Elizabeth and Jane. Elizabeth hadn't known what to expect after the previous night. Caroline's little slights about the Cape had definitely irked her, and she was not looking forward to more verbal battles today.<p>

Elizabeth was quite surprised that Caroline seemed to be a completely different person today. She had immediately apologized to Elizabeth for her unkind and pretentious remarks.

"I don't know what came over me…I'm usually not like that. I must have come off as incredibly snobby to you."

Elizabeth shrugged, not knowing what to make of this unexpected change in Caroline's attitude. She always prided herself on being able to make out a person's character fairly quickly, but was not having much luck with Caroline. "It's fine, really. Just forget about it."

Caroline was chatty and friendly for the rest of the morning. She had dressed casually, at least by Caroline's standards, which, according to Jane, was unheard of. She wore jeans (designer of course - no Levi's for Caroline), and a short sleeve silk blouse in a pretty shade of blue.

It was still overcast, but the sun was trying valiantly to break through the clouds. The women browsed their way through the market, and although there were many things that were tempting to Elizabeth, she decided to hold off on buying anything. Jane, however, indulged in some delicious cheeses and stocked up on farm-fresh fruits and vegetables. Caroline seemed happy just to tag along and sample some of the foods that the vendors had prepared.

"What a lovely place!" Caroline exclaimed as the women finished their tour of the market. "I'll have to come again. Everyone is so pleasant," she said, seemingly delighted.

"It is nice, isn't it?" Jane agreed. "I really think I'm going to shop here as much as possible this summer. It's not too hard to get here, and it's worth it for the freshness of the food. It's fantastic."

"We have a farmer's market in Falmouth, but of course, it's a tenth of the size of this one. It's still great, though," Elizabeth said.

"Oh, I'd love to see the Falmouth market," Caroline said. "I haven't been to Falmouth, perhaps you could give me a tour sometime?" she asked, smiling at Elizabeth.

"Oh, sure...just let me know when you're down for a visit, and we'll see what we can do."

The women said their goodbyes and parted as Caroline went one way, and Elizabeth and Jane went the other, headed back to Jane's car.

* * *

><p>Caroline's mood had been considerably dark, and she could pinpoint the exact moment that it had become that way; last night, at Charles's little 'dinner party,' when she saw that nobody, that <em>nothing<em>, kiss Darcy. The memory of it, of watching that little display of...affection...made her nauseous.

She had tried to play it cool, tried not to let her shock and horror show, and hoped she had pulled it off. _How could he f__launt someone in front of me like that?_

Oh, she had seen him out with other women around the city, at society events, usually...but never, ever, had she seen him as he was last night. Smiling, relaxed, attentive...dare she say _happy? _Happy with that little mouse of a girl? _Unsophisticated country chit, that's what she is. _What did he call her? A hidden treasure?_ Hmph. A hidden trap is more like it. _Hopefully, Darcy was just amusing himself with her for the time being, and would eventually come to his senses.

Caroline had come up with an idea. If you can't beat them, you join them, right? She had tried to be friendly, tried to actually sound interested in anything about the chit, when really, she couldn't care less about her. She had wanted to make it seem as though she was happy for them, that they had this wonderful new relationship. _Happy? Ugh. I think not._

She realized that in order to stay close to Darcy, she would unfortunately have to align herself with Elizabeth. Her reasons would be foolproof; her brother was dating her older sister, after all. Jane may very well end up a member of the family. At least that idea was somewhat tolerable; she did like Jane, what she knew of her anyway, and Charles seemed to be quite fond of her. Caroline realized that her long-held aspirations of having her brother marry Georgiana Darcy were becoming more and more far-fetched as time went on. They would never be together.

Knowing this, Caroline realized that she'd have to befriend Jane and become a trusted confidant. By doing so, she could deepen her acquaintance with Elizabeth, and therefore keep Darcy within reach. Eventually, she would pull them apart, separate them, bit by bit.

A plan began to formulate in her mind. She would need Jane to make it work. As much as she liked Jane, she wouldn't hesitate to use her if it would help to successfully pull Darcy away from that Cape Cod nobody.

She cringed as she thought back to her apology to Elizabeth, hoping it sounded believable. She had been gritting her teeth the whole time, holding back the bile that was threatening to rise into her throat. _I must have come off as incredibly snobby to you_. Ugh! The fact that she even had to _utter_ those words was appalling and embarrassing.

She would need to act soon, while the relationship was still new and they were still getting to know each other. She was sure that Darcy was too much of a gentleman to talk about his past dalliances with other women, so she would have to take advantage of that and put it to use.

She knew what she'd be risking if Darcy, or her brother for that matter, found out what she was up to. They wouldn't see that it was all for the best for everyone. Elizabeth couldn't possibly fit into the sphere of society that Darcy and the Bingleys were in, and Darcy certainly didn't belong on Cape Cod, living the life of a beatnik with that wild-haired girl. She had to crush this little flirtation now.

* * *

><p>The two couples had a great time at the baseball game. They had perfect seats, right behind the Sox dugout, along the first base line. Will had a company box, but had already given up the seats to some of his employees, something he always did when he couldn't get to a game himself. Since this was a last minute plan, he had to finagle tickets from another source.<p>

They ate Fenway Franks, had a couple of beers, and Jane and Elizabeth sang 'Sweet Caroline,' in the true Red Sox tradition. The sisters had even managed to get the men to sing 'Take Me Out to The Ballgame' during the seventh inning stretch.

Elizabeth was mortified that Will didn't own a Red Sox cap. He was wearing a Sox shirt, but it "wasn't the same," according to her. He watched her during the game, whenever he had the opportunity to do so without her noticing. She was so animated, so excited to be there. He hadn't laughed that much in a long time. He even got a kick out of her and Jane checking out the Red Sox players. The two women were really very funny together.

At the end of the eighth inning, with the Sox behind 8-5, Elizabeth had pushed her hat inside out and put it on backwards, turning it into the infamous 'rally cap.' Will glanced down at her, as she was whooping for the team, and was struck by how absolutely captivating she was.

Last night, as he lay in bed, his thoughts had been full of her, as usual. She had looked so beautiful at dinner, it had been hard for him not to stare at her all night. He loved watching her face, watching the expressions that floated across it as she talked, or as she listened to someone else talk. She had held her own against Caroline, and he had thoroughly enjoyed watching her eyes light up when she defended her beloved Cape.

He had wondered if 'love at first sight' was a real thing, and had laughed to himself. It wasn't love at first sight with them, after all...more like 'mistrust at first sight,' or 'dislike at first sight.'

Looking back, he realized his prejudices and initial judgments about her had begun to fade after the night he saw her at Wicked. The short conversation they had engaged in had a huge effect on him.

He felt like he _really _saw her for the first time, though, at Charles's cookout. He could no longer relegate her to being _that woman_ who took his picture on the beach and invaded his privacy. He finally saw her just as a _woman_, and he was enthralled. She had completely captivated him. He knew it was much too soon to say that he felt love...they still had so much to learn about each other. Something told him, though, that he was headed down that path. Happily, he would follow it.

His mind returned to the present, and once again, he looked down at Elizabeth.

Elizabeth felt Will pulling her closer to him, and as she looked up, she was pleasantly surprised to see a look of complete tenderness on his face. He wrapped his arm around her waist and leaned in to kiss her, totally taking her mind off the game and the fact that the Sox were facing a loss.

She returned his kiss, unmindful of the crowd around them, reaching up to place her hand against his neck. As they broke apart, he reached up behind her to tug on her cap, smiling at her softly.

"What was that for?" she asked him, unable to stop smiling herself.

"Nothing. You're just irresistible at times. Now happened to be one of those times."

"Oh," she said, and her smile grew until she knew she was literally beaming. "Okay."

Alas, the Sox lost, but everyone agreed that it was a great game just the same. As they were walking out, Elizabeth said she needed to run to the ladies room. Jane said she'd go with her, and Charles and Will said they'd wait for them. Elizabeth pulled Jane along with her, over to a souvenir stand.

"I need to get Will a hat," Elizabeth said. "Can you believe he doesn't own one?"

"Yes, I can believe it, because Charles doesn't either. Neither do I."

"What is wrong with you people?" Elizabeth asked, feigning horror. "I knew you didn't, you never liked to wear baseball hats, but how can a man that lives in Boston and _claims_ to be a Sox fan, not have a Sox hat?"

"I take it we're buying them hats?" Jane asked, smiling at her sister's enthusiasm.

"Yes, we are buying them hats."

Ten minutes later, they had their purchases in hand and were on their way back to meet the men. Elizabeth walked up to Will, hiding the hat behind her back, reaching up at the last minute to pull it down on his head. He knew full well what it was, and he smiled down at her, leaning to give her a kiss. "Thank you," he said. "I guess I'm a _real_ fan now, huh?"

"Yes," she said, kissing him again, "and, you may very well be the most handsome one, at that."

* * *

><p>With the weekend drawing to a close, Elizabeth had of course agreed to ride back to the Cape with Will. Before he picked her up at Jane's, he made another trip to Mass General to see Mrs. Reynolds, to make sure she didn't need anything. He had already been to see her once before the game, while the women were at the farmer's market.<p>

He made his way to the cardiac unit, and found her and her brother-in-law Jack sitting in the waiting room.

"Oh, William, you're back again? You know you don't need to check on me."

William squeezed her in a brief hug, and reached out to shake Jack's hand.

"I know I don't need to, I want to. How's Ingrid doing?"

"She's holding her own," Jack replied. "It's awful nice of you to check in on us."

Jack's cell phone rang, and realizing it was one of his children, he excused himself and walked out of the waiting room.

"How's he doing?" Will asked Mrs. Reynolds.

"Oh, as well as can be expected, I suppose. He's tired, didn't sleep a wink last night."

Will looked at her face. "You don't look like you slept much either."

She shook her head. "I didn't. Their two sons are flying in today, so I'll go home for a rest when they arrive."

"Make sure that you do," Will said firmly.

She smiled up at him. "Yes sir. Now, tell me, how was your weekend? Georgiana says you have a new girlfriend, and that she spent the weekend here with you."

Will found himself blushing. "No, well yes, she was in Boston, but she stayed with her sister. Her sister and Charles are dating, so the four of us spent some time together this weekend."

Mrs. Reynolds raised her eyebrows. "Isn't that sweet? Sisters."

Will nodded his head, smiling self-consciously. "I suppose."

Mrs. Reynolds laughed at him. "Well, I hope she's a nice young lady, this..."

"Elizabeth," Will said, his smile growing. "Yes, she's a very nice young lady."

"Ahh, Elizabeth," Mrs. Reynolds said, nodding in approval. "I know I don't have to remind you to be a gentleman," she said, attempting to fix him with her most serious glare.

Will instantly felt like he was seventeen again. "I'm being a gentleman, Mrs. R, I promise you. How could I be anything but?" he asked, giving her his sweetest smile.

She reached up to pat his cheek, and he hugged her again.

He made her promise to call him if she needed anything at all, and also made her aware that Charles and Jane had offered their help and support as well. They said their goodbyes, and Will left to head to Jane's apartment.

* * *

><p>By seven o'clock, Elizabeth and Will were on the highway, headed back to the Cape. Elizabeth leaned back into the seat, closing her eyes.<p>

"Will?"

"Yes?"

"What do you make of Caroline, of the way she was last night?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, wanting her to be more specific.

"I mean, is that how she usually is? She seemed a little...I don't know...overbearing maybe?"

She looked at him as he concentrated on weaving them through the heavy traffic, and he looked somewhat stern. She lifted his hand to her lips to kiss his knuckles, and his face softened.

Will thought about Caroline's behavior toward Elizabeth. She did seem a little over-the-top last night, but he was used to it. "Now you know why I told you that Caroline had to be experienced to be understood." He glanced over to her. "What's bothering you?"

"Oh, nothing's bothering me. It's just that I can't figure her out. She apologized to me today, you know, for her behavior last night, and she seemed genuine. If I had to give my impression of her, based solely on spending time with her today, I would say she was a nice, somewhat down-to-earth person."

Will's eyes flew open, eyebrows shooting up. "Nice? Down-to-earth? Caroline?" He gave a short laugh. "Those are the last words I would ever use to describe her."

Elizabeth shrugged. "I don't know what to think. Obviously, you've known her longer, and you know her much better than I do. But she honestly seemed like she was trying to have a good time today, and part of me says she did, but part of me thinks it might have been an act. I don't know."

It was Will's turn to shrug. "Maybe she's trying to turn over a new leaf...who knows. I wouldn't bet on it, though. She's the classic case of a leopard not changing its spots."

Elizabeth nodded, still trying to sort out the puzzle in her head. She'd have to call Jane at some point this week to try to figure it out further.

Elizabeth smiled. "I thought she was going to die of apoplexy when I told her that I thought you were a jerk when we first met."

Will's eyebrows flew up. "You told her that?" He laughed.

"Yes, I did. She was curious about how we met. I didn't tell her how we _actually _met, I told her that Charles and Jane introduced us. She was very defensive of you."

Will grinned. "Obviously, she realizes you've changed your mind about me."

She turned to look at him. "How could I not change my mind?"

Will turned to give her a brief smile, this time lifting her hand to his lips for a kiss.

The rest of the drive was quiet, but not uncomfortably so. They talked a little, about their respective work schedules for the upcoming week, but mostly they just listened to music. Elizabeth loved listening to Will sing along to some of the songs, so she purposely didn't talk much. She sat back, eyes closed, holding his hand, letting the sound of his voice wash over her.

When they arrived back to her house, the sun had just set, turning the sky to a dark purple. He carried her duffel bag up the stairs and onto the deck. As soon as the door was opened, the overwhelming smell of roses permeated the air.

Will grimaced. "Oh wow."

"No kidding. Imagine what my office is going to smell like when I get back there tomorrow."

"It smells like a funeral parlor," he said, scrunching up his nose.

"Gee, thanks. Well, they still look pretty anyway," Elizabeth said, as she walked into the house, immediately opening windows. "I didn't want to leave anything open when I left, so I knew I'd come home to this." She turned to look at him, giving him a soft smile. "I'm not complaining, believe me. I love them."

He grinned sheepishly. "Next time, I'll keep it to the traditional dozen."

He looked around him, studying Elizabeth's home. The last time he had been there, or rather, had been _inside_, was the day she had developed the photos she had taken of him and Georgie. He hadn't really looked too closely at anything then.

It was small, but comfortable. The walls were all white, with bead-board accents, and the floor, made from wide hardwood planks, was a warm honey color, and went into every room in the house. She had a couch with a matching overstuffed chair, in a light lime color, with a bright blue and white seashell pattern. He poked his head into the small galley kitchen, also all white, with granite counter-tops the color of sand.

Elizabeth had disappeared into the bedroom, so he decided to follow her in. She was taking things out of her duffel bag, hanging up what she hadn't worn. He looked around, surprised to see the walls were painted a beautiful shade of blue instead of white. Her bed faced a row of windows, and was covered by a plush white comforter. In the corner sat a white and blue striped chair, and in another corner stood a tall full-length mirror on a stand. Along the wall was an antique dresser, painted white, of course. The entire place was the quintessential Cape Cod cottage.

He was impressed. "Did you do all the decorating in here yourself?" he asked, feeling like he had just walked into a Home Remodeling spread. He leaned against the doorway, watching her move about the room.

"I did, yes. I did all the painting...my father helped, of course. He helped install the bead-board, that was pretty tough, getting that right. It took a few years, doing things bit by bit, but I finally have it the way I want it."

"It looks amazing. I didn't really notice it the last time I was here." He shrugged.

"Well, it's not like we were on the best of terms then, were we?" She smiled at him, and he smiled back. "Funny how things can change so quickly."

He walked across the bedroom to admire the view from the windows, and was surprised to see they were completely bare. "How come you don't have any curtains or blinds on these windows?" he asked, looking out over the ocean.

"I don't really need them. The beach below us is part of my family's property, so no one is ever there but me. I'll show you why I haven't put anything up."

She closed the bedroom door, and turned the lights out. After a moment, his eyes adjusted to the darkness. Gradually, he noticed the lights of the Vineyard twinkling across the sound, and could see the beacon of Nobska Light as well. There were still boats out on the water, and their lights shone as they made their way back home. The moon, though not full, provided some light.

"Wow. I wouldn't put curtains up either." He had walked over to the windows, and stood looking out. _I like it here, _he thought. _It's so homey, so warm._ _So Elizabeth._ As he was having those thoughts, she came and stood beside him.

"I like having this view at night. It's peaceful, most of the time, unless it's pouring or we're getting a thunder storm. Still, there's no better place to watch lightening from. I used to get nervous, but now I'm used to it." She smiled to herself. "When the moon is full, it's actually very bright. My own personal nightlight."

He turned to look at her, suddenly feeling the intimacy of being in her bedroom, no more than four feet away from her bed, with the lights out. As he looked at her in the pale light, he thought back over the past couple of days.

"I had a wonderful weekend," he said softly.

She turned to him, and reached up to stroke his cheek. "I did too," she said, almost whispering. "I loved spending it with you."

He reached up to take her hand, and turned it over to plant a soft, warm kiss on her palm before releasing it. She smiled up at him, wrapping her arms around his waist and laying her head against his chest.

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly against him. After standing as such for a few minutes, the air in the room seemed to change. Elizabeth could feel her heart rate increasing, and could feel Will's heart under her cheek, pounding away.

Will swallowed as he felt himself becoming very aware of Elizabeth's body completely pressed against his. They had just talked yesterday about taking it slow, going at her pace, and here they were embracing in her bedroom. He knew he should be the one to step away before anything happened, but before he had the chance, Elizabeth lifted her head from his chest and looked up at him.

"We should...go back into the living room...probably." She was just as aware of the electricity crackling between them as Will.

"We should," he replied, not moving.

"Mmhmm" she agreed quietly, nodding her head slightly. Still, neither of them moved.

Instead of walking out as he should have, Will grasped her lightly by the shoulders and turned her to face the windows. He stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist again, and she rested her arms on top of his. They stood that way for a few moments, admiring the view, but the undercurrent flowing through the air was still there.

He gently pulled her hair to one side and lowered his mouth to the point just below her ear, slowly kissing her, working his way down her neck, and heard her soft intake of breath. His hands slowly stroked her sides, over and over.

Elizabeth couldn't move, couldn't seem to breathe. Will's mouth felt amazing, and his hands felt strong and warm. She reached up behind her to run her hands through his hair, leaning her head to one side to expose more of her neck.

She felt the vibration of his soft groan against her skin. He lifted her hair, trailed damp kisses across the back of her neck, and now began attacking the other side. His hands stroked up again from her waist, but instead of moving back down, he slowly began to slide them up under her t-shirt. There was no hesitation on his part this time as he came into contact with her breasts, cupping them and massaging them over the material of her bra.

Elizabeth felt the warmth of Will's hands on her breasts as they alternated between caressing her and squeezing her gently. She pushed herself back, wanting to feel his body pressed against her. Turning her face up toward his, he rewarded her with a hungry kiss. His hands were relentless on her breasts, never ceasing their attentions.

Elizabeth turned in his arms and pulled his head down to hers, locking her lips onto his. They kissed passionately, letting their tongues duel, both moaning as their bodies came together. He reached up to cradle her face, and let his hands drift back into her hair, holding her head, deepening the kiss as much as possible. Her hands pushed under his shirt, feeling their way across his chest and down his stomach, then reaching around to caress the hard muscles of his back.

His hands left her hair and stroked down her back, reaching to cup her bottom and pull her up gently against him. Elizabeth let her lips move to his jaw, working her way to his neck, placing soft, warm kisses as she moved, licking and biting him gently. Her hands once again trailed from his chest down to his stomach, loving the feel of the light hair she could feel under her fingers. She moved them lower, slowly feeling over the bulge in his shorts, stroking him over the material lightly. She felt Will's hands move to her shoulders and push her gently away from him. He took a step back, putting distance between their bodies.

They both stood there, looking at each other, trying to slow their breathing and regain some control. Will, especially, needed to get his thoughts in order, and come out of the lust-induced haze that was enveloping his brain – and other parts of his body.

Elizabeth took a step toward him, putting her hand out as if to touch him, and he took a step back, silently asking her to keep her distance for the moment. He needed to look away from her eyes, so he glanced away, turning to look at...the bed. _Bad idea. _He turned and moved toward the bedroom door, opening it and walking out into the living room.

Elizabeth followed, but instead of going to him, she stopped and leaned against the bedroom doorway. He sat down on the couch, resting his elbows on his knees, holding his head in his hands, looking down.

After a few moments, Will looked up at her. _Another bad idea. _Cheeks flushed, lips swollen, hair in disarray...he couldn't look at her, she was too tempting.

"Elizabeth," he said softly, eyes closed, "we can't do this."

Her stomach tensed. "What can't we do?" she asked, feeling suddenly vulnerable.

"This. What we just did. In there," he said, gesturing to her bedroom. "I want to go at your pace, I told you that. But we need some boundaries, I think." He couldn't believe he was actually saying this to her, when what he really wanted to do was throw her over his shoulder and head back into her bedroom.

"When something like that happens...I want to go at _my_ pace, not yours. How far would that have gone if I didn't move away from you? Your bed was four feet away from us." He gave a short laugh. "Hell, the chair was three feet away. Even that popped into my mind."

Elizabeth was embarrassed. He was right...she had said she wanted to go slow, and she very nearly attacked him in her bedroom. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "You must think I'm such a tease...I would have stopped it, at some point...I suppose."

"You suppose?" He inhaled deeply, then exhaled. "Come here," he said to her, patting the cushion next to him. She walked over and sat down, and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her against him. She rested her head on his shoulder.

"I don't think you're a tease," he said. "We both got a little caught up in the moment."

"A little?"

"Okay, we both got _very_ caught up in the moment." He reached up to stroke her hair, letting his fingers sift through the long strands. "You drive me crazy. Everything about you...your hair, your eyes...your body...the smell of your skin...it's overwhelming." He kissed her on the top of the head. "You make me feel like I'm not in control of myself."

"I do?" she asked, surprised by the confession.

"Yes." He paused for a brief second. "When we were in the parking garage yesterday, I _had_ to get out of the car. I couldn't sit there a moment longer, so close to you. I felt the same way just now." He sighed. "That's why we need boundaries. I'll go at your pace, but not at the expense of my sanity...do you understand what I'm saying?"

She nodded, sighing. "Yes, I do. Of course." She thought for a moment. "Why do I feel like I should apologize again?"

"You shouldn't. I love that you make me feel that way...and when – not if – _when_ the day comes that we decide to take our relationship to the next level...I know it will be amazing."

She smiled up at him, trying to lighten the moment. "You're sounding a little arrogant right now," she said, "although, for some reason, I kind of like it."

He chuckled, and leaned down to nuzzle her, speaking with a husky voice into her ear. "Remember, it's confidence, not arrogance...and believe me, I'm very confident...it will be _amazing_."

* * *

><p><em>Hope you enjoyed their weekend in Boston. Please review if you can. Thanks!<em>


	10. Chapter 10

**Welcome to Part 2! This chapter starts off about four weeks after their weekend in Boston. You'll get a little peek of what those four weeks have been like through a few flashbacks with both Will and Elizabeth. Thanks again for reading and reviewing. Enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>Part 2<strong>

**Chapter 10**

Will sat in his office at his Boston townhouse and glanced at the clock. It was almost ten p.m., and he wondered if Elizabeth would be home yet. She had gone to his house to watch a movie with Georgiana tonight, and he knew she probably wouldn't get home until late. He didn't want to go to bed without speaking to her, but he didn't want to interrupt her time with his sister either.

During the month of June, he had begun to make regular trips into Boston once a week, usually on a Thursday, staying overnight to put in two full days at his office there. He was happy that Elizabeth had opted to spend those Thursday nights with Georgie. He saw that their friendship was growing; saw the way they were able to laugh and joke with each other, witnessed the way that Elizabeth was gently pulling Georgie further from her shell. He was grateful that Elizabeth seemed to be helping her heal.

It was the end of June. Glancing at his calendar, he realized that he and Elizabeth had been dating now for almost four weeks. For Will, as cliché as it sounded, they were the best four weeks of his life. He just felt...different. Happier. More complete, as if something he was missing was finally put into place; something he hadn't even realized he was missing to begin with. She was the first thing on his mind when he woke up, and the last thing he thought about before going to sleep.

Smiling to himself, he sat back and closed his eyes, thinking about the month that they had spent together, letting his mind wander over the memories that he had already stored away.

They saw each other as much as possible, usually one or two days during the week, and every weekend. She had finally introduced him to the bike path, and he was amazed that he had never explored it before. He had even joined her on a run a few times, and now understood what she had meant when she told him that the bike path was not what he thought it was.

Wherever they went she took along one of her cameras, and he loved watching her when she was absorbed in taking a picture of something. She didn't realize that her mouth made the cutest little pout as she concentrated. Many times, she turned the camera on him, and he began to see more pictures of himself popping up on her darkroom walls, as well as in small frames around her house. He even snapped a few of her, which now resided in his office at home, as well as at his office in Boston...and at his townhouse...and at the New Seabury house.

They spent a lot of time at the beach, laying in the sun and playing in the surf, and enjoyed a lot of sunsets together, from either her deck or his. The first time he saw her in her bikini, he thought his heart was going to stop. He smiled as he remembered the way she had looked at _him_ that day, when he walked out of her bedroom in his trunks. They couldn't keep their hands off of each other for most of the day.

He became a regular at her softball games, and began to get to know some of her co-workers. If they weren't at a game, and Will wasn't in Boston, they usually stayed in at night, preferring to watch a movie, or just sit out on the deck, at either her place or his, and talk. Occasionally he would throw something on the grill or cook a small dinner. Elizabeth had even attempted to cook for them...not always with the greatest results; she called it her "domestic deficiency." Will jokingly told her that he was going to ask Mrs. R to take on another student.

Sunday nights had become his favorite night of the week. Rain or shine, he and Elizabeth would drive to Smitty's to get an ice cream, then head to Old Silver Beach. They did their best talking then, and Will felt as though they learned a lot about each other during these little "dates."

He chuckled to himself as he thought back to this past Sunday night. It was raining, so they had eaten their ice cream cones in her Jeep (which, he had discovered, was just as much fun to drive as his Porsche), talking quietly and listening to the sound of the rain hitting the roof. They ended up making out like a couple of horny teenagers, steaming up the windows. For Will, it took every ounce of self-control he could muster not to toss her into the backseat and have his way with her. Just to kiss her drove him absolutely crazy.

When they were together, whether sitting on the deck, sitting on the couch watching a movie, or stretched out on a blanket on the beach, they would invariably end up tangled in each other, kissing and caressing until they were both so heated up, they had to physically separate to calm themselves down. There were many times that he thought they would make love, but she always slowed things before it went too far. He knew that she would let him know when she was ready, and he knew that he would wait, however long it took. It was, he was sure, just a matter of time and patience, and for her, trust.

That said, the waiting was definitely _not_ easy, not by any means. It was grueling. Thank God it was summer and the weather was warm, because he had resorted to taking cold showers on a fairly regular basis.

Physically, she _was_ ready; he knew she was just as attracted to him as he was to her. The way she responded to him made that loud and clear. Something was holding her back, though, he could tell. Eventually, he hoped that she would trust him enough to tell him what that something was. He wanted her to confide in him, to trust him completely. He wanted her to know that he would never hurt her, ever. She was everything to him.

Opening his eyes slowly, he stared at the picture of her sitting on his desk, her lovely green eyes staring back.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth glanced at her watch and saw that it was nearing ten o'clock. She knew that Will would be calling her soon to say goodnight, as he always did. She was at his house, with Georgiana, and they had just finished watching a movie. Both were curled up at opposite ends of the couch in the family room. They loved scary movies, so they had watched "Paranormal Activity," and were sufficiently spooked. They had both jumped and screamed at every scary moment in the film, and were laughing about what wimps they were.<p>

Elizabeth was enjoying getting to know Georgiana very much. She was a bright girl, and as she became more comfortable around Elizabeth, she had opened up about herself more and more. Elizabeth had learned quite a few things about her over the past month.

Like Elizabeth, Georgiana was a big New England sports fan. When it came to the New England Patriots, though, "rabid fan" was a better description of Georgiana. She knew a lot more about the team than Will did, that's for sure. Elizabeth loved the Pats too, but her heart belonged to the Red Sox.

Georgiana was also an extremely talented piano player, which Elizabeth only found out by walking into the house one day when Georgiana didn't answer the doorbell. Apparently, she had been caught up in playing and never heard it ring. Elizabeth had stood there, dumbfounded, as Georgiana's fingers glided up and down the keys effortlessly. Georgiana had been embarrassed, initially, that Elizabeth had been standing there, listening. Elizabeth gently reminded her that it was only fair; Georgie had helped Elizabeth "spy" on Will the night of their first date.

She was most surprised to find out that Georgie was an elementary school teacher, currently on a leave of absence from her job in Boston. Very often, Elizabeth would find herself wondering what it was that had happened to Georgie to make her feel like she needed to shut herself away from the world. She was admittedly curious, and had sensed that Georgiana had wanted to talk to her about it, as if she was on the verge of saying something on several occasions, but then she would retreat again.

As they were recovering from laughing at themselves over their jumpiness during the movie, they fell into a comfortable silence. Elizabeth chose that moment to say something to her.

"You know, Georgiana, if you ever feel like you need someone to talk to, about anything...you know you can talk to me, right?"

Georgiana was quiet for a moment.

"Thanks Lizzy," she said quietly. "I know I can. I want to, you know? I feel like I've put so much on Will's shoulders...he worries about me constantly, I know he does." She looked up at Elizabeth, a questioning look on her face. "Has he told you anything?"

"No. Only that you've been through a rough period, and you're trying to get back on track," Elizabeth answered honestly.

"I am. I'm trying, it's just hard. There are people I don't want to see, that I don't want to face. That's why I'm here, away from the city."

Elizabeth remained quiet, sensing Georgiana was mustering up the courage to go on.

"Something happened to me, back in January. I've thought about telling you...talking to you about it, but it's hard for me to put my troubles onto someone else. It's always just been Will and me, you know? But now I'm concerned for him too. When I try to get him to talk to me about it, about how he feels, he completely shuts down. Changes the subject." She sighed. "He's still trying to protect me."

"He always will. He's your brother, and like you said, it's just been you and him for a long time. In some ways, he's like a father as well as a brother."

Georgiana nodded, remaining silent. After a few moments, she began to speak.

"I went to a party, on New Years Eve, with some friends. We were at a nice place in the Back Bay, it was my girlfriend Julie's uncle that was having the party. It wasn't a crazy party, just normal people...it was actually a little on the upscale side. I'd had a crush on Julie's brother Matt...oh, forever, it seems...and he was going to be there, so Julie had it all planned that we would go so I could spend time with Matt."

Elizabeth's eyebrows raised a little, and Georgiana looked surprised. "Not like _that_, not _that_ kind of time...I've known Matt for so long. He treats me like another sister." She smiled, a little sadly. "He's so sweet, and so handsome...anyway, that's a lost cause, at this point."

Elizabeth waited for her to continue.

"There were a lot of people at the party, probably close to seventy-five, maybe more. I met this one guy, he seemed okay. We introduced ourselves. He was a little bit older than me, about Will's age I guess. He was nice. We chatted a lot, he was friendly, and handsome. He wasn't coming on to me or anything, we were just talking."

She shifted her eyes uncomfortably. "He asked me a lot of questions about myself, about my teaching job, and talked about himself, and his job. He was a photographer. He said...he said I should be a model." She laughed self-consciously. "I knew he was feeding me a line, but even after he said it, he told me he didn't do fashion stuff, so he couldn't help me out himself, but that I should look into it."

She looked at Elizabeth. "Oddly, that made me think he was even nicer...I thought he was going to give me his card, try to get me to meet up with him...but he didn't."

She looked down at her hands, nervous to go on. "I think he might have slipped something into my drink...I don't know. He went to get me a glass of wine, and I know that I had only had one or two glasses before that, and this was over the course of a couple of hours. I don't drink a lot, I don't enjoy being drunk. I don't like feeling out of control."

Elizabeth blanched at her words...someone slipped something into her drink? Elizabeth knew the direction that this was headed in, and she felt her heart breaking already for Georgiana.

"Anyway, I don't remember a lot of the rest of the night. Matt found me, in one of the guest bedrooms. After missing me for a while, he and Julie started looking for me. It was obvious that something had happened, but I had no idea what." She sighed.

"I didn't tell Will. Only Julie and Matt knew that something had happened, and I swore them to secrecy."

Elizabeth moved over to sit next to Georgiana, and pushed her hair back away from her face, then reached down to hold her hand. "I'm so sorry that you had to go through that. So sorry."

"There's more," Georgiana said quietly, gripping Elizabeth's hand. "About two weeks later, an envelope showed up at Will's office. Inside of it were photos...of me...from the party...with two men. I don't remember any of it though." Tears began silently rolling down her face as she stared unseeing out a window, and her breath hitched as she tried to go on. "They were doing things...my face was very visible in the pictures. I looked like a willing participant."

"What about their faces?" Elizabeth asked quietly. "Were they visible?"

"No...they were blackened out, somehow. You could see everything else though...very clearly." She looked up at Elizabeth, the tears now streaming down her cheeks. "When Will first confronted me with them...he thought I had done that...willingly. Let those men do that to me." She stopped to try to compose herself. "That was almost as bad as what happened," she whispered, "that he thought I would do that."

Elizabeth was shocked to hear what Georgiana said about Will...he thought she was a willing participant? "I don't know what to say. I'm sorry."

Georgiana cut her off. "It's okay. Of course he would think I was hiding something from him. Being faced with that, with him thinking that, it made me confide in him and tell him everything, which I know I should have done to begin with. I should have trusted him...I was just so...embarrassed. Mortified. Scared."

She got up and walked out of the room, coming back immediately with a box of tissues, and sat down to blow her nose. "Once he found out what happened, he was a mess. He felt so horrible, so guilty...he felt responsible. Like it was his fault...he kept saying that he should have been watching out for me better, taking better care of me. It was awful. And he felt awful for what he had initially thought. I tried to reassure him...faced with those photos, and my secrecy, what else would he think? He just kept apologizing, over and over. He was devastated."

"Anyway, the man...the photographer...found out who I was right after the party, found out that Will had money. He knew Will would pay him for the photos, and he did...a lot of money. He was just trying to protect me, you know? We thought we were doing the right thing by not involving the police and keeping it quiet. I was terrified that it would be all over the newspapers. Will would pay the guy, and that would be that. But then...the guy...he put the pictures on the internet...they got emailed to friends of mine. Co-workers at the school I was teaching at. He's pretty computer savvy, apparently." She sniffled, wiped her eyes, and took a deep breath. "We could never prove anything. Couldn't even prove he was the one who took the pictures."

Elizabeth felt like her heart was in the pit of her stomach. How could someone do that? Suddenly, something in her mind clicked into place.

"That's why Will got so upset that day on the beach, when the two of you were sitting on the jetty. He thought I was targeting you," Elizabeth said in disbelief.

Georgiana nodded. "He thought maybe you were sent by a tabloid, or sent by that guy...although, he kind of disappeared. Will had him followed for a while, but the guy left Boston, and as far as we know, he hasn't come back."

"I don't know what to say," Elizabeth said softly. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that...that you're still going through it."

"I feel like I am still going through it...it's getting better, but it's still hard. I still have dreams, occasionally. Anyway, when Charles had his party at the end of May, I wanted to go...I wanted to be outside, enjoying the sunshine, seeing people. But all I kept thinking was, what if someone there has seen those pictures? What if someone sees me and recognizes me? The chances of that happening are pretty slim, but still, the fear of it was enough to keep me home."

"You're getting more brave though, you see that, right? You and I have gone out, been shopping, had lunch...those are positive steps," Elizabeth pointed out.

"I know. I'm trying, I really am. Will is so happy that I've done those things, with you, especially." She turned to look at Elizabeth. "He really cares for you, so much. Do you know that you're the only woman that has been here? Ever?" She caught herself, realizing how that must sound. "I mean, it's not like Will has dated a lot of women, he hasn't. Still, he's never brought anyone to this house."

She smiled at the look of surprise on Elizabeth's face. "You shouldn't be surprised. This is his escape. This is where he feels most at home, feels most like himself. He even likes that you come here when he's not here."

"I came here the night of our first date," Elizabeth said, the look of surprise still on her face.

"I realize that...and it was really your second date, haven't we established that?" She smiled as Elizabeth rolled her eyes slightly. "Even though it was my suggestion, he didn't even hesitate to go along with it," Georgiana said. "Even then, I could tell he had a terrible crush on you." She laughed at Elizabeth's blush. "He's a different man since he met you. I've never seen him so carefree. Happy."

Elizabeth didn't know what to say. She knew her feelings for Will were growing by leaps and bounds on a daily basis, but she was still wary. How much of her heart was she willing to risk?

"He's a wonderful man. You're very lucky to have him as a brother," she replied, trying to deflect the subject back to Georgiana.

"He is, you're right. I don't know what I would have done without him. And Charles, actually." She looked at Elizabeth. "Charles knows everything. He's like another brother to me. I would trust him with my life as much as I would trust Will."

She looked sad for a moment. "I'm worried about Will. Whenever I try to talk to him, he completely closes himself off from me. I know he's feeling the burden of everything. I think if we talked, it would help, but I can't break through to him."

Georgiana looked down at her hand, clutching a tissue. "Thank God for Charles...I know they've talked, Charles has told me that they have, although he would never tell me exactly what Will has said. I'm just glad he's talked to someone. I wish it was me, though."

"Elizabeth...I have to ask you a favor. I know that Charles has never said anything to Jane about what happened to me. Even though I've never asked him, I know he wouldn't tell anyone, even Jane."

She paused. "I have to ask you the same, Lizzy. Please don't say anything to Jane. I want to meet her, and I don't want her to have any preconceived ideas about me. From what Will says, she may be around for a while," she said, finally smiling slightly, "and I'd really like to have an untainted start with her, if you can understand that." She looked up at Elizabeth.

"Of course, you have my word. I would never speak of this to anyone. I hope you do get to know Jane...just as you've been blessed with a wonderful brother, I've been blessed with a wonderful sister. You'll love her, I'm sure."

She paused, thinking back to when she had leaned so heavily on Jane, all those years ago when it seemed as though her life was disintegrating in front of her eyes. She knows she wouldn't have gotten through it without Jane, without her strength.

Georgiana looked at her, smiling softly. "I'm so glad I talked to you about it. I know I can trust you. And, I'm glad you're with Will, that you and he are together. You're good for him."

Elizabeth smiled. "He's good for me, too."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth had taken the next day off from work, giving herself a long weekend. As she drove home after watching the movie and talking with Georgiana, she thought about how glad she was that she had. She wouldn't have been able to concentrate on anything to do with work anyway.<p>

_That poor girl, _she thought. To go through that...she just couldn't imagine. Elizabeth wasn't naïve, she knew things like that happened, almost too frequently, but to know someone that it actually happened to...she never thought that it would be something like this that was causing Georgiana to wall herself off from the world.

Georgiana had given her blessing to Elizabeth to let Will know that they had talked. She felt that it might be helpful to Will, that maybe he would be able to talk to Elizabeth about it. She felt that he still had feelings of guilt about everything, and that he struggled with them, as much as he tried to hide it. She knew her brother well, and could see that he hadn't forgiven himself. He still felt responsible.

Elizabeth's phone rang just as she was climbing into bed.

"Hello."

"Hello gorgeous," he said quietly, smiling into the phone.

"Hi there," she said, feeling her somber mood lighten a little.

"How was your movie?"

"Fine..._scary. _We loved it, and screamed like...well, like a couple of girls, I guess! It was good."

He laughed. "I don't know how you two can watch those things. I don't have the mettle for it."

"Baby," she said, teasingly.

"That's right, I'm a big baby at heart. How's Georgie? I talked to her earlier, she was looking forward to your 'girls night'."

"She was fine," Elizabeth replied, immediately feeling somber again. She wanted to talk to Will about their conversation, but not over the phone. It would have to wait until the weekend.

"Good. She enjoys hanging out with you."

"I enjoy 'hanging out' with her too," Elizabeth said, laughing at his choice of words. "Though, we don't 'hang out.' Guys do that. You and Charles 'hang out'."

He chuckled. "Pardon me...well, then, she enjoys doing whatever you girls do, whatever you want to call it." He tried to stifle a yawn.

Elizabeth heard it anyway. "Long day?" she asked.

"Yes. Very. Lots of meetings, mostly about California. I only have one quick conference call tomorrow, so I'll probably be heading back to the Cape by eleven or so. I thought I could take you to lunch, maybe meet you down in Woods Hole?"

He wanted to see her. He had last seen her on Tuesday night, at one of her softball games. Even though it had only been forty-eight hours since then, it felt like much longer.

"Actually, I have the day off...I thought I told you? It's supposed to be beautiful. I put in for a few Fridays off over the summer, to give myself long weekends. Tomorrow is one of them. Why don't you come here? We can be lazy on the beach."

The thought of seeing Elizabeth in her bikini and lounging with her on the beach was extremely appealing to Will. "Sounds perfect. I still have a suit there, right?"

"Yes, you do. You may as well just leave it here," she answered, as she conjured up the image of Will in his swim trunks. _Yum._

"Good idea," he said, smiling into the phone. "I'll go straight to your house. A lazy afternoon on the beach, with you...I can't think of anything better."

"Mmm. Me either. Will you call me in the morning?" she asked. She loved hearing his voice in the morning, waking up to it.

"I will. What time?" he asked.

"Umm...how about eight-thirty?" She wanted to get to the store to buy them something for lunch before he came, and possibly squeeze in a run and some laundry.

"Will you answer your phone?" he asked her, teasing.

"Yes, of course I will, because I'll know it's you."

He smiled into the phone. "I'll talk to you in the morning, babe. Sweet dreams."

"Goodnight Will. Sweet dreams."

As Elizabeth laid her phone down and snuggled into her bed, her mind kept replaying her conversation with Georgiana over and over. She was glad Georgiana had decided to confide in her, she only wished she had been able to offer some words of comfort, or some advice, anything. She was so caught off guard, though, by the whole horrible tale, that she really didn't know _what_ to say.

Her mind eventually drifted to other parts of their conversation, specifically the parts about Will. Georgiana had said that Will had never brought another woman to the house on the Cape.

She counted back in her head, and realized that they had been together for almost a month, and she had been there quite a bit, sometimes when he wasn't even there. Her heart had jumped a little when Georgiana had shared that with her. The other things that she had said...how much he cared about her, how happy he seemed...if anyone would know how Will really felt, it would be Georgie.

Maybe this wasn't just some...passing fancy. Maybe.

She lay in bed, reflecting. The month of June had flown by, and she enjoyed thinking back to the times she had spent with Will. She knew, without question, that she was becoming more enamored with him with each passing day. How could she not? He doted on her, treating her like she was the most important person in his world. He made her feel...wanted. Needed. Still, those niggling doubts persisted, and she didn't know how to dispel them, to quiet them.

She was incredibly attracted to him. He didn't even have to touch her to turn her insides to a pile of mush. He could look at her a certain way...with that intensity in his eyes...and she could feel herself drowning in him. When he did touch her, the feeling was indescribable. Every nerve in her body felt alive, her desire for him enveloping her.

Elizabeth was no fool, she knew the affect she had on him as well, and she wanted to give in to it, let herself be swept away, let her body make the decision for her...but she knew that when she did, there would be no turning back. When she gave him her body, she would be entrusting him with her heart as well, and she just wasn't ready to do that. Was she?

She yawned and closed her eyes, forcing herself to still her thoughts and go to sleep. She drifted off thinking about the fact that she would be seeing Will, would be wrapped up in his strong arms, in little more than twelve hours.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stretched out on her beach blanket, loving the feel of the warm sun on her skin. Will had called her promptly at eight-thirty, as he said he would, and she immediately hopped out of bed and started her day.<p>

It was a marathon sprint all morning; she went for a quick run, then came home and took a rinse in the shower. She threw on clothes, hopped in her jeep, dropped a load of laundry at the laundromat, ran to the grocery store and the bank while her clothes were washing, went back to the laundry to switch everything to the dryer, then ran home, put her groceries away, went back into town to go to the library, then back to the laundromat to get her now-dry load of clothes.

She was home by eleven-thirty, put away all of her laundry, then slipped on her bathing suit, lathered on some sunscreen, grabbed her iPod, and headed down to the beach. _One hour. He'll be here in one hour._

Will was zipping along the highway, almost to Falmouth, looking forward to the day ahead of him. He had brought a change of clothes, in case he and Elizabeth decided to do something tonight. That way, he could shower at her place, and avoid driving back to New Seabury. He had chatted with Georgiana and told her he'd see her later tonight.

He was anxious to see Elizabeth. After talking to Richard on the phone this morning, he knew that a trip to California was necessary. Richard had whittled his list of six candidates down to one. He'd found someone that he thought would be a good leader for RJD Design, and he wanted Will to sit in on an interview. Will also needed to give some face time at the office out there, as he hadn't been there in ages. He planned to fly out Monday morning, returning Friday.

He frowned at the thought. _Five days_. The Friday that he was returning would be the 2nd of July, so at least he would be back in time for July 4th festivities, and Elizabeth's birthday a few days after that. Still, the thought of not seeing her face for five days...he shook his head as he drove. _Unbearable._

He pulled into the small space next to her jeep, and walked up the stairs to her deck. Looking down to the beach, he saw her laying on her back in her stunning emerald green bikini, iPod on, fingers tapping out a rhythm on the blanket. He smiled to himself as he felt the now-familiar tug in his stomach...and slightly lower.

He found his swim trunks, got changed as quickly as he could, and headed down to the beach. He quietly circled around her until he was standing at her feet. He could have sworn she was sleeping, she was lying so perfectly still, even her fingers had stopped moving. Her lips were slightly parted, and for a second he thought she really had drifted off.

He knelt down, straddling her knees, trying to be sneaky. She must have felt the movement though, because her eyes flew open, she sat up, and her arms flew up and out, as if she was going to hit him.

"Oh!" Realizing it was Will, she yanked her earbuds out of her ears and immediately threw her arms around him, hugging him and pulling him back down to the blanket with her. He was laughing at her reaction as she hugged him, and he could feel her heart pounding.

She slapped him on the back. "You scared me! I thought you were a bug or something landing on me, I was ready to slap you!" she said, laughing.

"I am a bug, a fairly large one, at that." He kissed her and nipped at her neck. "I bite, too, so be careful."

Elizabeth giggled, then let out a huge sigh. "I'm so happy you're here."

Will smiled down at her. "I'm happy I'm here too." Her skin was warm from the sun, and she smelled like coconut. "You smell good enough to eat."

"Mm...Banana Boat. Probably doesn't taste as good as it smells."

"I'll let you know," he whispered, as he kissed and nipped along her jaw, down her neck, and further down her chest, between the two triangles of material that covered her breasts. He then kissed his way back up the other side, eventually reaching her lips, kissing her slowly but intensely.

Elizabeth sighed, and let her hands drift over his chest, down his stomach, and around to his back, holding him tightly. He was so warm, and he smelled wonderful. She sighed, wanting the moment to go on and on.

Slowly, Will released her, and rolled onto his back next to her. "Okay, it's way too soon for me to take a dip in the ocean, so I'm going to lay over here for a bit."

Elizabeth rolled up onto her side, facing him, and he turned to look at her. She reached out to stroke his face, smiling, feeling a sense of lightness now that he was here. They were content to just stare at each other for a while, until Will reached up to cover her hand with his, then turned it to place a warm kiss on her palm. They both sighed at the same time, then laughed at themselves.

"Are you hungry?" she asked him, knowing he usually ate very little for breakfast. "I did some shopping this morning, so I have a fully stocked kitchen."

"I am, a little. It can wait though. Can we just lay here for a bit?"

She smiled at him, and leaned down to kiss his irresistible mouth. "Sure," she said, as she lay back down on the blanket.

He held her hand, the thought of California weighing on his mind. He wanted to get the whole conversation out of the way.

He pulled her hand to his mouth for a kiss, then rolled up onto his side to face her, placing his other hand on her warm stomach. He smiled softly when he felt her skin quiver. Feeling himself getting distracted, he tried to focus on the task at hand.

"Elizabeth?"

"Mmm," she replied, quite content, enjoying the feel of his warm hand spanning her stomach.

"You know how I've been talking about going to California soon, to work on some business there?"

She turned her head to look at him, opening one eye. "Yes," she replied.

"I have to leave Monday."

"This Monday?" she asked.

"Mmhm. I have an early flight out of Logan."

"Oh," she replied quietly. "How long will you be gone for?"

His hand was making little circles on her stomach, and she reached up to place her hand over it, lacing her fingers through his.

"Five weeks," he replied seriously.

Her eyes flew open wide as she sat up. "Five weeks?" she repeated, staring at him, utterly shocked at what he had just said. "All this time you've been talking about it, I thought it was going to be a quick trip! Five weeks is not quick!"

"I know," he replied, sitting up and smiling at her, "but five days is. I'll be back in five days."

She closed her eyes and sighed loudly, wanting to hit him and hug him at the same time. She opened them again and glared at him.

"You're a jerk, you know that?" she said, only half seriously, as she reached out to shove him back toward the sand. It was like trying to shove a brick wall.

He laughed, pulling her into his arms. "I was just trying to put it into perspective, that's all. I leave Monday, and I'll be back on Friday."

"I think I can handle that," she said, "although, I'll _probably_ miss you...a little." Her eyes lit up as she teased him.

"Probably? A little?" He could have teased her back, but he took the opportunity to be serious. He leaned in close to her, locking his eyes on hers, and spoke quietly.

"I know I'll miss you, very very much, and I have no idea how I'll concentrate on anything while I'm there, because I'll be thinking of you constantly. I already know that those five days are going to feel more like five hundred."

She reached up to stroke his cheek, and kissed him softly, lingering at his lips. When she pulled away, she looked at him again, still stroking his cheek. "I'll miss you too. A lot." She smiled, and she knew it came out a little lopsided.

"Just promise me you'll come back, okay?" she whispered.

"I promise...I won't be able to get back here fast enough, trust me." He kissed her again, wrapping his arms around her, holding her close.

* * *

><p>After eating a light lunch and lounging on the beach for a few hours, they showered, then decided to head into town to walk along Main Street, enjoying the beautiful, clear evening. They knew that on Friday nights, different bands would play at the tiny park near the library, and of course, there were a lot of little shops to browse through. They decided they'd stop and eat somewhere eventually, as there were plenty of restaurants to choose from.<p>

They strolled leisurely down the crowded Main Street, holding hands, or with their arms around each others' waists. They stopped to look in windows, or sometimes go into a shop if something caught their fancy. Elizabeth spied a cute pair of flip flops in Touché, and dragged Will into the store so she could buy them. Of course, he insisted on buying them for her. She fought him on it at first, but then gave in, realizing it was not worth fighting him over a $15 pair of sandals.

As they walked out, he turned to her. "Don't you already have, like, twenty pairs of sandals, or flip flops, or whatever you call them?"

"Yes, probably at least that many," she said matter-of-factly. "What on earth does that have to do with anything? A girl can never have too many pairs of sandals and-or flip flops."

"But you're always barefoot anyway...you never wear shoes. I mean, you're wearing them now, because you have to, but if you could, you'd be barefoot all the time."

Elizabeth stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, raising one eyebrow, pretending to glare at him. "Your point?"

He chuckled and reached for her, pulling her to him. "No point. Forget it," he said, laughing as he saw the corners of her mouth turn up.

Their next stop was at The Black Dog, where Elizabeth insisted on buying Will a Black Dog

t-shirt or sweatshirt. She eyed the boxers and the boxer-briefs, but decided to play it safe and push him toward the shirts. He finally picked out a hunter-green colored sweatshirt, which he insisted on paying for himself. He then decided on a light-blue t-shirt as well, which she bought for him.

As they walked out of the store, they could hear the sounds of the music being played at the park, so they headed down to see the band. It was made up of young kids, who looked no more than high school age. Surprisingly, they were very good. They stood and listened for a while, Will standing behind Elizabeth, his arms wrapped around her waist, chin resting on her head. He leaned down to kiss her cheek, and felt her squeeze his arms tighter. They swayed to the music, and Will thought he'd stand there all night if they could stay just as they were. Elizabeth was completely relaxed, leaning back into him, and they fit together perfectly.

Eventually, though, they began feeling hungry, and decided to find a place to eat. They settled on Stone L'Oven, a fairly new restaurant that definitely had some of the best pizza in town. They split a Margarita pizza, and had a beer each.

Feeling full and happy, they wandered out about an hour later to listen to the new band that had taken the small stage in the park. These musicians were a little bit older, and their musical choices reflected their...'maturity'.

They chuckled as they saw a lot of older couples dancing. They made it look so effortless; _that_ _generation really knows how to dance_, Elizabeth thought. They didn't just stand there and shuffle from side to side, they actually had steps that they followed. Soon, other couples got up and were dancing as well, some doing the typical shuffle, and Elizabeth watched them all, smiling to herself as she thought about the first time that she and Will danced together.

As if reading her mind, Will tugged on her hand, and she turned to look at him as he began to lead her over to the lawn, where the other couples were dancing. He had that endearing little grin playing on his lips, his eyes lit with mischief, and she found herself staring at his gorgeous face.

"Dance, Miss Bennet?"

She felt herself blush slightly. Not trusting her voice, she smiled and nodded, and he laughed softly at her reaction to him, as he set down their bags and pulled her into his arms.

She could not compare their first two dances to this one. At Charles's cookout, they hadn't even really known each other, so they had not danced too closely together, keeping a polite distance, feeling a tad bit awkward.

Now, they were comfortable with each other, so easy together. At first, they danced closely, wrapped up in each other, smiling softly and enjoying the excuse to be pressed up against one another. Then, Will began to be silly...Elizabeth laughed as he attempted to dip her, then twirl her under his arm. Her laughter was infectious, and soon, he was laughing as well, enjoying the light moment.

The band started to play a medley of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" and "What A Wonderful World", and Elizabeth's breath caught. She had the medley on her iPod, and it was a favorite of hers. Will pulled her close to him again, bending his head down to her ear so he could sing along quietly with the music, wrapping his arms tight around her waist.

_I see trees of green and  
><em>_Red roses too  
><em>_I watch them bloom for  
><em>_Me and you  
><em>_And I think to myself  
><em>_What a wonderful world..._

Inexplicably, Elizabeth felt tears prick her eyes as his voice washed over her, giving her goosebumps. Sometimes, everything about Will felt so _right, _it was completely overwhelming, and she couldn't imagine being with anyone but him.

All these years, she had taken her insecurities and her fear of emotional involvement and wrapped them around herself like a blanket. Now, this wonderful person had come into her life and was slowly and gently tugging at the blanket...why couldn't she just let it fall away?

He held her tightly as they danced, and when the song ended, he leaned back to look into her eyes, smiling lightly, the smile very rapidly turning to a look of confusion.

"Hey, what's the matter?" he asked softly, noticing the wetness in her eyes.

"Nothing is the matter," she answered, smiling up at him, "honestly. I'm fine. I just love that song...I loved hearing you sing it. I'm just being a mushy girl, that's all."

"Are you sure?" Will asked, still looking slightly puzzled.

"I'm sure. Really. That's all it is." She stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, cupping his face as she did so, stroking his cheeks with her thumbs.

He covered her hands with his, and as they broke apart from each other, she could still see a look of concern lingering on his face.

"I'm _fine_, I swear," she said firmly, smiling at him, determined to get him back into his playful mood. "Come on, we need to go to Ben and Bill's. Time for ice cream."

He smiled back at her, relaxing, realizing she really was fine. "Ice cream it is."

They walked casually down the street, hand in hand, and as Will glanced at Elizabeth, she turned to smile up at him, squeezing his hand tighter. He released her hand so he could wrap his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close to him and kissing her on the head. He felt her arm wrap snugly around his waist. He knew right then, without question, that he was slowly relinquishing ownership of his heart. Bit by bit, she was taking it from him.

He smiled, realizing, with a small amount of shock, that he was fooling himself. She wasn't taking his heart from him; he was giving it to her.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you're enjoying their progress...slow and steady wins the race! Please send along a review! Thanks!<strong>

"_Somewhere Over The Rainbow/What A Wonderful World" medley (Elizabeth's version) by the late, great Israel Kamakawiwo'ole _


	11. Chapter 11

_Thanks again for all reviews! Keep 'em coming. Our happy couple is about to have their first little spat...let's see what happens..._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

After their "night on the town," Will and Elizabeth decided to spend the next day driving down Cape, taking scenic Route 6A from Sandwich, going as far as Eastham; they would find some place there to have dinner, then head back to New Seabury. There were plenty of places to stop along their travels; quaint little shops were scattered along the way, and plenty of scenic spots for Elizabeth to stop and shoot some photos.

It was also a long enough drive for them to have time for a serious conversation, so Elizabeth decided it would be a good time to talk about Georgiana, and what she had shared with Elizabeth. As much as she would like to keep the day light and fun, she wanted to let Will know that Georgiana had confided in her.

Elizabeth arrived at Will's house just after eleven, and Georgiana let her in.

"Where are you off to today?" she asked Elizabeth, eyes dancing. "Will made it sound like some grand adventure."

"For him, it might as well be," Elizabeth replied, rolling her eyes. "He has never traveled Route 6A in all his years on the Cape. It's beautiful, full of antique shops, farms, old houses...it's one of my favorite places to take a drive when I have the time to do it."

"Sounds nice," Georgiana replied. She pointed over her shoulder as the faint sounds of music came from down the hall. "He's in his decompression chamber, if you want to go interrupt him."

Elizabeth smiled at the now familiar joke. "Thanks Georgie."

She could hear Will playing away, on an electric guitar today, although the volume was low. Soon she heard him singing quietly, and she paused in the doorway, watching him as he stood with his back to the door. He was moving his body slightly and tapping one bare foot, and after a few minutes silently observing him, she walked up behind him and pinched his bottom, making him jump. The amplifier let out a discordant squeal.

He spun around to face her. "What are you trying to do, kill me?" he said jokingly, happy to set his eyes on her face again.

"No, just give you a little jolt. What was that song you were playing?"

He leaned down to kiss her once...then again...and again. She playfully swatted his bottom. "It's called 'Like a Stone,'" he finally answered.

"A little dark for you."

He shrugged. "Yeah, it's a little dark. Great guitar piece though." He set his guitar back in it's stand and turned off the amplifier.

"Hmm. Cool," she said nonchalantly, as she took the opportunity to look around his office. She realized she had only poked her head in here a couple of times, but had never really looked around. She was curious about his work space.

"Yes. Cool," Will replied, mimicking her tone, watching as she tried to be casual about checking everything out. He grinned as she walked around, hands clasped behind her back, taking everything in. She looked adorable in her short khaki skirt and light pink v-neck t-shirt. Her hair was up, and he was already itching to undo it.

She had stopped over at his desk, and he could see she was staring at the pictures he kept there. He walked over to her, and realized which one, in particular, had caught her attention.

Elizabeth stared at the picture, next to the one of her, on Will's desk. It was one of the pictures she had taken of him and Georgiana out on the jetty, on the day of their infamous meeting. It was in a pretty little silver frame.

She turned to look at him. "I thought you threw those out?" she asked him softly.

He tilted his head a little as he took in the expression on her face. "Why would I have done that?"

She shrugged slightly. "I don't know...I just assumed you had. Back then. That day, when you came to get them, I thought you wanted to get rid of them."

He sighed, smiling softly at her. "Do you know what they say about people who _assume_, Miss Bennet?" he asked, unable to resist, then laughing at her evil-eye glare.

He paused, turning serious again. "I couldn't throw them out...they're beautiful pictures." He reached up to stroke her cheek. "I had them in my desk drawer for a while. I took them out and framed them the day after our first date."

She looked at him in disbelief. "You did?"

He laughed gently. "Yes, I did. There was no reason to throw them out, right? I couldn't. I have one in here, Georgie has one, I have one in Boston...and I gave the other one to Mrs. R, actually. She loves it."

He stood behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders, and she leaned back into him, reaching up to cover his hands with hers. She turned her head to look up at him.

"Why didn't you tell me you kept them?"

It was his turn to shrug. "I don't know. I would have, if I had known that you thought I threw them out, I guess."

"I'm glad you kept them. I really do think they came out nicely."

He turned her around, and leaned down to kiss her lightly. "Of course they did, because you took them."

She rolled her eyes as she laughed at him. "If only it were that easy." She reached up to kiss him again. "Are you ready to go?"

He nodded once. "I am. Just let me grab my wallet...shoes...keys..." he started reciting, as he looked around for everything he needed.

Elizabeth watched him as he tracked everything down, admiring how he looked in his new Black Dog t-shirt. _Blue really is his color_, she thought, as she remembered all the times she had seen him in some shade of blue...especially the navy blue swim trunks he wore yesterday. She grinned at the image.

They decided to take her Jeep, and removed the top, taking advantage of the beautiful day. Will asked her to take her hair down, but she only laughed as she adamantly refused. The only thing that kept playing through her mind was the scene from _Bridget Jones Diary,_ when Bridget had ridden in a convertible, and had shown up at a hotel with her hair sticking up in every possible direction.

She laughed at the thought, and when Will looked at her curiously, she only said, "Trust me, it has to stay up."

* * *

><p>They meandered down Route 6A, starting in Sandwich. They stopped at Titcomb's Bookshop, and made a side trip to the Sandwich Boardwalk, walking along and reading some of the planks that were inscribed with various words.<p>

Will asked Elizabeth about the planks, and she told him that when Hurricane Bob hit in 1991, it had completely demolished the original boardwalk. To raise funds for another, the town allowed people to pay for individual planks, and in turn, those people could have something inscribed on the plank. Some had funny sayings, like 'Meet Here' or 'Bored? Walk.' Others had family names or business names.

The boardwalk led out to Town Neck Beach, which was crowded today, and they stood for a while admiring the view, Elizabeth taking a few pictures, before they walked back to the Jeep. They drove on through the village of Barnstable, admiring all the large, old homes that were nestled among the towering trees.

Their next stop, Elizabeth had declared, would be at Scargo Tower in Dennis.

"Hmm. Another tower? Do you have a thing for towers?" Will asked, reaching over to place a warm hand on her leg, enjoying the feel of her soft skin under his palm.

She felt the touch of his hand all the way to the pit of her stomach.

"No, I don't have a _thing_ for towers...it's just a coincidence that I'm taking you to another," she said, laughing. "This one isn't so private, and I certainly won't be babbling on incessantly about houseboats."

"Oh, that's right, houseboats. That's what we were talking about that day," he said, turning briefly to smile teasingly at her. "That was quite a conversation we had. About houseboats."

His hand slid up slightly higher on her thigh, and the little coil of sensation that was jumping around in her belly moved lower, and she closed her eyes, letting herself enjoy the feeling. He moved his fingers in small circles, and part of her wanted to tell him to pull the Jeep over so she could climb onto his lap and attack him. But...the cautious side, the side that was still not willing to cave, the one not able to trust and let go...that's the side that always won out.

She reached down with one hand, placing it on top of his, softly stroking his hand and his fingers. She turned her head to look at him. He was focused on the road, but he was smiling, and she realized just how lucky she was to have him. _I__f I really do have him_.

They arrived at the tower, and Elizabeth decided that when they got back in the Jeep, she would talk to him about Georgiana.

The views from the old cobblestone tower were fantastic. It wasn't very big, only about thirty feet tall, but it was perched on Scargo Hill, which was fairly high, giving the tower a beautiful vantage point, overlooking Cape Cod Bay. Once again, Elizabeth took several photos, including one of Will in profile, as he gazed out at the ocean.

When they climbed back into the Jeep and got themselves situated, he immediately reached over to rest his hand on her thigh again, slowly moving his thumb in a little circle, making her skin tingle. She decided to dive right in to the conversation. She wasn't nervous about talking to him, knew there was no reason to be; just the same, it wasn't a conversation she was looking forward to. It was a difficult topic to bring up.

She looked over at him, so relaxed, hair blowing in the wind, looking quite gorgeous in his aviator glasses. Sighing to herself, she silently wished she could put it off for another day and not put a damper on this one, but knew that sooner was better than later.

She reached over to turn off the radio, and turned to look at him.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," she said seriously.

Will was caught slightly off guard by the tone in her voice. "Okay...what do you want to talk about?" he asked, having no idea what was on her mind.

"Thursday night, when I went to watch the movie with Georgiana?" she asked, watching him nod, "She told me about...everything. Everything that happened to her."

Will swallowed, nodding his head. He turned to look at her briefly, trying to gauge the expression on her face, which he had no luck doing. He felt his heart pound slightly.

"Okay," he said uncertainly, not really knowing what else to say.

"She said it was alright for me to tell you. She _wanted_ me to tell you, I think. She's very concerned about you."

His expression tightened. "She doesn't need to be concerned about me," he said shaking his head. "I'm fine."

"She doesn't think you are," she said, keeping her voice soft. "She's worried that you still feel some sense of responsibility about what happened to her...that maybe you feel guilty."

He turned to look at her quickly, and Elizabeth was somewhat shocked by the look on his face. She had seen it before, that blank mask.

"She has no idea how I feel," he said, his voice flat. He lifted his hand from her leg and placed it back on the steering wheel. "What do you think? Do you think I feel guilty? Or responsible?"

Elizabeth was surprised by his question and his tone of voice. "I don't know how you feel, obviously. We've never talked about it... that's why I'm bringing it up. I thought you might want to talk about it, I thought it might help."

"I don't, and it won't," he said, the tone of his voice clearly letting her know the conversation was over.

She turned away from him and looked out the window, unsure of what to say, her stomach clenching uncomfortably.

Will stared straight ahead, not even sure about where he was supposed to be driving to. He slowly loosened his grip on the steering wheel, and concentrated on calming down. He felt ambushed. He hadn't expected that Elizabeth would want to talk about _that_. He didn't want to talk about it, at all.

They drove along in silence, and Elizabeth had a flashback to how Will had spoken to her the first time they met, on the beach, and realized that she felt now as she did then; completely confused, and slightly angry.

Not knowing what else to say, she asked if he was hungry, still refusing to look at him, not wanting to see that expression on his face again.

Will glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. He knew, instantly, that he had messed up.

"I am a little hungry, I guess," he said quietly, taking a deep breath. "You?"

Elizabeth shrugged, still not looking at him. "There's a place up here, we can pull off."

He looked ahead to where she had gestured.

"Captain Frosty's? Are we getting ice cream?" he asked, still speaking quietly.

"I'm getting fried clams. I don't know what you're getting," she said, and Will could hear from her tone that she was annoyed.

He turned in and found a parking space in the shade, away from some of the other cars. As soon as he put it in park, she turned to open the door. He reached out to lightly grab her arm. She stopped moving, but kept her back to him.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. She said nothing.

"Elizabeth, please, can you at least look at me?" he asked.

She did as he asked, and tried to keep her face a blank. She didn't want him to see how much he had affected her with his brusque words and attitude.

He sighed. "I can't talk to you about this...I can't." He shook his head, staring out the windshield. "I wish I could, but I can't."

She finally spoke, keeping her voice soft. "Why? Georgiana is worried about you. You and I...we talk about everything, pretty much, don't we?"

"Obviously not everything," he said, once again in that sharp tone. He instantly regretted the words and the fact that he had actually let them fly out of his mouth. He watched as she looked away from him again, staring straight ahead. _Cheap shot, Will, _he berated himself.

"I'm not hungry. Let's go," she said flatly.

He sighed, knowing he had just made the situation ten times worse. "Where are we going?" he asked, not really having a clue where he was.

"Home."

* * *

><p>The ride back to New Seabury was long and silent. Will drove, never taking his eyes from the road, while Elizabeth stared out her window at the passing scenery, not really seeing any of it.<p>

He was internally berating himself, but at the same time, he was trying to justify his reaction. He was completely caught off guard. How could he have a conversation with Elizabeth about what happened to Georgiana? Oh, they could discuss the things that actually _happened,_ he could talk about that. He didn't want to talk about how he _felt_ about what happened. The guilt, the remorse, the pain...the anger. The intense anger that he felt every time his mind wandered there...seeing those images, burned into his memory, and that man's face, that smirk...he could feel the affect now, the thrumming in his ears and the pounding in his chest. He took a deep breath, willing himself to calm down.

When he was with Elizabeth, everything was light. Beautiful. All was right with the world. He wanted to do everything in his power to keep it that way. He didn't want to share the bad things with her. He knew it was stupid to feel that way, but it was how he felt.

When they finally pulled into the driveway, he turned off the Jeep and opened the door to climb out. Elizabeth sat, unmoving. He walked around to the passenger side and opened her door, but still she sat, not looking at him, and not making any move to get out.

"Elizabeth, come into the house," he requested quietly.

"I don't think that's a good idea. I should just go," she said, almost whispering.

"No, you should come in. We need to talk." He could hear the hurt and the anger in her voice.

"No, you made it very clear that we _don't_ need to talk. Or, should I say, that _you_ don't need to talk," she said, then sighed. "I need to go."

He held up his hand, jingling her keys. "I have these, and I'm going inside."

She looked at him, and her eyes shot sparks. She was clearly ticked off. At the same time, he knew she couldn't go anywhere without the keys, so she'd have to come in eventually. He turned and walked toward the house. Just before he reached the front door, he heard the passenger door slam shut, and heard her determined footsteps coming up behind him.

"Why do you want me to come in the house? Do you think we'll just have a normal day now, and forget that the past hour and a half even happened?" She was completely exasperated with him.

"No, I don't think that." He stopped and turned to her, reaching out a hand for one of hers, which she promptly pulled away. He sighed, looking first up at the sky, then down at her. He knew he'd have to talk to her. He couldn't put it off, not with his trip to California looming.

"Elizabeth, please," he said quietly, holding out his hand again, "come in the house with me. I'll try, but that's all I can promise you."

She looked at him, trying to remain angry, but really just wanting to wrap her arms around him and reassure him. Instead, she held out her hand, grasped his, and let herself be led into the house.

* * *

><p>It was mid afternoon, and before they sat to talk, Will decided they both needed to eat. He walked into the kitchen, and returned with a sandwich, cut in half, some fruit, and two bottles of water. They both walked out onto the deck, and as they were sitting down, Georgiana came bounding down from another part of the house, coming out onto the deck to greet them.<p>

"You guys are back early! I thought you were having dinner down Cape?" she said, looking from Will to Elizabeth. As she looked, she realized something wasn't quite right. "What's wrong?" she asked quietly.

"Nothing is wrong, Georgie. We just had a change in plans, that's all," Will said, not quite looking at Georgiana when he spoke.

"No, something's up," she said, looking squarely at Elizabeth, who suddenly found something very interesting about her half of the sandwich.

Suddenly, it was as if someone flipped a switch in Georgiana's brain. "She told you, didn't she? That we talked?" she asked Will.

He nodded, chewing his food slowly. He swallowed, and took a sip of water. "She did," he said quietly.

"I thought you would be happy that I confided in her...that I was able to talk to someone about it."

"I am happy, very happy, that you talked to Elizabeth about it. I'm glad you feel you can trust her."

For some reason, that last statement didn't sit right with Elizabeth, and she thought she saw meaning between the lines.

"Is that it?" she asked, looking at Will, "You don't trust me?"

"That's not what I said," Will said quietly but firmly, shaking his head. "Don't put words in my mouth."

"Well, that's what it sounded like. You're glad she trusts me, yet obviously you must not, if you don't want to, or _can't_, talk to me about something."

"I trust you completely," Will said, staring straight into her eyes, his gaze and voice unwavering. "This is not a trust issue for me at all."

Elizabeth heard the implied meaning behind the words, heard what he was saying to her, and found herself unable to respond.

"Fitzwilliam," Georgiana said quietly, "it will do you good to talk to someone about what you've been through, about how you feel. It hasn't only been about me. It's affected both of us."

"Fitzwilliam?" Elizabeth asked, looking confused.

There was a momentary silence. Georgiana's hand flew up to her mouth, and Will dropped his head into his hands. "Way to go, Georgie."

"Who is...is your name Fitzwilliam?" Elizabeth asked seriously, looking between brother and sister.

"Yes, it is," Will said, raising his head and looking slightly sheepish.

"How is it that I didn't know this?" Elizabeth asked, looking mildly shocked.

"I don't know...I guess its never come up?" he answered, phrasing it more like a question than a statement.

Elizabeth nodded. "Okay." All of a sudden, she felt an irrational burst of anger._ How the frig do you date a man for a month and not know his real name?_

Will, seeing her eyes begin to blaze anew, just muttered, "Oh, God," and dropped his head back into his hands.

"I can't believe she didn't know," Georgiana said, barely containing her laughter, her eyes lighting up. "You said you would tell her, we talked about it right after you started seeing her."

"It never came up," Will repeated. "I kind of forgot about it."

Elizabeth, seeing the look of shock mixed with amusement on Georgiana's face, and the look of extreme discomfort on Will's, began to see the absurdity of the situation. Just like that, her anger was gone.

"Your full name, please?" she asked, trying to be serious.

Will sighed and looked up at her. He sat up and dropped his hands to the table. "Fitzwilliam Robert Darcy," he said somberly.

"Thanks for telling me," she said flatly, teasing him with a raise of her brows.

"What's your middle name?" he asked her, realizing that after all this time, he didn't know.

"Rose."

He smiled at her, thinking that her middle name couldn't be more perfect for her.

"It's a beautiful name," he said. He looked down at the table, then back up at her. "I'm sorry I didn't make it a point to tell you...I didn't think it was a big deal."

She reached over to cover his hand with hers. "It's _not_ a big deal," she said. "You're still just Will to me."

"Just Will?" he said, smiling slightly at her.

She nodded, trying to return his smile. "Just Will. Believe me...for right now, that's enough."

* * *

><p>They made their way out to the adirondack chairs, leaving Georgiana back at the house so they could talk privately. Will knew he needed to talk to Elizabeth, at least a little. He moved the chairs so they were right next to each other, facing the beach. They settled in, feeling the breeze coming in off the water, both trying to figure out how to start the conversation. Elizabeth decided to wait and let Will take the lead.<p>

After a few minutes, he cleared his throat, feeling somewhat ready to talk, but still not knowing where he should begin. He looked at her as she calmly stared out at the ocean, watching the curls that had come loose from her ponytail swing in the breeze. He listened to the soothing sound of the surf in the background, and knew that this was the perfect place for them to talk.

He reached out to wrap one curl around his finger, encouraging her to turn to him, which she did.

He spoke softly. "I'm sorry about how today has turned out. I really am." He paused, playing with her curl, trying to find the right words. "I shouldn't have spoken to you the way I did. I feel awful about it. You did nothing to deserve that kind of treatment, and I am truly sorry."

He looked her straight in the eye as he spoke, his gaze unwavering. She knew he was sincere.

He swallowed and closed his eyes, making himself reign in his emotions.

Elizabeth thought that she saw his eyes begin to water, but he quickly looked away, dropping his hand away from her. She could see that he was struggling, and decided to speak.

"I'm sorry too...for bringing the whole thing up so unexpectedly. You didn't see it coming, I know that, and that's my fault. My timing could have been better."

He shook his head lightly, but didn't say anything, so she continued. "I can't make you talk to me about this, or about anything, for that matter. If you don't feel like you can yet, then it's okay."

Part of her felt awful, because she knew she wasn't living up to her own statement. _How can I expect him to confide in me, when I won't confide in him?_

She reached over to pick up his hand and laced her fingers with his. He opened his eyes and looked down at their entwined hands, and lifted hers to his mouth, kissing it softly, then rested his cheek on it, closing his eyes and holding it there as he took a deep breath.

Her heart lurched at the tender gesture, and at that moment, she knew she was falling in love with him. She swallowed and looked away, back toward the ocean, trying to calm her racing heart. Despite the situation, despite what was going on at this very moment, she knew she was right where she wanted to be, where she needed to be...right where she was _supposed_ to be.

"I'm just...so angry." He spoke quietly, and Elizabeth thought for a second that she had imagined hearing it. She turned to look at him, but remained silent, giving him the chance to continue.

He stared straight ahead, holding her hand tightly.

"The guilt...the grief...the pain of all of it. I can deal with that." He shook his head. "I can't let go of the anger. I don't know what to do with it. I have nowhere to direct it, nowhere to let it go."

He turned to her, and she could see his eyes had welled up again. "Until today...I let a small sliver of it escape, and I wound up hurting you. The last person on this earth that I want to hurt." He shook his head. "I _don't_ want to push you away, I _do_ want to talk to you, but..." He stopped, not knowing what else to say. After a moment, he started to speak again, his voice a little stronger now.

"He ruined her. He took away everything that she was...confident, happy, full of life, full of love. She trusted people. Always saw the best in everyone. Despite suffering so many losses...she glowed, and just like that," he snapped his fingers, "she was gone, and I was left with the shell of my sister." He sighed, then went on. "First my mother...then my father...now her too? That's all I kept thinking. She was gone too. It was like he killed her."

The pain on his face, so apparent, made Elizabeth want to hold him in her arms and take care of him.

"She's not gone, though...she's coming back, do you see it?" Elizabeth spoke softly, and he turned to look at her, one tear making a track down his cheek. She reached out to gently wipe it away with her free hand.

"She's healing. You have to heal with her. He didn't kill her. She's here, and she's fighting to take her life back. It's going to take time, but she'll get there. As long as she has you, and Charles, and Mrs. R, she knows she'll get there."

"And you," he said quietly. "Now she has you, too."

Once again, Elizabeth's heart lurched. "Yes, she has me too."

"I know I have to let the anger go...but it's hard. I see those images...I see her pain, and I relive it all. I think I've let go of the guilt, and the feeling of being responsible...Charles has helped me understand that there was no way I could have stopped what happened. She wasn't out at some random party, with a bunch of questionable people. She thought she was safe, I thought she was safe. I knew those people, I knew her friends."

"Is that really what you feel guilty about?" Elizabeth asked him quietly.

He stopped, staring at her. "Not entirely, no." He looked away for a brief moment, then back at her. "She told you. I thought she had..." His voice trailed off, and he closed his eyes. "The guilt I feel about that will never go away. She says she doesn't blame me for thinking that. How could she not? Her own brother, who claims to know her better than anyone, and I believed the lie that those photos told." He shook his head repeatedly. "I'll never forgive myself for that...I can't. I'll never forget the look on her face when I confronted her with those...pictures. When I...I basically...accused her of doing those things..." His voice slipped away again, and his lips formed a tight line.

He stood up suddenly and walked away, toward the beach. Elizabeth let him go, knowing he needed space at the moment. She watched him walk across the lawn to the sand. He passed through the gate, headed down to the water's edge and stood there, hands in his pockets, staring out at the ocean for a long while. She got up from the chair and slowly headed in that direction, watching him.

She had just passed through the gate when he turned to look back. Slowly, he walked back up the beach toward her, and when he reached her, he silently held out his arms, and she stepped into them. They didn't talk, they just stood there, holding each other tightly.

After a while, he spoke, still holding her. "I'm so, so sorry."

"Shh. It's okay."

"No, it's not...as much as you say it is, I know it's not."

They slowly released each other, and Will leaned down to kiss her, gently holding her face, wanting to tell her how sorry he was, how much she meant to him, with that one kiss.

As they broke apart, she looked up at him, her green eyes bright with unshed tears.

"You and Georgiana need a night at home together. You need to tell her how you feel, how you really feel. She loves you...you're everything to her. Talk to her. Tonight. Okay?"

He sighed. "I wanted to spend this weekend with you. This is not what I had envisioned, believe me."

"Well, if you want, we can see each other tomorrow, okay? My whole day belongs to you."

"Promise?"

"Yes. Do you promise to talk to Georgie tonight? _Really_ talk?"

"Yes. I'll try...that's all I can promise, is that I'll try."

She smiled up at him. "That's good enough for me."

He hugged her again. "I'm sorry, about today..."

She interrupted him. "I told you, its okay."

"But it's _not_ okay...I hated that look on your face, and I don't want to be responsible for putting it there, ever again. I only want to make you smile." He grinned a little, and reached to stroke her cheek. "I want to leave all the dark, ugly stuff out, and just surround you with all the good stuff." He smiled a little more when she rolled her eyes. "I know it's unrealistic, but it's a nice thought just the same, isn't it?"

"It's a very nice thought."

He took her hand as they started to make their way up the lawn, back to the house.

"I would say that you usually do make me smile. You're very good at that," she said, squeezing his hand.

"So are you," he said softly, feeling like he had so much more to say...like something was there, waiting to be expressed. He could feel it hovering around in his subconscious.

As they walked into the house, Georgiana came out of the kitchen, looking at them expectantly.

Will looked uncertainly at Elizabeth, then to Georgiana. He cleared his throat as he looked at her. "I thought maybe I would stay home tonight. We need...we should talk. If you want to talk."

Georgiana nodded, looking at him seriously. "We do...I do. Of course. I'm not going anywhere."

"I'll just walk Elizabeth out." he said quietly.

Elizabeth gave Georgiana a reassuring hug. "We'll talk soon, okay? I'll come over some night this week."

"Okay," Georgiana said, giving her an extra squeeze. "Thank you," she whispered, so only Elizabeth could hear. Elizabeth squeezed back.

"Bye Georgie."

"Bye Lizzy."

Will walked her out to her Jeep, and found himself wanting to apologize again, but he knew that Elizabeth would just shush him. He needed her to understand how sorry he was.

Elizabeth could see it in his eyes, and for a moment, it was like she _could_ read his mind.

"I told you, it's okay...we're okay. Call me later so you can tell me goodnight." She smiled up at him.

His face softened, and he leaned down to kiss her slowly, not wanting to let her go. He lowered his head to her shoulder, turning his face toward her neck, breathing her in, pulling her close to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist, letting him hold her, hugging him back.

"I'll call you...probably more than once," he said, laughing softly.

His breath tickled her, and goosebumps spread all over her body.

"More than once is okay with me. Call as many times as you like."

He lifted his head, smiling down at her, and turned to open her door. "Okay." He stroked her cheek. "Bye Elizabeth."

"Bye Will," she said, reaching up for one last kiss.

As he watched her drive away, he was filled with a sense of longing. _She shouldn't be leaving, _he thought. _She belongs here. With me._

* * *

><p>Elizabeth tried to sort through her thoughts on the drive home. It was still early, not even dinner time, but for some reason, she felt exhausted. Her mind kept forcing itself back to one comment in particular that Will had made while they were driving.<p>

"_Obviously, not everything," _he had said, when she mentioned the two of them talking about things. That one comment from him spoke volumes. He knew she was hiding something, that she was keeping part of herself locked away, and yet here she was, almost demanding that he share an entire part of himself that he wasn't ready to share yet. What gave her the right? How could she expect him to trust her, to put those fragile feelings in her hands, when she wouldn't do the same?

Was it anger at the immediate situation that made him say that, was he just lashing out? Or did he really mean it? Insecurity was rearing its ugly head. She didn't expect him to share _everything_ with her, but she hoped that he would share the important things, the things that affected him the most, whether good or bad.

She knew, if she dug deep enough into her subconscious, she could trace the insecurity back to Jason, and the way that part of her life had ended. Sighing, she forced her mind away from the past.

Although she did want Will to confide in her and trust her, what she really hoped was that he would talk to Georgie and confide in her; if anything was to come of all the talking they did today, she hoped that was it. They had to open up to each other; Elizabeth knew how important his relationship with his sister was to him, and opening up to her would only strengthen it.

She pulled up to her house, parked her Jeep and turned off the engine, and sat staring straight ahead. This was not how this day was supposed to end. She had planned on showing Will the beauty of Coast Guard Beach, and First Encounter Beach, and they were going to have lobster at Arnold's...she sighed, finally climbing out of her Jeep. _Another day_.

She settled in at home, puttering around, cleaning and straightening up, just to keep occupied. At around six, she made herself a small salad for dinner, and decided to keep busy by reviewing some things for work. Her mind kept wandering, away from her laptop, to Will and Georgiana.

Finally, at seven-thirty, she closed her laptop and went to sit outside on her deck, letting the sound of the waves relax her. Twenty minutes later, as the sun was getting ready to set, her cell phone rang, and she was relieved to see Will's name on the caller ID.

"Hi Will," she answered, somewhat tentatively.

"Hi," he said quietly.

"How are you?" she asked, concern evident in her voice.

"I'm fine...we're both fine. We talked. A lot."

He didn't elaborate, and she didn't want to make him rehash everything now. She just wanted to make sure he was okay.

"You sound tired," she said softly.

"I am. Who knew talking could be so exhausting?" He paused. "I want to tell you about everything, I do...I'm just too wiped out right now."

"That's okay, I understand. I just wanted to make sure you're alright. We'll talk tomorrow."

There was a brief silence, then he spoke again.

"I'm really sorry about today, about the way I treated you...the way I snapped at you. It wasn't fair to you...I'm still mad at myself about it."

"You already apologized, and I already accepted your apology. Like I said, I shouldn't have sprung all of that on you. It's my fault too."

"No, it's not your fault. You were looking out for Georgiana, you were concerned. I know that." He sighed. "You had a whole day planned for us, and I basically ruined it. I could have handled everything differently...and now I leave the day after tomorrow, and I'll be gone for five days -"

Elizabeth interrupted him. "William...I'll see you tomorrow, we'll have the whole day together," she said, trying to reassure him. "We can make that drive any time."

"I know we can," he replied, "I just wish I could rewind the day, and do it over again."

"Well, you can't, so just let it go, okay?" she said gently.

"I will...for now. I promise I'll make it up to you though, okay?"

She smiled. "Okay...I'll hold you to that."

He chuckled softly. "I'm sure you will."

"Are you going to tell me goodnight?" she asked softly.

"As a matter of fact, I was thinking how nice it would be to kiss you goodnight right now. I'm very tempted to drive to your house..."

She laughed. "You will do no such thing. You can kiss me good morning tomorrow...that will have to do."

He sighed. "You're right...I actually think I'm going to go to bed. I feel drained. But I'll take you up on the good morning kiss...what time can I come over?"

"What time do you want to come over?"

_Now_, he thought, but instead said, "How about ten? Maybe we can go for a walk on the bike path, then play on the beach for a while...have a nice, quiet day...does that sound okay?"

"Mmm...sounds great. I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"I guess you will. Goodnight beautiful...sweet dreams."

She smiled. "Goodnight Will. Sweet dreams."

Will hung up the phone and felt suddenly bereft. He wished the thought of driving to Elizabeth's had never entered his head...now it was all he could think about. He shoved the idea to the back of his mind and focused on the fact that he would see her tomorrow.

He was sitting in his office, staring at her picture, feeling the comfort that her eyes brought him, even though he was only looking at an image, which was nowhere near as satisfying as gazing at the real thing.

He got up and grabbed a guitar, one of his acoustics, and sat down to play a little, which always helped to get his thoughts in order.

* * *

><p>After Elizabeth had left, he had walked back into the house to find Georgiana waiting for him in the great room. They sat at opposite ends of the large couch, turned to face each other. At first, neither knew how to start the conversation, until Georgie asked exactly what had happened with Elizabeth.<p>

"She wanted to talk to me about you," Will said. "I got upset, and took it out on her." He paused, looking down at his hands. "I was a complete ass."

"She was only trying to help you...and indirectly, trying to help me. I'm worried about you. You won't talk to me about what happened."

Will sighed. "It's hard, Georgie."

"I know it is. It's hard for me too, but we need to do it. Will you try? Please?"

At that moment, he decided he would. He took a deep breath, and started.

"I guess I need to start at the beginning." He paused, trying to find the right words, and thought about what he had said to Elizabeth. "When all of that horrible stuff happened to you...I felt like I had lost you, like you were taken from me."

He stared at his hands. "I couldn't bear the thought of losing you too. He took you from me...that's all I could think about. You were all I had left. I was terrified."

"But I wasn't taken, I'm still here-"

"But you were, to me. You were gone. There was no life in your eyes. You wouldn't come out of your room. You wouldn't talk, you wouldn't eat. It's only been a month or two since you started coming back around." He shook his head. "I didn't know what to do. I felt like I lost you."

"I had no idea you felt that way...I wish you had said something to me."

"Why, so you could see how selfish I was? I should have been helping you get through it, and instead, I wallowed in self-pity and grief. I didn't think you wanted my help...I thought you would never forgive me for what I thought...when I saw..." He couldn't finish his sentence. He lowered his head once again, trying to fight the tears that were threatening, wanting to keep them in check.

Georgiana scooted over next to him, taking his hand and holding it in hers. He looked up at her, saw the tears rolling down her cheeks, and couldn't stop his own from finally falling.

"You have nothing to be forgiven for. I've told you that, and I mean it." She reached over to hug him, and they held each other for a minute, each sniffling.

Finally, they sat back, both wiping cheeks and taking deep breaths.

"I let you down," Will said quietly. "At that moment, seeing those pictures...I lost faith in you. I was convinced that you were not the person I thought you were. How could I think that? I should have known better. I shouldn't have doubted you."

"Fitzwilliam, please...you have to let that go. You have to. I can't stand hearing you say things like that. You have always been there for me. Your faith may have wavered, but I know that even if your worst thoughts had been true, you would have stood by me."

"How do you know that?" he asked. "How can you be so sure of me, when _I'm_ not even sure of me?"

"Because I _know_ you, like no one else knows you...you're a good man, and you have _always_ been there for me." She paused, knowing that she needed to say something, needed to take some responsibility. "Did you ever think that all of this guilt could have been avoided, if I had just told you what happened, from the very beginning?"

He stopped to think about what she asked, what she was getting at.

"I didn't confide in you...I was afraid of how you would react...I thought you'd be ashamed, or embarrassed." She took a deep breath, and spoke quietly. "_My_ faith wavered as well. I blame myself for bringing all of this on you, on us."

"It's not your fault-"

She cut him off. "Yes, it is..._this_ part of it is. I should have told you, right away. I shouldn't have hidden it. I don't blame myself for what happened...not now, anyway. But I do blame myself for how I handled it."

Will was surprised by something she said. "What do you mean, you don't blame yourself _now_ for what happened? Did you blame yourself before?"

"Of course I did, I couldn't help it. I felt like maybe I had let my guard down too much, or maybe I had been flirting without realizing it...maybe he felt like I was leading him on."

Will was beginning to feel the anger bubbling up to the surface. "How could you think that?" he said, somewhat stronger than he had intended to. "Even if you were flirting, or something...and I don't believe you were...that doesn't mean that..." he was so angry, he couldn't get the words out. He could feel it, like a venom pulsing through his body.

"Fitzwilliam, stop." She held his hand, gripping it tighter. "Stop. Look at me."

He turned to look at her, and she looked so serene. Calm.

"I know that feeling responsible is a normal reaction. I know that now. I don't feel that way anymore. I was a victim; I was taken advantage of in the worst possible way, by a horrible, horrible person. But I know, without a doubt, that it wasn't my fault. I did nothing wrong."

"If I ever see him again, I swear to you, I'll -"

"_Stop_. You won't see him again. He's gone. Hopefully, for good. He was in our lives for a brief moment. Being angry, feeling guilty...that's like keeping him around. We have to let all those feelings go so we can let him go."

Will took a deep breath, and looked, really looked, at his sister. Part of the reason he hadn't been able to talk to her was because in his eyes, she was still the child he was trying to protect. Now, for the first time it seemed, he realized the child was gone.

"When did you grow up?" he asked her, trying to smile, but having a hard time. "When did you get so smart?"

She attempted to smile as well. "I have a good teacher," she said, squeezing his hand again. "You were so busy taking care of me, maybe you didn't notice."

She went on. "You need to stop being angry. I have. I can't change what happened, but I won't let it rule the rest of my life. I know I need more time, and I'm going to take it. But I know it won't be forever."

"You know I want you to do whatever you need to do. Take all the time you want. I think this is the perfect place for you to be, right now...away from everyone."

"I feel the same way. Being here makes me feel...peaceful. It's amazing how the sound of the ocean can be so relaxing. I love it."

Hearing her say that made Will think of Elizabeth, and his thoughts drifted to their conversation out in the yard. As he stared ahead blankly, lost in his thoughts, Georgiana nudged him with her knee.

"Did you fix it?" she asked bluntly.

Will shrugged, knowing exactly what she was talking about. "I think so. I hope so. I'll call her later, and hopefully I'll see her tomorrow."

"Why did you get upset?" Georgie asked quietly.

Will thought for a moment, and shrugged again. "It was a surprise, I guess. I just didn't want to go there with her. Not because I don't trust her...I do...she's just so..." he trailed off, not knowing how to put his thoughts into words.

"It's not always going to be ice cream cones and sunsets with you two, you know that, right?" Georgiana asked, making sure to catch Will's eye, so he could see that she was teasing a little. "That's not the way life works."

"That doesn't mean I can't _try_ to make it ice cream cones and sunsets, right?"

"Of course you can try, but you can't be so hard on yourself when everything isn't always perfect. Lizzy doesn't seem like the type that would only want the good parts. I think she wants all of you. If she didn't, she wouldn't have made the effort to talk to you today. She wouldn't have sat with me, talked with me, let me cry on her shoulder."

He nodded his head slowly, looking down again. "You're right, I know you are."

"_And_...she didn't take off at the mention of your real name. That's a plus."

He looked up at her, and they ended up laughing about her reaction to the discovery of his full name. It did lighten things up, at least a little.

For a moment, he became serious again. He looked at Georgiana, a wistful expression on his face.

"I think I'm falling in love with her."

As he said it, his heart pounded hard in his chest. He had _thought_ it enough, especially over the past couple of days, but actually saying it was completely different.

Georgiana looked at him and smiled. "You're just realizing this now?" She laughed softly. "It's so obvious to me, how you feel about her."

"It is?" He was completely surprised. He didn't realize it was so blatant.

"Absolutely."

"You told me you thought I had a crush."

"Oh, please, that was a month ago."

"Still...what if it is just a crush?"

She shrugged. "Does it really matter? You care about her, and I know she cares about you. She's got her own crush going on, believe me."

"How do you know? What did she say to you?"

She rolled her eyes. "What is this, seventh grade? Why don't you pass her a note and find out for yourself?"

"Very funny." Will looked at his sister, who was grinning ear to ear, and grinned back, letting the expression on his face speak for itself.

"You're pathetic," Georgiana said, still smiling.

"So I've been told."

They discussed Will's upcoming trip, and the fact that Mrs. R was arriving Tuesday morning to stay until Friday. Will was worried that Mrs. R would be away from her sister, but she assured him that her sister's recovery was well underway, and she could spare a few days down on the Cape. He knew she loved spending time with Georgiana.

They ordered Chinese takeout, and enjoyed dinner out on the deck, talking about random things, sometimes just enjoying the quiet. He realized that although he was exhausted, he felt as if a great weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. He felt better than he had in a long time.

* * *

><p>Will sat there for almost an hour, since he had gotten off the phone with Elizabeth, strumming his guitar mindlessly, going over their conversation and feeling, for the first time in months, unburdened...lighter.<p>

Saying those words to Georgiana, that he thought he might be falling in love, made it all the more real. He knew he was.

He looked at his phone. _She said I could call as much as I want. _He laughed at himself. _Pathetic is right!_

He got up, turning out the lights in his office, and headed up to bed. He stretched out on his back, closing his eyes, and for a moment, brilliant green eyes danced across his mind...and then he was asleep.

* * *

><p><em>So...progress in the 'opening up' department? For Will, anyway. Please leave me a review if you can! Thanks!<em>


	12. Chapter 12

_Thank you to everyone for following and reviewing the story so far, I really appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 12<strong>

At precisely nine o'clock Sunday morning, Elizabeth's cell phone rang. She grabbed it and peeked at the caller ID with one eye. Will. Of course.

"Good morning," she said hoarsely.

His answering chuckle, deep and rich, spread a delicious warmth from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. "Good morning sleepyhead. Time to rise and shine."

She snuggled in further under the covers. "Not yet mom...just a few more minutes," she said sleepily.

He laughed. "I'm afraid not. I'm on my way over now."

Her eyes popped open. "Seriously? You're early."

"Yes. Seriously," he said, "and I know I'm early. If you need some time to wake up, I'll be happy to stop at Starbucks on my way over. That'll give you an extra...oh, three minutes or so."

"Mmmm, Starbucks. I'll have a grande non-fat caramel macchiato please."

"What? It couldn't be something as easy as a cappuccino, could it?"

"Ugh. Absolutely not. Call me again when you get there if you can't remember."

"Okay. Are you getting up?"

"I'm up, I'm up," she said, smiling now. "See you in a little while."

She hung up and hopped out of bed, grabbing a towel so she could hit the outside shower. Her cell phone rang again. MUM AND DAD glared at her from the caller ID.

_Ugh,_ Elizabeth thought. It was too early in the morning for a chat with her mother, and she _knew_ it was her mother, because her father would never call this early on a Sunday morning.

"Hello mum," she said brightly.

"Good morning Lizzy," her mother nearly shouted at her. "I just wanted to call to say hello, your father and I haven't heard from you in a quite a while."

"It's only been a week...sorry, I've been busy at work."

Her mother tsk tsk'd her. "Your sister tells me it's more than work that's had you busy. What's this I hear about a boyfriend?"

_Jane!_ _I'm going to kill you!_

"Just a man I've been seeing. His name is William."

"Yes, yes, your sister told me...he's a very good friend of her dear Charles...he's extremely wealthy, isn't he?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. _Don't be shy, mum. _"I guess so...I haven't asked to see his bank statements yet," she said a little sarcastically.

"Oh, now, don't be fresh with your mother, Lizzy. A little financial security goes a long way."

"I know, mum. You don't have to tell me-"

Her mother cut her off. "You have no idea what it's like to go without, to have very little money, very little food, cutting corners continuously. You girls never wanted for anything, your father and I always made sure-"

"Mum. _Mum_. **MUM!**" Finally, silence on the other end of the phone. "I know it was tough for you when you were growing up, and you're right, us three girls never wanted for anything. That being said, I don't really think about Will's money, because I can take care of myself. He's sweet, he's nice to me, we have fun...and I like him. _That's_ what matters to me." _That's what should matter to you, too._

Her mother's voice dropped. "And Janey says he's quite a looker as well...very, very handsome. Hmmm?"

"Yes, he's very handsome." Elizabeth smiled as images of Will danced through her head. "And, he's on his way over, so I can't stay on the phone."

"Well, when do we get to meet this William? That's what I was calling about. Jane says you've been together a month, and not a peep from you! Hiding him away from your own parents. You need to bring him around, let us have a proper look at him. He should meet your father."

"Mum, we're dating, not getting married. Dad will like him, so will you."

"I'm sure we will. Promise me you'll come for a visit with him soon."

"I promise," Elizabeth replied, crossing the first two fingers on one hand as she said it. "He's going away on business this week, so maybe sometime after the holiday, or around my birthday, okay?"

"Well, what about today? You just said he was on his way over...we'll be here all day."

Elizabeth sighed. "Not today...we already have plans that can't be changed." _So, what's a little white lie? _"You'll meet him, okay? I've got to run. I'll talk to you soon."

"Oh, Lizzy, you delight in vexing me!"

"You're right, I do, but I love you. Bye mum."

"I love you too. Bye Lizzy."

She hung up the phone, grabbed her towel, and was out the door. She turned on the outside shower, and no sooner had she completely immersed herself under the spray, when she heard footsteps climbing her stairs.

"Will?" she called out tentatively.

"It's me," he called back.

"Are you on the deck?" she asked, peering up to see if she could see him through the slats.

"Yes...just admiring the view," he said teasingly.

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "Don't you dare peek through the deck at me!"

She could hear him laughing. She quickly finished her shower, then wrapped herself in a towel to head back upstairs. He was sitting stretched out in a lounge chair, grinning from ear to ear, looking completely gorgeous.

He looked her up and down very slowly, and she felt as though he had mentally removed her towel.

"Want your coffee?" he asked her quietly, holding the cup out to her, swaying it back and forth lightly. He watched as a single droplet of water made its way down her neck, coming to rest in the hollow at the base of her throat.

She squinted her eyes at him. "This is a trap. I'm going to walk over to you and reach for it, and you're going to do...something, I know it."

He opened his eyes wide, trying to look like the picture of innocence. "I would never do anything to a wet girl wrapped only in a small towel." Once again, his eyes traveled over her form.

Elizabeth looked down. "It's not small..." she looked back up at him, and saw the grin on his face.

"I won't do anything, here's your coffee."

She hesitated, then reached for it, and before she knew it, she was in his lap, landing with a squeal, trying to avoid spilling the incredibly hot coffee, but also trying to keep covered. He took the coffee back out of her hands and placed it on the table next to the chair.

"You promised me a good morning kiss," he said, his face mere inches from hers.

Without saying anything, she raised her lips to his, and lifted a hand to stroke his cheek. The kiss quickly escalated, and she was vaguely aware of the towel slipping slightly. He moved his lips to her neck, and she felt as well as heard him breathe in deeply.

"You smell so good," he said, his deep voice vibrating against her skin, raising goosebumps.

She ran one hand through his hair, making an attempt to hold the towel with the other. She wanted to reach out and touch him more, but doing so would expose more than she was willing to at the moment.

His lips moved lower, down her neck to her collarbone, tracing it from one shoulder to the other, stopping at the little hollow to lick away the drop of water. He began kissing again, moving lower still, until he was kissing along the top of the towel. He lifted his head to look at her, looking into her eyes, seeing so much desire there, and knowing it was reflected in his own.

He slowly moved a hand along the opening of the towel, then moved under it, looking at her the whole time. His hand stroked the skin of one breast, slowly caressing her, gliding his thumb over her nipple, watching her face react with pleasure as he touched her.

Elizabeth closed her eyes, completely lost in the sensations he was creating. One touch, one look, that's all it took, and she was consumed.

"You're so soft. Perfect," he whispered to her, and she opened her eyes again to look at him. He began to slowly open the top of the towel, still staring into her eyes.

She had a brief flash of hesitation, and he immediately sensed it.

"I just want to look at you...kiss you...no more than that."

She swallowed and closed her eyes, feeling her heart start to gallop. She _wanted_ him to kiss her, wanted to feel his mouth on her...but at the same time, she was entirely unsure of herself.

"Can I kiss you Elizabeth?" he asked her quietly, his voice husky, deep.

Despite her hesitation, she found herself nodding, never breaking his gaze.

He smiled at her then, the sweetest smile, and leaned in to kiss her tenderly, running a hand through her wet hair. She felt the top of the towel opening, revealing one breast, and felt his lips leave hers. She let herself relax, leaning into his arm as it supported her. She heard him sigh, and felt his lips move again to her collarbone, then lower still, down her breast, until she felt his tongue gently trace around her nipple. Slowly, he drew her into his mouth, lightly suckling her, and she heard him moan softly.

Her breath caught, and she felt a surge of heat shoot through her entire body. This time, she did reach up with both hands to run her hands through his hair, entwining her fingers with his curls, holding his head. When he increased the pressure with his mouth and grazed her with his teeth, she thought she would burst into flames right then, feeling a spectacular heat pool between her thighs.

She could feel that he was becoming aroused through his shorts and her barely-there towel, and it made her feel even warmer. Gradually, his mouth slowed, and he again drew his tongue softly across the peak of her breast before gently placing a soft kiss there. He pulled the towel back across her, covering her up, and lifted his eyes to look into hers.

For a moment they just stared at each other, seeing the longing and the desire in each other. They were both flushed, their hearts pounding out a matching rhythm. She lay her head against his shoulder, completely at a loss for words.

"Good morning," he said to her hoarsely.

"Mmm. Good morning," she answered languidly. He squeezed her tight, and turned his head to plant a kiss on her nose.

They sat that way for a few more minutes, both unable to move. Finally, Will cleared his throat and ventured to speak.

"I guess you'll need to put some clothes on if we're going for a walk. While I think you look stunning in your tiny towel, I don't think it's appropriate for the bike path."

She lifted her head and smiled at him. "Hmm. You're probably right." She sighed, not really wanting to move, still feeling hazy with desire.

She sat up slowly and turned to place a light kiss on his lips. "Make yourself comfortable, I'll be ready in a little bit." She stood up, adjusting her towel, and grabbed her coffee as she went into the house. Her legs felt wobbly and unsteady.

Will sat back and let out a long, shaky sigh, closing his eyes. Over the past month, their physical relationship had progressed, albeit slowly. She had said she wanted to go at her pace, and that was fine with him; that didn't mean that he wouldn't try to...encourage her a little. When she came up the stairs in that towel, he was transfixed. She was sexy and desirable, and he wanted to make sure she knew it.

_I am a glutton for punishment_, he thought, then grinned to himself. _The pleasure is well worth the pain._

* * *

><p>They took a fairly long walk on the bike path. It was a beautiful Sunday, and because of that it was quite crowded, but Elizabeth wanted Will to see the Great Sippewissett Salt Marsh. It was her favorite part of the bike path. She brought along her camera, and was able to snap some pictures of an osprey as it hunted for fish, as well as some red-winged blackbirds as they darted among the reeds in the marsh. Unwilling to battle the crowds of people, however, they decided that the beach was a better plan for the day.<p>

They spent the afternoon lying in the sun, laughing and playing with each other. They were both relaxed, kissing and touching as often as possible. They swam, and Will took great delight in picking Elizabeth up and throwing her into the water. She would try to dunk him under by climbing onto his back, but it was like a cat trying to take down a grizzly. He would just laugh as he once again tossed her into the waves.

"Ever skinny dip out here?" he asked her, a wicked grin on his face.

She smiled up at him as she floated on her back. "Of course. Many times."

He smiled broadly. "Really? I mean, I could see why you would...it's pretty private at night. No lights." He swam over to her and wrapped his arms around her, letting the movement of the water push her up against him. "Sounds very tempting."

"It is a nice feeling," she whispered, as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, "the water lapping against your bare skin..." She bent her head to kiss his neck, then worked her way up to his earlobe, flicking it with her tongue and sucking on it briefly. "Quite refreshing."

He moaned softly, and held her firmer in his grasp. "You'll be skinny dipping right now, in broad daylight, if you're not careful."

She laughed and pushed away from him.

"Where are you going? Get back over here..." he said, lunging after her as she quickly swam towards the shore and scrambled up onto the beach. Of course he caught up to her quickly and tackled her onto the blanket, laying on top of her and immediately locking his lips onto hers in a deep, passionate kiss.

When they finally broke apart, he looked at her intensely, stroking her wet hair away from her face.

"The next five days are going to be the longest of my life," he said, purposely being overly-dramatic. "What will I do without you?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, keeping the moment light. "Oh, you'll survive, I'm sure. You'll have a great time with your cousin, and you'll be so busy, you won't have time to think about me."

Will huffed. "Not possible. For one thing, my cousin's idea of a great time is not necessarily the same as mine. And yes, I will be busy, but still...I'll miss you." He lowered his head to kiss her softly.

Elizabeth closed her eyes, feeling ridiculous that she was so bummed out that he was going away. _It's only five days, for Pete's sake! Get over it!_

"I'll miss you too...but before you know it, Friday will be here, and you'll be on your way home."

"Mmm. Yeah, I know." He kissed her lightly again, then rolled off of her and sat up. Leaning back on his outstretched arms, he gazed out at the ocean, feeling a sense of peace at being here with Elizabeth.

"Do you want to hear about my conversation with Georgiana?" he asked, deciding that the elephant in the room had to be addressed.

Elizabeth sat up next to him. "If you want to talk about it, sure...but if you don't, that's okay too. I'm just glad the two of you talked."

"I don't want to dwell on it; I don't want the rest of our afternoon to be about that." He stared out at the water. "She's pretty smart, you know? I have to make myself remember that she's an adult now, a grown woman, and not a little girl any longer. As much as I'd like to try, I can't protect her from everything."

"She made me realize that all this anger I have, this hatred for the bastard that did that to her...it's preventing us from moving on...it's preventing _me_ from moving on. I have to let it go, so he won't be a part of our lives anymore."

"You're right, she's a smart girl," Elizabeth said, reaching up to stroke his cheek.

Will turned to look at her, taking her hand and lightly grasping it with his. "Do you know that she blamed herself? That she thought the whole thing was her fault?" He shook his head in disbelief. "I just about died when she said that. She doesn't feel that way now, she knows she didn't do anything wrong...but to think that she struggled with that feeling, that shame...it kills me."

"That's normal, I think, for a victim to feel that way...I think it's pretty common," Elizabeth said, wanting to reassure him that the feelings Georgiana experienced were expected. She stroked his knuckles with her thumb.

"I know, that's what she said. I hate that I was so absorbed in my own anger and self-pity that I didn't see it." He sighed and looked down at their interlocked fingers. "I really don't know how she has forgiven me for everything that I thought, for the things that I believed...but, somehow, she has."

"She loves you. It's as simple as that. You have always been there to take care of her. I think that for her, there was nothing to forgive. You're human, Will...you're allowed to make mistakes."

He raised his eyes to look at hers, and his face softened. "Thank you."

"For what?" she asked.

"For understanding. For being a good friend to Georgiana. For making me realize that I had to talk to her, open up to her." He leaned forward to kiss her, cupping her cheek with one hand. He moved his lips to the tip of her nose, then her forehead and then leaned back, smiling slightly.

"You've been a huge help with her, with getting her to open up and lose some of that fear that she's been holding on to. I mean, I could see that she was getting better, slowly, but since the two of you have grown closer, the difference is amazing."

Elizabeth shrugged. "Maybe she just needed a girlfriend, you know? Sometimes that makes all the difference in the world. Jane is my best friend, she knows me better than I know myself...and vice versa. There is nothing that she doesn't know about me, about what I've been through..." She stopped, suddenly aware of the fact that she let too much slip.

Will was looking at her curiously. "What do you mean, what you've been through?"

Elizabeth's heart pounded slightly. "Just...everything...you know, life stuff. Growing up stuff."

She glanced at him, and knew by the way he was watching her that he was waiting to see if she would expand on what she had just said. It was only a matter of time...her feelings were becoming too intense where he was concerned, and she knew that at this point, his need for some insight into her emotions was legitimate. Still, the fear of what could happen kept her quiet. Could she divulge all of her fears to him, entrust him with her deepest feelings? The thought of being emotionally vulnerable, of opening herself to hurt, terrified her. _This might end. He might leave._

He studied her face, knowing that there was more to that comment than she was willing to say. He had made it clear to her yesterday that he knew there were things she hadn't opened up to him about yet, and he was still upset at himself for snapping at her like he did. Today was not the day, though, for that conversation; not when he was getting ready to head out of town for five days. Soon, though, it would _have_ to happen. They couldn't move forward if she was holding back. For now, he would wait.

"I guess Charles is that person for me...he knows about the big stuff, the major things...he's been an incredible friend for my entire life. When his parents died, within a year of each other, I tried to be there for him, as much as I possibly could. It was the least I could do. He's a good man," he said, smiling at Elizabeth. "Tell Jane he's a keeper."

Elizabeth smiled, relieved at the change in topic. "I'm pretty sure she knows that already."

* * *

><p>They took a quick ride to the fish market down the street to get lobsters and steamers, then stopped at a local garden stand to grab a couple of ears of corn. They had an early, relaxing dinner on the deck. Lobster and steamers were two things Elizabeth <em>could<em> cook, mainly because it wasn't really cooking.

They had agreed to go for ice cream a bit later, then Will would head to Boston, making it a little easier for him to catch his early flight in the morning.

After dinner, they relaxed on the deck, feeling full and happy.

"That was awesome," Will said, rubbing his stomach as he sat back, stretched out on a lounge chair. "That was my first real lobster of the season. The first one is always the best."

"Mmm, it was good, wasn't it? I love lobster," she replied, smiling at the look of contentment on his face. She settled herself in between his legs on the lounge chair, leaning back against him, resting her head against his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her on the cheek.

Will stared out at the water, looking at the island across the sound.

"When are you taking me to Martha's Vineyard, anyway?" he asked her. "You promised me a personal tour."

"I did, you're right...we'll get over there sometime. I can't believe you've never been. I was over there all the time when I was younger."

"Really?"

"Mmhm. My mum was born and raised there. I always went over to see my grandparents. Gramps died when I was only eight, but gram hung in there...she died when I was twenty-two. I loved spending time with them. My grandfather was a very talented carpenter, he built their house for my grandmother as a wedding gift. It was beautiful."

"Did you keep going over to visit, after they passed?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "My mum and her brother kept the house for a few years after, so I'd go over occasionally with friends, for a girls weekend, that type of thing," she said, grinning as she thought back to those days of craziness with Charlotte and Jane, and whoever else they could get to go with them. "Taking care of the house got to be too much, I guess. They ended up selling it, and I think it's a boarding house now."

Will heard a note of sadness come into her voice, and he hugged her tighter and kissed her again.

"My Uncle Ed still lives on the island, he's my mum's older brother. He and my Aunt Valerie run a bed and breakfast there, in Edgartown. It's a lovely place. I talk to them a lot, they really are wonderful people. We've always been close. My cousins have all left the island...there's not much in the way of economic opportunity there...but my aunt and uncle will never leave."

"Well, I'd love to go over and see everything there is to see...maybe we could visit your aunt and uncle."

Elizabeth smiled. "That would be nice. Maybe we could plan it for the end of the summer." The more she thought about it, the more appealing the idea became. She hadn't been over in a couple of years, and was long overdue for a visit with her aunt and uncle.

"Definitely, before summer is over," she said wistfully.

* * *

><p>Two hours later, they were sitting on the wall at Old Silver Beach, enjoying their cones, waiting for the sunset.<p>

Will turned to watch Elizabeth, obviously enjoying her strawberry ice cream. He couldn't help but feel slightly envious of it.

Elizabeth glanced over at him, smiling. "Your ice cream is going to melt. Stop staring and start eating."

He grinned and turned back to his cone. "Oh, to be a scoop of strawberry ice cream right now," he said with a sigh.

Elizabeth leaned toward him teasingly. "Strawberry flavored Will. I could get used to that."

He turned to look at her, and leaned in to kiss her, letting his mouth taste hers, mixing the chocolate that was lingering on his lips with the strawberry lingering on hers.

After the slow, soft kiss, he leaned back enough to look in her eyes, and saw the spark that had ignited there. "Mmm, chocolate and strawberry. Always a good combination."

"Can I have another taste?" she said impishly, a small grin gracing her lips.

Without saying anything, he leaned in to kiss her again, more deeply and longer this time, letting his tongue engage hers. She reached up to place her free hand on his face, cupping his cheek, feeling the light stubble that had begun to grow. He raised his hand to hold her head, weaving his fingers through her hair, holding her more firmly to him.

Elizabeth could feel her body's instantaneous response to him. Kissing him was heaven on earth. _He is just so __good__ at it, _she thought_. _Her lips began to curve up into a smile, and he slowly pulled away, giving up on the kiss.

He smiled at the look in her eyes, recognizing the playfulness in their depths. "I didn't know that kissing me was funny."

She gave a short laugh. "Believe me, there is nothing funny about kissing you. 'Funny' is definitely not the right word to describe it. I _was_ just thinking about it, though."

"I'm pretty sure you were doing more than thinking about it," Will said as he finished his ice cream.

"Mmhmm. That I was." She sighed, fanning herself with one hand dramatically.

She risked a glance at him, and saw that he was blushing slightly, lips pursed as he studied her. His eyes were twinkling.

She nudged him with her elbow. "I was teasing you, I'm sorry." She tried very hard to suppress the grin on her face, but he saw it anyway.

"You're always teasing me."

"I know, I can't resist." She kissed him on the cheek. "I really do love kissing you, though. I would say it's one of my favorite things to do."

"_One_ of your favorite things?"

"I can't very well tell you it's my _favorite_ thing to do, can I? We wouldn't want Mr. Arrogant to reappear, would we?"

Before he could respond, she had jumped off the wall into the sand and was jogging toward the water. He happily gave chase.

* * *

><p>They didn't have a long, drawn out goodbye. It was only five days, after all. Unbeknownst to each other, they were each repeating that same thing in their heads. <em>It's only five days.<em>

Will walked Elizabeth into the house, and they hugged for a few moments. She buried her face in his neck, breathing him in, as he buried his face in her hair, breathing her in.

"Will you call me when you get to Boston tonight?" she asked.

"Of course I will...I have to say goodnight, after all," he said, grinning over her head.

"Will you have time to call me in the morning?" she asked him, now speaking into his chest.

His grin became a full-fledged smile. "Yes...I will...I'll call right before I board. It'll be pretty early though."

"That's okay, I don't care...I'll be up for work anyway."

They hugged quietly for a few more minutes, then Will reached down to tilt up her chin. "Thanks for dinner...and the ice cream and the sunset," he said quietly.

"You're welcome...thank you for spending the day with me," she replied softly, staring into his eyes.

He leaned down to kiss her, and instead of it being urgent and frantic, it was soft, and slow, and sensual, so full of emotion. Their mouths caressed over and over, and Elizabeth could feel the pounding of his heart under her hand, echoing the rapid beat of hers.

Slowly, he broke away from her, then leaned in to kiss her again. As he pulled away for the second time, he sighed and lowered his forehead to hers.

"'Bye," he said quietly, pulling back to look her in the eyes, wanting to burn them even further into his memory.

"'Bye Will," she replied, reaching up to stroke his cheek. "I'll talk to you in a little bit."

"I'll call you as soon as I'm home." He grabbed her hand and planted a soft kiss on her palm. "Bye beautiful."

"Bye."

He turned and walked out the door, and she listened to his footsteps as he walked down the stairs. She walked into the bathroom and looked out the window, which faced toward the street. He looked up at the house before he got into his car, and saw her standing there. They waved, and he blew her a kiss. She watched until she couldn't see the car anymore, then she walked back into her living room and plopped down on the couch.

_Five days, it's only five days._

* * *

><p><em>Day 1<em>

William did call, as he said he would, both Sunday night and Monday morning. Elizabeth didn't sleep well Sunday night, and so decided to skip riding her bike into work in the morning, preferring to drive, giving herself time to stop at Coffee Obsession for a strong cup of coffee.

As soon as she walked in the door and headed to her office, Bill was hot on her trail.

"Good morning Elizabeth," he called out loudly.

Elizabeth jumped slightly, not realizing he had snuck up behind her. She turned to face him. "Good morning, Bill. You're in early today."

"Yes, well, I umm...I had some work to do, and...I needed to get here early." He cleared his throat. "Could you come to my office? I need to discuss something with you."

Elizabeth sighed inwardly, knowing she was not in the mood to deal with Bill this morning.

She followed him to his office and he closed the door behind her. Moving to sit behind his desk, he smiled at her, and folded his hands in front of him.

"Elizabeth...I first want to say that your work as manager of the grant has been nothing but exemplary. You have far surpassed expectations of the National Reserve System and NOAA. You have been on target with your deadlines, and the compliments have been coming in regularly regarding your ability to give the incoming research groups the assistance and information they need."

Elizabeth's heart was pounding. Why was he telling her this?

"Bill...what is going on? Why do I feel like I'm about to hear something bad?"

"Well, no, not bad, necessarily...it's just...we need you to jump ship on the grant for a while, and help with another project. It's just for the summer, I promise you...you'll be back on the grant by September, at the very latest."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "_What_? What do you mean I need to help with another project? I'm the manager for the grant, for crying out loud...a $1.3 million dollar grant, in case you've forgotten. How the hell can you just move me?"

"I don't have a choice. There was a problem with some...associates working on the carbonate system...I was asked to recommend someone, and I did, I recommended Mike Donnelly. Unfortunately, the higher ups...specifically, some of the project leaders at the Oceanographic...they requested you. They specifically asked for _you_."

"You couldn't tell them I was a little_ busy_?" Elizabeth knew that she was precariously close to losing her cool. Between dealing with the emotions of the past few days, saying goodbye to Will, and now _this_, she was ready to blow.

"I tried, Elizabeth, I swear to you that I did, to no avail. They promised to let you get back to the grant by the first of September."

"Who do I need to talk to? I refuse to step away from the grant for two months."

"You can't refuse. This is the way it is, take it or leave it," Bill said. "I'm sorry, it's out of my hands. And yours."

Without saying another word, she turned and strode out of his office and headed straight toward the building's exit. She needed to get outside, get some fresh air, and get a grip on her swirling thoughts.

_The carbonate system? _She shook her head. Of course, it was worthwhile research, but it wasn't her cup of tea. The carbonate system, technically known as the "Coastal Ocean Carbonate System", studied the carbonate chemistry of bays and estuaries on the Cape. She understood the importance of the study, she really did, but her heart was in the grant.

She headed toward the marshy trail that ran along the edge of the bay, feeling slightly calmer already, just from being in the sun and the warm breeze. _Two months._

Determined to look at it in a more positive light, she pulled out the good things from her conversation with Bill. People, peers, were recognizing her work. The 'higher ups' had specifically _requested_ her. That could only be a good thing, right?

After walking for half an hour, she returned back to the building and went straight to Bill's office. She knocked on his door and heard him call her in.

She cleared her throat. "I'm sorry I walked out like that. It wasn't very mature of me."

"Don't apologize. This whole thing is just as upsetting to me. I wasn't looking forward to telling you, believe me."

"Well, I appreciate you going to bat for me anyway." She offered him a halfhearted grin. "I guess I have some work to do, I better get started."

"I put some things on your desk." He glanced at his watch. "You have to meet some people at the Oceanographic in an hour, so familiarize yourself with as much as you can before that."

She nodded. "I will."

Elizabeth was about to walk out of his office when he stopped her.

"Elizabeth," he said, then cleared his throat. "How's everything going?" He seemed hesitant to ask.

"Fine," Elizabeth answered, not knowing if he meant in general, or if he was wondering about her other project.

"Have you seen much of Charlotte and George lately?"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Not lately, but I think they may come over this week sometime. George wants to use the darkroom again."

Bill had only asked Elizabeth out one more time, after she had spent the weekend up in Boston. She decided to be blunt with him, instead of just being nice, complacent Elizabeth. She told him that she was seeing Will, and while she was flattered by Bill's attentions, she had no interest in seeing anyone else.

Ever since then, he had seemed to become a little obsessed with his cousin's relationship with Charlotte...or "Charlie," as George liked to call her. He asked a lot of questions about them, and seemed to be particularly interested in whether Elizabeth saw them together a lot. She never did have a lot to tell him, as she saw Charlotte and George rarely.

"Charlotte is usually with him when he goes to your house...right?" Bill asked, somewhat nervously.

Elizabeth noticed his fidgeting. She nodded. "She's always with him, that's kind of a condition I have. Nothing against your cousin, but...I just think it's better if Charlotte comes with him."

"I agree," Bill said.

_Oh geez, is he jealous of George? When is he going to give it a rest? _There is no way she would ever be attracted to George, even if Charlotte and Will weren't in the picture. He just wasn't her type.

She decided to bring up Will again, if only to reinforce the idea in Bill's head that she was taken.

"I'm sure Will wouldn't want me to be alone with a man in my house, unless it was him, of course." She smiled, trying to make light of her statement.

"Yes, yes, of course," Bill said, quite ready to agree with her. "How would it look?"

"Exactly," Elizabeth said.

The conversation trailed off to an awkward silence.

"Well, like I said, I have work to do."

Bill nodded. "That you do. Umm, thank you Elizabeth."

"You're welcome, Bill." As she walked away, she couldn't help shaking her head. _What an odd duck he is._

* * *

><p>She was sitting at her desk later in the afternoon, looking over some information on carbonate cycles and shellfish populations, when her computer notified her of new email. She glanced at the clock, realizing it was almost three, and knew without a doubt that it had to be from Will.<p>

She grinned as she saw his name in the 'from' column. She clicked on it eagerly.

_Hello gorgeous,_

_I made it to San Francisco. An uneventful trip, which is just what I like. I've checked into the hotel, and I'm now waiting for my (always tardy) cousin to arrive. We're heading out to have coffee and go over our schedule for the week, then we'll head to the RJD offices here so I can say hello to everyone (which is a nice way of saying I'm going to check up on them)._

_I'm sorry our conversation was so short this morning. I wanted to ask you – did you sleep as badly as I did last night? Please tell me you did, it will make my insomnia a little more bearable. I don't anticipate much sleep this week, I know I'll be missing you too much._

_I'll call you tonight, I'll be sure to keep track of the time so I don't call too late._

_Talk to you soon ~_

_xo  
><em>_Will_

Elizabeth wasn't going to email him back, since he said he would call her later, but she changed her mind and decided to send a quick note.

_Hi Will,_

_How did you know I slept so horribly last night? So much so that I didn't dare ride my bike to work, as I was worried I'd collide with a tree or some poor unsuspecting jogger.  
><em>_Glad your trip was uneventful...I like those trips too, especially when flying. I've had quite a day already at work, but it's entirely too much to write about in an email.  
><em>_I hope your cousin doesn't keep you waiting long...does he have any idea how punctual you are? If he doesn't, I'm sure he'll find out soon enough._

_Please call me when you can, and just so you know, I really don't care how late it is...I'm sure I'll be awake._

_xo  
><em>_Elizabeth_

Smiling, she clicked 'send'. An hour later, she walked out of work and headed home.

* * *

><p>Her cell phone rang as she was walking in the door, and feeling hopeful, she looked at the caller ID. Her heart sank a bit when she saw it was Jane, and she chided herself for being so pathetic.<p>

"Hi Janey," she said cheerfully.

"Hi Lizzy," Jane responded, sounding like her usually happy self.

"What's up?" Lizzy asked.

"Oh, not much, same old stuff. Work and Charles. Charles and Charles," Jane said, laughing. "We're actually going out tonight, he got us tickets to see the Blue Man Group. I've heard it's great, I'm really excited to go."

"Oh, I've heard good things about that too. If you're sitting in the front, make sure you wear clothes that you don't care about. I heard it gets messy."

"Someone at work told me that very same thing, I guess it must be true. I'll have to warn Charles," she said, laughing again. "It'll be a jeans and t-shirt night, I guess. How's work?"

Elizabeth groaned. "Oh, God, don't even go there. I'm working on something temporarily, another project with the Oceanographic...it's a long story. Anyway, I'll be buried this week, which is a good thing I guess. I need the distraction."

"Oh right, Will left for California today, didn't he? Charles mentioned he was flying out. Have you heard from him yet?"

"He emailed me to let me know he arrived safely, and said he'd call me later tonight. Speaking of Will, I have a bone to pick with you."

"With me? What did I do?"

"You blabbed to Fran about him, that's what you did!"

"Oh, that..."

"Yes, that!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't know she didn't know about him. I mentioned him in a conversation, and she caught on to it right away. Don't worry, I didn't say much to her about him."

"Oh, you didn't? One of the first things she mentioned was that he was wealthy."

"Ugh...well, I didn't tell her that...I told her that Charles was the lawyer that represented his company, so maybe she just figured it out from there."

"She also knows how _very, very handsome_ he is," Elizabeth said, exaggerating her voice to sound like her mother's.

Jane chuckled. "Oh, well, you've got me there...I did tell her that."

Elizabeth sighed. "Now she'll be after me to meet him...I told her he was going away this week, so maybe we'd get over there next week. I guess I have to face the inevitable."

"It won't be that bad...make it a quick visit and you'll be fine."

"Hmph. We'll see about that."

"So... the reason I'm calling is to tell you that I can provide you with another distraction this week...I was thinking of heading down on Wednesday to visit."

"Oh, that's great! Are you coming by yourself?"

"Well, no...I was actually going to bring Caroline along...she said she'd love to visit the Cape. We're going to stay at Charles's house, just for two nights."

Elizabeth pursed her lips. "Oh. Okay. Well, that's good...we should get together, right? I mean, what did you two plan on doing?"

"Of course we should get together! We haven't really decided what to do yet. We were thinking that maybe we'd go to the Farmer's Market on Wednesday afternoon, in Falmouth, then maybe grab a bite to eat somewhere. Thursday is completely unplanned."

"What time are you heading down?"

"Sometime in the afternoon. I took half of Wednesday and all of Thursday and Friday off."

"If you don't mind going to the Farmer's Market later in the afternoon, I could go with you. Charlotte wants to bring George over to use the darkroom some night, so maybe I can work that in after softball tomorrow. Why don't I call you tomorrow night, we can firm things up?"

"Sounds good," Jane replied. She paused for a moment. "Are you sure you don't mind hanging around with Caroline? It was her idea, actually, to come down."

"It's fine, Jane. I still don't even really know what to make of her. Maybe this will give me a chance to get to know her a little better."

Jane sighed in relief. "I'm glad you're okay with it." She giggled a little. "Who knows, some day, she may be my sister-in-law. Can you imagine?"

"More importantly, can _you_ imagine?" Elizabeth replied, smiling at her sister's happiness.

"I guess I can...I feel like I've gotten to know her a little more, she's really not all that bad. Anyway, I've got to go, Charles and I are going for a bite to eat before the show. Call me tomorrow night, okay?"

"I will. Have fun tonight!"

"Thanks, we will. Bye Lizzy."

"Bye Jane."

Elizabeth knew that over the past month, Jane had been spending a bit more time with Caroline, mostly at Caroline's behest. They had gone shopping together, had been out to dinner quite a few times, and Jane even said that Caroline had come over one night to watch a movie, and they had ordered some pizza and ate in.

Jane had admitted that she had started to feel more comfortable around her, and she knew that Charles was pleased that his sister seemed to be making an effort to get to know Jane more, and not be so judgmental. Still, Jane said that Charles was not completely convinced that Caroline was being herself. What had Will said? _She is the classic case of a leopard not changing its spots. _Maybe she was, though...maybe she was really making an effort to get to know Jane. Elizabeth hoped she was. Jane was a wonderful person, and the Bingleys would be lucky if, someday, she was part of their family.

After a quick dinner, she called Charlotte to arrange a time for her and George to come over tomorrow night. She had softball, but knew she would be home by six-thirty or so if she didn't stay for the picnic after. Charlotte would talk to George, and text her tomorrow to let her know if they'd be coming.

Elizabeth pulled out her laptop, and began to pull out some of the information that she had worked on during the day at the office. She placed her iPod into its dock, turned the music on softly, and began creating some data charts.

Before she knew it, two hours had passed, and it was now nearing seven-thirty. _Four-thirty in __California. _She closed her laptop and walked out of her house, onto her deck. It had turned a bit overcast, not ideal for a sunset, but she decided that 'overcast' was a good description of how she was feeling at the moment anyway.

She sat down in a lounge chair, and leaned back with a sigh. She smiled, letting her mind wander back to sitting here yesterday with Will, after she had gotten out of the shower. Just thinking about it gave her those familiar flutterings in her stomach. _Lust, pure and simple_.

No, not pure and simple. Other emotions too, mixed with lust. At the moment, she didn't have the energy to examine how deep those emotions ran. She wondered if she would always feel those flutterings when he was around her, or when she thought of him; that anticipation, that giddiness. She smiled to herself. _I hope so._

Half an hour later, she walked back into the house and decided to check her email. She was happy to see a reply from Will, and immediately opened it up.

_Hello Elizabeth,_

_I was happy to see your email, it was just what I needed at the end of a long afternoon. It was a productive afternoon, but long just the same. My poor cousin was dying to know what I was reading, but I kept it to myself, of course. I guess the smile on my face had him wondering. Not only is Richard notoriously tardy, he is extremely nosy._

_It sounds like you didn't have such a great day at work. You can fill me in on all the details when I call later. I'm hoping it's a long story, as I love to listen to you talk._

_I miss you, and it's odd, because I just saw you last night. I think it's because I know I'm way the hell over here, across the country. I can't just drive to the Cape and see you. I'm sorry you didn't sleep well last night, I really didn't mean it when I said I hoped you slept terribly too...I just hoped you were thinking about me._

_Hopefully, by the time you read this, I'll be getting rid of Richard, and settling into my room, which means I'll be talking to you soon._

_xoxo  
><em>_Will_

Elizabeth sighed and smiled as she closed her laptop. She walked into her bedroom, changed into some comfy pajamas, and walked out to her living room. Stretching out on her couch, she channel surfed until she settled on a repeat of a sitcom that she liked.

The sound of her phone woke her up, and she was surprised to see she had been sleeping for almost two hours; it was just past ten. She knew it would be Will.

"Hello," she said groggily.

He chuckled. "Hey there. Did I wake you up?"

"Mmm, no...yes...I dozed off on the couch, apparently." She sighed, waking up a bit, happy to hear his voice in her ear. "How are you? Are you tired?"

"No, I'm okay. The time difference isn't a big deal for me. Hopefully I'll sleep a little better tonight. I'm guessing you won't have any problem there," he said, laughing softly.

She smiled. "I guess not."

"So what's this about your bad day at work?" he asked.

"Oh, it wasn't really bad...are you sure you want to hear all the details?"

"Of course I do. I told you it gives me a reason to listen to your voice."

"Oh, you are such a sap," she said, chuckling at him. "Well, long story short, I was relinquished of my duties as Project Manager for the grant, temporarily."

"Seriously? Why?"

She yawned, then answered his question. "I don't really know. I think something happened with some employees on another research project, so now I'm working on it for the summer. It has to do with carbon concentrations and shellfish calcification...not really my thing, but I only have to do it for two months. I'll be buried in paperwork all week, which will be distracting, at the very least."

"So, you forget about me for the first calcified clam that comes along, huh?" he said quietly, trying to make her laugh.

The sound of his deep voice made Elizabeth's stomach flip, especially since it made her think about all the times he had laughed and whispered against her neck, or into her ear. She shivered slightly.

"They help. Although, I can't really tease a clam."

"Too bad for the clam."

She laughed. "I guess, though the clam would beg to differ, I'm sure. Oh, I talked to Jane tonight, it seems she and Caroline are coming for a visit this week."

"Really? Jane and Caroline?"

"Really."

"Hmm. I'm not too surprised, actually. Charles mentioned that they had been spending some time together. I think he's hoping a little of Jane will rub off on Caroline. I know he's happy that they've been social, though."

"Jane is too...she wants to make the effort to get to know Caroline, for Charles's sake. Anyway, we're getting together Wednesday night, here in Falmouth. I may see if Georgie wants to get together with us on Thursday night. What do you think?"

"I don't know. She's not a big fan of Caroline's, but she may be okay with it since you'll be there. I know she really wants to meet Jane, she's a little annoyed with Charles that he hasn't brought her around yet."

"Well, I'll call her and mention it to her, see if she wants to join us for a girls night."

"That's nice of you, to include her. I appreciate it."

"I like spending time with her. She's fun to be around. She has a wicked sense of humor, you know."

"Oh yes, I'm well aware of that, trust me."

Elizabeth laughed, then attempted to stifle another yawn.

"I should let you get to bed," Will said. "Are you already in your pajamas?"

"I am...I just have to crawl under the covers."

He groaned softly. "I wish I was there to kiss you goodnight."

"I wish you were too," she said, sighing lightly. "I miss you."

"I miss you too. One day down, four to go."

"You won't even be up when I leave for work tomorrow. I won't get to say good morning to you."

"Yes you can...just call me," he said.

"No! Even if I called right before I left the house, it would be four-thirty in the morning there."

"I don't care. Wake me up. Call me. Please?"

"Will, you need to sleep."

"I'll go back to sleep. Promise me you'll call, okay?"

She sighed. "Okay, okay, I promise."

"Thank you."

"You're thanking me now, you won't be at four-thirty tomorrow morning."

"Shush. Go to bed and dream about me."

She laughed. "Okay. You too?"

"Without a doubt. Goodnight beautiful."

"Goodnight Will."

* * *

><p><em>So, our happy couple has to endure some time apart. What could happen in five days? (insert evil laugh here) Please review! Thank you!<em>


	13. Chapter 13

_I decided to post the next chapter a bit earlier...my goal is to try to post every three days, although as we get further along, I might slow that down. No appearances by Caroline or Wickham in this chapter, just our happy (but far apart) couple. Thanks to everyone who is reading and reviewing! I really appreciate it._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 13<strong>

_Day 2_

Will woke to the sound of his cell phone. Bleary eyed, he opened one eye to look at the alarm clock next to the bed. _4:20 _screamed at him in bright red numbers.

He grabbed for his phone.

" 'Lo," he said, still half asleep, but not wanting to miss his morning call.

"Good morning Will," he heard Elizabeth say softly.

"Mmm…good morning," he said hoarsely, sleep still in his voice. "How are you?" He closed his eyes, and settled back under the sheets, letting her voice wash over him.

"I'm fine. I shouldn't have called you, I should have waited," she said. They were both talking softly, almost whispering.

"No, no...I would've been _extremely_ upset if you didn't call me. You don't want to incur the wrath of Fitzwilliam, do you?"

She laughed softly. "Only if we'd get to have some fun making up."

"Hmm...don't put thoughts like that in my head when I'm in such a vulnerable state."

"What kind of vulnerable state are you in?"

"Well, it's morning, and I'm in bed."

"And...?" she loved the sound of his voice, still very sleepy.

He sighed, smiling at her flirtatious mood. "_And_, I was having a very...vivid dream. I'm sure you can figure the rest out on your own."

She sighed. "Poor thing."

He laughed. "Yeah, poor me."

"Do you want to go so you can go back to sleep?"

"Only if you promise me I can go back to that same dream."

"Maybe you will."

"Hmm...now that I've talked to my muse, it's a possibility."

_God, his voice is sexy in the morning_, she thought, and her mind began to wander, imagining what he must look like at this moment...tousled hair, stubble on his face, warm, muscular body...

She closed her eyes and smiled at the image forming in her mind.

"Hey, you still there?"

"Oh, sorry. Still here."

"What are you thinking about?"

"Umm...I don't think I'm going to tell you."

"Ohhh, come on," he whispered, "'fess up."

She hesitated, then figured she should just tell him; _he already knows the effect he has on me_.

"Fine. I was just thinking how incredibly sexy your voice is when you're half asleep, and I was wondering what you look like when you wake up in the morning." She got it all out in a rush of breath, and felt her face warming.

"Wow," he said quietly, beginning to laugh softly, "that's awesome. I bet you're blushing."

"Oh, shut up."

He laughed again. "Well, someday _my_ dream will become a reality, and _you_ won't have to wonder what I look like in the morning. You'll see for yourself."

Elizabeth sighed again. "Hmm. Someday. In the meantime, I have a job to get to, and you should go back to sleep."

"Fat chance that will happen. Maybe I'll head down to the gym. It opens at five."

"Will you email me later?"

"Of course I will. Richard and I have a meeting with an engineer first thing this morning, then I'll have some free time before lunch. I'll slip you a quick email then."

"Okay," she said softly. "Have a good day."

"You too. We'll talk again later, okay?"

"Okay. Bye Will."

"Bye Elizabeth."

Will lay in bed after hanging up, eyes closed, trying to remember his dream. It was fantastic, if the lingering side effects were anything to go by, but the specifics had already escaped him. Elizabeth featured prominently in it, he could recall that. He groaned, waiting for the arousal that he had awoken with to subside. Waking to her soft voice, in the middle of said dream, had only made it worse, and hearing her talk about what it would be like waking up with him was nearly unbearable.

He looked at the clock again, and knew he'd never go back to sleep. The gym wasn't open for another twenty-five minutes, so he got up to read the Boston papers on line. He decided to type a quick email to Elizabeth, to surprise her.

_Good morning (again).  
><em>_I miss you (terribly).  
><em>_I'm thinking about you (always)._

_xo  
><em>_Will_

He smiled to himself, knowing she would be smiling as well when she read it. _She's right. I'm a sap._

* * *

><p>After a good one hour workout in the gym, Will headed back to his room to shave and hit the shower. He got dressed, and as he did, he realized that one thing he enjoyed about working out of his home in New Seabury was that he could just throw on shorts and a t-shirt. Even when he went into Boston, he didn't always wear a suit.<p>

Here, though, meeting with potential employees, and current employees that he hadn't seen in a while, he knew he had to play dress-up. Out here, he was Mr. Darcy, Owner and CEO of RJD Properties.

He still had an hour before he met Richard for breakfast at the hotel restaurant, so he decided to check to see if Elizabeth had received his email yet. He smiled when he saw that there was a reply from her.

_**sigh**  
><em>_You sure know how to make a girl smile...  
><em>_You are also encouraging some serious daydreaming.  
><em>_Why did I even bother coming to work?  
><em>_I miss you too.  
><em>_Talk to you later._

_xo  
><em>_Elizabeth_

He was still wearing a smile as he strolled into the restaurant, and was surprised to see Richard there already, sipping a cup of coffee.

"Ha. For once, I arrived before you," Richard said, smiling smugly.

Will smirked. "Only because you were early. I'm still right on time."

"Sure, be a killjoy. I'm going to enjoy my small victories when I can," Richard said, laughing.

They ordered breakfast, and talked about random things...the stock market, sports (always an interesting conversation, since Richard had become a west coast sports fan, and therefore a traitor), Georgiana, and the Cape.

"You're still spending a lot of time on the Cape. No hurry to get back to Boston?" Richard asked.

Will shook his head as he swallowed a bite of eggs. "Not really, no. I like the Cape. The scenery, the pace...it's relaxing. I can work out of my home office, and I found that it works pretty well. I've been going to Boston on Thursday mornings, staying overnight, and going back to the Cape on Friday afternoons. Traffic going on-Cape on a Friday afternoon is horrible, but it's worth it."

Richard watched his cousin as he talked. Something was different. He was grinning, and the more he talked, the bigger the grin got. He didn't even seem to be aware that he was smiling at all.

"So what do you do to occupy your time there?" Richard asked innocently. "I mean, do you go out?"

Will looked at him, just for a second, to see if this line of questioning was leading to anything.

"Occasionally." He cleared his throat. "Charles has a house down the beach from mine, so I see him and Jane a lot, when they're around. Georgie really loves it there too...we find ways to fill our time."

Richard nodded, still watching his cousin closely. "Oh, right, Jane is Charles's new conquest. Nice woman?"

"Yeah, she is, actually. I don't think 'conquest' is the right word though...looks like this one is sticking. So to speak," Will said, grinning again.

Richard watched his cousin again for a moment, trying to discern exactly what it was that was different about him. He seemed...relaxed. Mellow. _Happy_.

"Okay, Darcy, what's up?" he finally asked, knowing something had to be going on that Will wasn't talking about.

"What do you mean?" Will asked, forkful of eggs in mid-air.

"I know you like the Cape, you always have, but to be there _all the time?_" He tapped his fingers on the table, squinting his eyes at his cousin. "Something else is going on." A light bulb suddenly went off in his head. "Who is she?"

"Who is who?" Will said, halfheartedly trying to avoid his cousin's question.

"You were mooning like a schoolboy over the email you were reading on your laptop yesterday, you've been grinning like a fool since then, and I've caught you day-dreaming at least twice. I've known you a long time, remember?"

Will chuckled. "Okay, okay. There is someone."

"I knew it. Name?"

"Elizabeth Bennet. She's Jane's younger sister."

Richard burst out laughing. "How convenient for you and Charles. Sisters?"

Will laughed with him. "I know, it sounds sketchy, doesn't it?"

"So...?" Richard asked, waiting for more details.

"So...what?" Will replied, once again trying to be evasive.

"Don't try to be coy, it's not your style. What's the deal with this...Elizabeth?" Richard asked, completely curious now. "How long has this been going on?"

"Umm, not long. I met her in the middle of May. We didn't get off to a great start. She couldn't stand me."

"Really?" Richard was instantly intrigued. "You mean, she didn't fall all over herself trying to impress you?"

Will smirked. "Very funny. God no. Far from it. She thought I was a pompous ass...or an arrogant jerk, as she put it."

"I like her already," Richard said. "So, this has been going on since the middle of May-"

"Actually, we met in the middle of May. We didn't go on a date til the end of May," Will interrupted.

"Okay, so the end of May. It's now the end of June. Why haven't I heard of her until now? You and I talk almost every day."

Will shrugged. "I wasn't ready to talk about her yet. I wanted to make sure it was going in the right direction first."

Richard looked at his cousin closely. "And is it?"

Will smiled lightly, shrugging again. "It is...I think. I hope."

Richard rolled his eyes and shook his head, but was smiling. He was happy for Will. "Any photos you care to share?"

Will glared at Richard. He knew he could whip out his phone and show him any number of photos of Elizabeth, but for some reason, he didn't want to.

"Umm...none, sorry."

"Oh please," Richard said, rolling his eyes once again. "You mean to tell me your little smart phone there isn't loaded with them? You could land the Space Shuttle with that thing. Gimme a break."

Will sighed. "Alright, alright. I have a couple. None of them do her justice, though. She has the most amazing green eyes...and her hair...it's gorgeous. She's an environmental scientist, unbelievably smart. She's also an amazing photographer-"

He broke off as he realized he was rambling while staring at the picture he had pulled up on his phone of Elizabeth. It happened to be one of his favorites. It was taken fairly close up; she was curled in a chair on her deck, hair down around her shoulders, wrapped up in his Harvard sweatshirt. She was smiling, her eyes were dancing at him, and as usual, she looked beautiful.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, he turned to look at Richard, who was holding out his hand.

"Can I just look at the picture, please?" Richard asked, obviously amused by his cousin's effusive descriptions.

Will handed him his phone, and Richard looked at the picture and nodded his head, whistling. He smiled at Will. "She's _very_ pretty. Stunning eyes, you're right. And what a mane of hair-"

Will pulled his phone away from Richard. "Okay, that's enough." He knew when his cousin was trying to bait him. Richard laughed.

"So I guess I'll have to make alternate plans for tonight, then?" Richard asked innocently.

Will rolled his eyes. "I can only imagine what you had lined up. Whatever it was, please cancel it."

"_It_ was us going out with two delectable women...very beautiful, very refined, very _eager_."

"Knowing you, I don't doubt that for a second. Yes, please cancel. Can we just go have a beer somewhere?"

"Wait...just because you're canceling doesn't mean I have to, does it? I'm not opposed to going out with two women."

"I'm sure you're not, and I'm sure it wouldn't be the first time, either," Will said, laughing. He was well aware of his cousins antics with women.

Even though he was two years older, Richard was quite content living the single life. Women were drawn to him. He was handsome, friendly, and wealthy. Hence, he never lacked for female companionship.

"Anne was looking forward to seeing you at some point though, if you're up to it, that is," Richard said slowly, smiling lightly.

"Oh, God, please," Will said, cringing. "Do I have to? I really don't want to see her."

Anne DeBourgh was Richard's stepsister, and Will's step-cousin, if there was such a thing. No blood relation between them, although Will almost wished there was, so Anne would leave him alone.

"She just wants to see you, say hi, catch up. The usual."

"You _cannot_ leave me alone with her," Will said seriously. "She terrifies me."

Richard laughed. "She's just...forward, that's all. She's all bark and no bite, she won't hurt you."

"Just the same...maybe she can meet us out somewhere for a drink. I don't even want her to know where I'm staying. _Don't_ tell her."

"Fine, fine," Richard smirked, "I'll call her later, see if she wants to meet us somewhere."

"That sounds fine." Will glanced at his watch. "We should get going."

* * *

><p>Two hours, later, both Will and Richard left the meeting with the engineer feeling as though their heads were spinning.<p>

They had met with Stephanie Hanscom, who was currently a principal engineer at Designs Of The Future. Dot.F was a well known firm in San Francisco and throughout California. They specialized in new construction and renovations, and the firm was committed to innovative and ecological design.

Richard thought Stephanie could be the one to lead them in the right direction. He had been actively "headhunting" while he was in San Francisco, and was happy that she had agreed to meet with him and Will. She had experience in architecture and mechanical engineering, and had an extensive resume.

Will wanted to talk to her, to get a feel for how interested she seemed in their proposal, and he was satisfied with her answers to the myriad questions that both he and Richard had asked her. She had been working at Dot.F for nine years, and was interested in moving on, if the right position came along. She was young, and very enthusiastic about her work.

They told her what they had in mind for the design branch of RJD, and she was intrigued. Both Will and Richard knew it would be a challenge for them to get the upstart off the ground, but she seemed thrilled at the thought of being the one to set the wheels in motion. She would have the responsibility of recruiting the people to work under her, so it was important that they thought she was a good fit for the job. She agreed to meet with them again on Thursday.

"I like her," Richard said, as they walked down to the Starbucks on the corner to grab a coffee. They had thought about going for lunch, but both were still full from breakfast.

Will smirked. "I bet you do," he said, glancing at his cousin.

Will couldn't help but notice that Stephanie Hanscom happened to be quite pretty. Blonde, blue eyed, tall...perfection in Richard's book.

"Hold on, I know what you're thinking...that's not why I chose her. I had done quite a bit of digging around with some people, trying to get a lead on some names, and hers was the one that consistently came up. I had pretty much made up my mind that she was the one for me..._us_...even before I laid eyes on her."

Will laughed at his cousin's unintentional blunder. "Well, it seems she very well may be the one for _us_."

"I think so."

They walked into the Starbucks, and while Richard went up to order, Will grabbed a table. He opened his laptop and checked his email. Nothing. He frowned slightly, then remembered that he said he would email her. He glanced up at the counter, and saw that Richard still had five people ahead of him in line.

Quickly, he typed.

_Hello beautiful,_

_I'm afraid this will be quick, only as long as it takes for Richard to order two coffees at Starbucks. I hope you're having a good day at work. Or maybe I should say 'productive' instead? I'm sorry you have to deal with all those changes so suddenly. _

_Our meeting went well this morning, I think we may have found the person to lead RJD into its new design future. We'll see. We're meeting with her again on Thursday. She reminded me a lot of you, in some ways. Very enthusiastic about her work, very committed._

He sighed as his fingers wiggled over the keys. He glanced up and saw that Richard still had three people ahead of him in line.

_I have to admit, I'm nervous about this next big step with RJD. After the meeting, I came to the realization that even after all the research I've done, trying to learn as much as I can, I still don't know as much as I need to about the green design business._

_And, I know even less about starting a new company, from scratch so to speak. RJD was already so well-established when it was handed to me, and I had so many people to help me, I basically just had to step in and take over where my father left off._

_I guess, ultimately, I don't want to let people down...especially my father. He left his life's work to __me__, all of his accomplishments were given to __me__. RJD is his legacy. What if I screw it up? What if it fails?_

He paused as his eyes scanned over what he had just typed. A glance up to the counter showed that Richard would be back any minute. He began typing again.

_I've just read what I've written to you, and I don't mean to sound so dramatic. I miss you like crazy, and I finally had to spill the beans to my nosy cousin about why I had a grin on my face all the time. He badgered me with questions about you, which I was more than willing to answer, because it gave me a chance to talk and brag about you for a little while._

_Speaking of Richard, he's back with my coffee...some grande skinny something-or-other. Right up your alley._

_He's telling me to tell you that he says 'hello' and that he's looking forward to meeting you._

_I miss you._

_xo  
><em>_W_

The rest of the afternoon flew by fairly quickly. Both Will and Richard went to the RJD Properties office. Richard went up to do some paperwork and invited Will to come up to his office when he had a chance, to look at the prospectuses they had on two other properties in the downtown San Francisco area, as well as two other properties that Richard was excited about, located in Los Angeles.

Will wasn't thrilled at the idea of expanding to L.A.; it would be a whole new market for them, but Richard insisted on presenting everything to him, so Will could at least make an informed decision. Already, he felt it would be too much at once; branching off in a new design business, _and_ expanding their market, all at once, would be a huge task.

Will was impressed with Richard's efforts so far. He had proven that he was the person to be in charge on the West Coast, and Will was ready to give him a little more freedom with some of the decision making. Will would always have the final say on anything monumental, but he was beginning to realize that Richard had a good business head on his shoulders. There was no need for second guessing.

As he strolled through the office building, he stopped and chatted with a few people that had been with the company for a long time. He didn't know a lot of the office staff, but it was obvious that they knew who he was, and had been told he was coming.

He introduced himself to a few people, asked them their names, what their responsibilities were, how long they'd been there, and so on. He always maintained a serious demeanor, though. He had the "Mr. Darcy" mask on, as Elizabeth liked to call it. He didn't want to be unapproachable; he just wanted to maintain that separation.

He finished his tour of the offices and headed to the elevator. Once inside, he leaned back against the wall and sighed deeply, as the elevator climbed to the next floor. The doors opened, and he walked out, heading down the hall to Richard's office. He rounded a corner, and stopped dead in his tracks.

Richard was talking to a woman. That in itself isn't what bothered Will. It was the way they were talking. Richard was leaning in very close to her, and although he couldn't quite see it, it seemed to Will that they were touching...barely. The woman was looking up at Richard intently, and he said something to her that made her shake her head slightly. He reached down to stroke her hand.

Will cleared his throat – loudly – and the woman stepped back, turning in Will's direction. Her face instantly colored when she realized who was standing there. She quickly walked down the hall, past Will, saying a soft "Good afternoon, Mr. Darcy," trying her best to look him in the eye. She failed miserably.

"Good afternoon," Will said back, looking quickly at her, then back to Richard.

The woman disappeared around the corner, and Will walked down the hall toward Richard. He stopped in front of him.

"What the hell was that?" Will asked quietly.

Richard sighed. "It wasn't what you think."

"Why don't we go into your office so you can tell me what I think?" Will said, his tone short and clipped.

Richard turned and walked into his office, Will right behind him. He shut the door as Will went over to the window and looked out.

"I'm waiting," Will said sternly.

"For what?" Richard said, his tone now matching Will's. "I already told you it wasn't what you think."

"And I told you I wanted you to tell me what I think. I'm pretty damn sure I'm right."

"You're not. She's a friend."

Will laughed sarcastically. "Come on, Richard. You were practically rubbing up against her in the hall."

Richard looked up to the ceiling and crossed his arms over his chest. "Alright, alright. Jesus, Will. It's not like that. It's...we were just talking."

Will's eyes opened wide. "_Just talking_? Do I need to remind you that you're the boss out here, Richard?"

"Of course not."

"Maybe I do. Sometimes, '_just talking_' can lead to something else entirely. Do I need to spell it out for you?"

"No, you don't need to spell it out for me," Richard said, practically sneering at Will. "I know...I know."

"Then end it. Knock it off. I don't need to get slapped with a sexual harassment suit. Who is she?"

Richard sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Her name is Lauren. Lauren Jeffries."

"Mmhm. And where does Lauren Jeffries work?"

"She's my secretary."

Will exhaled loudly as he shook his head and closed his eyes. "Are you serious? What happened to, ugh, what was her name...Marilyn?"

"She left six months ago. Moved to Seattle. Lauren has been here since."

"Okay...forget Marilyn. We're getting off track. If I can't trust you to behave with the employees, Richard, I'll have to make some changes."

"It's not like that. You can trust me." Richard was staring him squarely in the eyes, not blinking, not looking away.

Will sighed again. "I hope so. I can't have problems like that, you know I can't. You're my cousin, my family. You're a gold-diggers dream. Don't put yourself in that position."

"I won't. I'm not."

Will stared at him for a moment, trying to read him. Something didn't feel right.

"Alright. I trust you. Don't fuck it up."

"I won't. I promise you, I won't."

Will nodded at him, still searching his face for any clues as to what was going on.

Richard broke the silence. "Do you want to hear about those properties in L.A.?" he asked, reaching for a folder on his desk and then opening his laptop.

Will held his hand up. "Honestly...I don't. Not right now. Can it wait until tomorrow?"

Richard shrugged. "I don't see why not."

"I think I'll head back to the hotel. Do you want to grab a beer later?" he asked Richard, trying to find a way to get them back on comfortable terms, "or do you still have plans with your _eager_ friends?"

Richard grinned. "Umm, actually, I canceled those plans. All the same, I'll pass on the beer. Maybe tomorrow night? I called Annie, tomorrow night works for her. Does that work for you?"

"Ugh, I forgot about her." Will rubbed his hand over his face. "Sure. Tomorrow night is fine. Looks like it's room service for me tonight." Secretly, Will was relieved. He wasn't in the mood to socialize.

"Okay. I'll talk to you tomorrow morning then."

Will nodded again. "See you tomorrow."

* * *

><p>Will walked into his hotel suite, placed his laptop on the table, kicked off his shoes, and removed his suit jacket. His tie followed, and he undid the top buttons on his shirt. When he was comfortable enough, he flopped down onto his back on the couch.<p>

_What the hell is Richard thinking? What is he up to?_

He had gotten a weird vibe from the whole thing, as if Richard wasn't being honest with him. Did he really think that Will would believe him when he said she was just a friend? Their body language told an entirely different story.

It had been a few hours since he had emailed Elizabeth, so he decided to check to see if she had emailed him back. He turned on his laptop, and when he went to his email, he wasn't disappointed.

_Hi Will,_

_It's extraordinary, isn't it? How happy someone can become, at the sight of a message waiting in their in-box. I got home from softball a little while ago, made myself a light dinner, checked my email, and there you were. Waiting for me._

_I wish I was there to hug you and kiss you, and tell you not to worry, that your fears are all unfounded __and irrational. But you know what? They probably aren't unfounded and irrational. I think failure is a fear for everyone._

_Please don't be so hard on yourself. You have the support of so many people...Georgie, Richard, Charles...me...we all have faith in you. Your father had faith in you, too. He knew you well enough to know that you would become the man that could lead his company, his legacy, into the future. You've honored him, and if he was here today, he would tell you himself, I'm sure, that you've made him proud._

_Charlotte and her boyfriend will be here soon, he's using the darkroom again. Please call me as soon as you're able._

_Tell your nosy cousin I'm looking forward to meeting him too._

_Miss you ~_

_xo  
><em>_Elizabeth _

Reading her email worked its magic. He felt better. It's not that he suffered from a complete lack of confidence; he just realized that he was about to embark on something that he'd never undertaken before. It had all seemed slightly overwhelming at the moment, but now, it didn't seem so formidable.

Will glanced at the time on the email. She had sent it at seven o'clock her time, which wasn't very long ago. Charlotte and her boyfriend must be there now. He decided to wait a couple of hours before he called her.

Picking up his phone, he dialed Georgie's cell.

"Hey Fitz," she answered happily.

"Hey sis, how's it going?"

"Everything's fine here. Mrs. R arrived today, we just finished making a giant mess of the kitchen."

"What'd you cook up?"

"Oh, we didn't really _cook _anything...we actually went out for an early dinner."

Will could hear Mrs. R talking in the background as Georgiana started to laugh.

"She's threatening me to keep my mouth shut and not tell you what we just made."

Will knew instantly. "Did you make the homemade whoopee pies that I love?"

"We did," she said, then, "Ow! Alice Reynolds! Will, she pinched me!"

"You deserve it. I know it had to have been your idea to make them, she'd never offer to make them without me around." He smiled. Hearing the happiness in Georgie's voice was enough to erase the stress of the day.

"She said we can put some in the freezer...apparently, they _freeze well_. That's straight from Mrs. R's mouth."

"Please do. Hey, how's her sister?"

"She's doing well. Almost has all of her strength back."

"Glad to hear it."

"Have you talked to Elizabeth much?"

"Yes, a couple of times. We've been emailing each other. Have you talked to her?"

"I have...she wants to know if I want to get together with her and Jane and Caroline on Thursday night."

"She told me she was going to call and invite you. What do you think?"

Georgie sighed. "I'd love to meet Jane, but having Caroline around...well, you know. I don't have to explain it to you. She's such a...a suck up."

Will started laughing.

"You know what I mean!" Georgie said. "She's only nice to me because she wants to get to you. And, of course, she wants me to marry Charles. How crazy is that?"

"Very, very crazy," Will said, still laughing. "She knows that Charles is serious about Jane, though. He set her straight on that. Plus, she knows I'm with Elizabeth now, so maybe she won't feel the need to be a suck up, as you so eloquently put it."

"Yeah, maybe. I'll probably get together with them. I don't know what they have in mind, but it'll be nice to hang out with the girls."

"I thought girls didn't 'hang out'?" Will asked her, smiling.

"Ugh. Okay, whatever...it'll be nice to have a 'girls night'."

"It will, and I know Elizabeth would like to include you. She thinks the world of you, you know."

Georgie smiled. "The feeling is mutual."

Will sighed. "I can't wait to get home. I'm going to try to come early. If I can catch a late afternoon flight on Thursday, I'll be back on the Cape by Friday. Don't mention anything to Elizabeth, though, in case it doesn't work out."

"Your secret's safe with me," Georgie replied.

"I'm going to call for room service, then try to get some work done. Say hi to Mrs. R for me."

"I will. I'll talk to you soon."

"I'll let you know what my travel plans are when I know, okay?"

"Sounds good. Bye Will, love you."

"Love you too. Bye."

He hung up and quickly texted Richard, asking him to email some info on the L.A. properties that Richard wanted him to look at. He felt a little guilty, now, for walking out so quickly on him. He knew Richard was excited to talk to him today about the chance to snap these two buildings up, and Will had basically shut him down.

Fifteen minutes later, his phone beeped with a return text.

_Info on its way. See you tomorrow._

Will sent a quick _thanks _back to him, then grabbed the room service menu. He realized how starved he was, as he really hadn't eaten anything since breakfast that morning. He ordered a burger and a salad, and popped the tv on to watch the news. Twenty minutes later, his food arrived. He ate, then shut off the tv. When he checked his email, he saw the information that Richard had sent, and got to work.

At seven o'clock, he shut his laptop off and walked into the bedroom of the suite, plopping himself down on the bed. He had been reading extensively about the two properties in L.A., and he realized that Richard was right...they were a steal, and a great way to expand their market. Maybe an early trip home wouldn't be happening after all; he might have to go to L.A. He frowned at the thought, not wanting to extend this trip at all, but he knew it might be a necessity.

He lay back on his pillows, stretching out his long frame on the bed, and picked up his phone.

It only rang once before Elizabeth picked up.

"Hi Will," she answered, and he instantly felt the tension ease from his shoulders.

He sighed. "Hi babe."

"How are you?"

"I'm fine. Tired, but fine."

"You sound tired. You sound like you're in need of a back rub."

He groaned. "That sounds perfect. When can you be here?"

She laughed lightly, then sighed. "I wish I could be there." She paused for a moment. "Are you really okay?"

"Yes, I am. I'm fine. Ten times better now that I'm talking to you. Are you all curled up in bed?"

"You already know the answer to that."

"Yes, I suppose I do." He smiled as the image formed in his mind. "Tell me about your day."

"My day? Very uneventful. Work was...ugh...work, I guess. I had a softball game, which was okay...we won."

"Oh, that's good. Sorry I missed it."

"There are still a lot of games left. It's not as much fun when you're not there to cheer me on."

"Mmm. I love cheering you on."

"Charlotte and 'creepy guy' came over." Elizabeth had reduced George to 'creepy guy' whenever she talked to Will or Jane about him.

"Did he behave?" Will asked, not so sure he liked this guy coming around Elizabeth, even though he was always with Charlotte.

"He did. He usually does-"

"What do you mean, usually?" Will interrupted.

"Well, he's never done anything...overt...towards me. It's just the way he looks at me, I guess."

"If he makes you uncomfortable, don't let him come over any more. Better yet, have him come over some night that I'm there, so I can-"

"Intimidate him?" It was Elizabeth's turn to interrupt, and she did so with a smile on her face. "You could stare at him, give him the Darcy glare. He'd run for the hills."

A smile formed on his lips and he closed his eyes. "Ah, there it is. That's what I miss...the teasing." He became serious again. "Just promise me you'll be careful around him. I don't even know the guy, and I don't trust him already."

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself," Elizabeth responded, trying to ease his mind.

"I know you can. Just humor me."

There was a brief silence.

"I'm going to ask you again, for my own peace of mind," Elizabeth said quietly, "are you really okay? Your email had me a little worried."

Will sighed. "You don't need to be worried. I'm really okay. I was just...over-thinking things too much, I suppose. It wasn't nearly as bad as it sounded."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, really, I'm _sure_. I'm sorry I dumped all that on you. I shouldn't have."

"Yes, you should have...and you didn't dump_. _You talked to me. I want you to do that."

"Okay, well, now that I've talked, I feel better, really."

"That's good...I'm glad. Like I said, everyone worries about failing at something." She paused again. "When this new company gets off the ground, this new branch, what will you call it?"

Will was happy for the change of subject. "RJD Design, likely. Why?"

"Well, I was thinking...why don't you give it a different name? After all, it's going to be _your_ company. I mean, I know that RJD Properties _is_ your company, but this will be different. This will be something you created...this will be your part of the legacy. Why don't you give it your own name?"

Will started at her words. He'd never thought of it like that.

"What would you suggest for a name?" Will asked her. "Any ideas?"

"Well," Elizabeth said, an idea already in her mind, "the most logical one would be FRD Design. If you want to keep with using initials, that is. It could be a subsidiary of RJD Properties."

_FRD Design. I like it,_ Will thought.

"This will be something that's all yours," Elizabeth went on, "so it should carry _your_ name. Maybe it will help you to separate it from your father's legacy, even just a little. Maybe it will help to take some of the pressure off."

Will was quiet for a moment, and Elizabeth knew the wheels were spinning in his brain.

"It's a great idea," he said. "Have I ever told you how attractive you are when you're showing your brilliance?" he asked her, lightening his tone.

She laughed again. "You have, actually."

"Thank you for helping me look at it in a different way," he said quietly.

"Sometimes, it takes someone else to point out what's right in front of you."

"I guess so." He paused. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Are you afraid of anything?" he asked, still talking quietly, his voice wrapping around her like a warm blanket.

To him, she seemed utterly fearless, at least outwardly. She certainly wasn't frightened or intimidated by him when they'd first met, and as he had gotten to know her, he knew there wasn't anyone or anything she wouldn't take on. He knew, though, that she did have fears, related to him and their relationship. Where they stemmed from and the extent of them were still a mystery to him, but he hoped that with time, he'd be able to help her get past them.

Her heart lurched ever so slightly. "Of course there are things I'm afraid of. Everyone is afraid of something...but we're not talking about me right now. We're talking about you."

"No, we _were_ talking about me. Now I want to talk about you."

She sighed in frustration, knowing he wouldn't let up. Amazingly, however, he did.

Will knew that once again, now was not the time to delve into this. "Alright, forget I asked...for now. We really shouldn't get into this over the phone, especially since you're not here to wrap your arms around me and really make me feel better."

She could hear his smile over the phone. "I wish I was, believe me."

"I know you do. Me too."

"Do you feel even a little better?" she asked him, hoping that she had helped to diminish his worries at least a bit.

"I do," he replied seriously. "I wasn't really in that much of a state to begin with...it's just...sometimes the enormity of what's ahead of me strikes home. I have a lot of confidence in myself, but I guess it's bound to waver at times."

"It happens to everyone."

"Including you."

"Yes, including me. And on that note..."

"Yes, on that note..." he hesitated, wondering if he should tell her about L.A., and decided that letting her know now was the best idea. "On that note...I may be here an extra day or two."

Her heart sank. "Really? How come?"

"Richard found some property in L.A. that seems suitable for us. He wants me to check it out."

"It makes sense to do it while you're already out there, I suppose."

"It does. I'm going to try to make it home by Saturday night, but if I have to, I'll take a red eye so I can be home for the fourth. I don't want to miss watching the fireworks with you."

"I don't want to miss that either. Just get done what you have to get done, okay? That should be your priority."

"It should be, but it isn't," he said quietly. "You are."

She didn't know what to say. "Just...finish. Do everything you need to do, and come home."

He smiled to himself, knowing he had rattled her a little. "I will."

"What are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing. Staying in. I've eaten, so I'm fat and happy, and I'm turning in early. It's just me and the tv."

"Do you want me to call you in the morning?" she asked, already knowing his answer.

"Of course I do."

"Okay...I'll talk to you in the morning then. Goodnight Will."

"Goodnight Elizabeth. Sweet dreams."

* * *

><p><em>So, a pretty mild, benign chapter. The next one...not so much. Caroline will be back! Would love to hear from you, so leave me a review if you can! Thanks!<em>


	14. Chapter 14

_Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing! A lot of you have said some very nice things...I really appreciate it, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story. Time to visit our couple, who are still on opposite sides of the country. Caroline is back...let's see what she's up to..._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 14<strong>

_Day 3_

Elizabeth hated to call Will so early, but she knew she'd never hear the end of it if she didn't wake him to say good morning.

She dialed his cell number and waited for him to pick up.

"Hi 'Lizabeth," he answered sleepily.

"How did you know it was me?" she asked, smiling to herself.

"No one else would call me at this hour."

"I hope not," she said. "I still don't think I should."

"No, you should. Off to work?"

"Mmhm, in a few minutes. I'll be driving today, it's a little gray out there, could be rain later."

"Good idea," he said, before yawning quietly.

She could hear the rustling of the bed covers over the phone, and imagined him moving around under the sheets, long legs stretching out...

She felt a familiar flutter in her stomach, and cleared her throat. "What's your plan for today?"

He sighed. "Lets see...today...today we're looking at some property, down in the commercial district. It may take most of the day...I'll try to email you though, when I can."

"If you can't, that's okay. I know we'll talk tonight."

"We will. I'm supposed to go out to dinner with Richard and his stepsister Anne."

"That sounds like fun," Elizabeth said, wishing it was her going out with him instead. But no, she was going out with Jane...and Caroline.

Will gave a short, low laugh. "We'll see about that."

Elizabeth glanced at the clock. "I should go. I just wanted to say good morning, and tell you that I still miss you."

He smiled. "I still miss you too. Funny how that doesn't go away."

"Hmm, it definitely doesn't go away," she replied softly.

_No, it only gets worse_, he thought, sighing. "Alright gorgeous, I'll let you go. Have a good day."

"You too. Bye Will."

"Bye Elizabeth."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth walked into Bill's office at three o'clock and dropped a folder on his desk.<p>

"There you go," she said, placing her hands on her hips.

Bill looked up from his desk. "Good afternoon, Elizabeth," he said, raising one eyebrow slightly.

She grinned sheepishly. "Oh, sorry. Hi Bill."

"Did you even leave your office today? What's this?" he asked, pulling the folder in front of him and opening it.

"It's all the data charts I've compiled. The Oceanographic already has them, I just emailed them over. I've got them all saved in the computer, but I thought I'd print them out as well, so you could have a look."

Bill looked over the contents of the folder, flipping through the pages slowly. "I'm pleasantly surprised. You've even recorded the carbon isotopic composition of the dissolved inorganic carbon concentrations. Impressive."

"Thanks." Elizabeth stood there, hands now behind her back, smiling slightly at Bill.

He looked up at her, noticing the expression on her face. "Is there something else?" he asked, knowing full well there was.

"Um, sort of. I know I had last Friday off, but is there any way I could leave a bit early today?"

"Not only did you have last Friday off, but I see that you have next Friday off as well."

"Actually, I have next _Thursday _and Friday off, if you must know. I have plans."Truthfully, she had no plans at all...yet. She was hoping, though, that she'd have some with Will soon enough, as Thursday was her birthday.

"And you still think you should be allowed to leave early today? Can I ask why you need to leave?"

"Sure. My sister is visiting from Boston, and we'd like to go to the farmer's market in town."

Elizabeth watched as Bill rolled his eyes.

She nodded toward the folder on his desk. "I really worked hard to get those completed today, I even skipped lunch. I'm off in an hour anyway. Please?"

He caved. For all of his attempts at keeping his distance from Elizabeth, he still liked her a great deal. If it wasn't for his nasty cousin, things could be different.

"Fine, fine, you can leave."

Elizabeth clapped her hands together. "Thanks Bill!"

He cleared his throat. "George said he and Charlotte were at your house last night?"

Elizabeth sighed softly, trying to hide her irritation. "Yes, they were. George was using the dark room again."

"It's nice of you to let him use it. I hope he's being...respectful to you. You know, paying you for supplies...being nice to you...is he?"

"He's fine. Like I've told you before, he's _always_ with Charlotte. She knows the rules."

Bill smiled, and Elizabeth thought it was odd that he looked...relieved. She finally asked him what she'd wanted to ask him for a while now.

"What's up with him, Bill?"

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Bill asked innocently.

"I mean, what's his deal? What's his story? Why are you always asking me about them?"

Bill shrugged, trying hard to maintain a calm expression. "I'm just curious, that's all. And, I want to make sure George is being a stand-up guy. I don't want him to inconvenience you, or impose on you."

"He isn't. We work around my schedule, he's only there when it's convenient for me."

"Okay. Well thanks, anyway, for helping him out." He forced a smile onto his face. "I know he appreciates it."

"Sure. So far, no problem," she said, still thinking that his curiosity was odd. "Thanks again for letting me leave."

"Oh, you're welcome. Enjoy the afternoon with your sister."

"I'm sure I will. See you tomorrow."

* * *

><p>Including last night, George had used Elizabeth's darkroom twice so far. She made sure that Charlotte was always with him when he came over, because frankly, she didn't want to be alone at her house with him. So far, so good. He paid for the materials he used, and always seemed very grateful to her for letting him use it. He was definitely a talented photographer, and he clearly knew what he was doing when developing his pictures. Elizabeth had gone into the darkroom with him the first time, but this time, she let him go in by himself while she sat on the deck with Charlotte, catching up.<p>

Last night, he had mentioned her new photos up on the wall in the darkroom, particularly one of Will that she had taken when he was sitting out on her deck.

She loved the picture. They had just come back from a run on the bike path, and he was sitting back in a deck chair, shirtless, his skin glistening slightly with a light trace of sweat. She had zoomed in on him, wanting to capture him from the waist up. His face was turned up toward the sun, and his eyes were closed. The reason why she loved the picture was because of the expression on his face. He was smiling, a small smile, like he had a secret. He looked happy, content. She saw that expression frequently on his face when he was with her. She knew, without a doubt, that she wore the same expression just as often.

Elizabeth had walked into the house to get Charlotte and herself something to drink, and George was just emerging from the darkroom. He mentioned the picture of Will casually, and she wasn't surprised, since it was larger than most of the other photos hanging on the wall, and had taken a spot pretty much front and center.

"I take it the gentleman gracing the wall in there is the boyfriend?" he asked.

"Yes, that would be him," she had replied, not wanting to engage in conversation about Will. George still gave her the creeps, and she really wanted him to know as little about her as possible. He always looked her up and down, and Elizabeth caught him staring whenever Charlotte wasn't paying attention, which was frequently.

"Handsome fellow. He looks a little familiar," he said, and to Elizabeth, he looked as if he was smirking.

She didn't know quite how to respond to his comment, so she chose to ignore it. "I'm getting Charlotte and myself some water, would you like something to drink?"

"I would, yes. Water would be fine. Can I help you with anything?"

As Elizabeth turned from the refrigerator, she realized he was standing right behind her, in her tiny galley kitchen, and she almost collided with him. Instantly, she felt uncomfortable. She shoved two bottles of water at him.

"You could carry these out for you and Charlotte," she said, trying to move back from him as much as she could.

His eyes drilled into hers, and her discomfort increased. He stood for just a moment longer, then took a step away from her.

"Thank you, Lizzy. I'm suddenly feeling very thirsty." He winked at her and walked out of the kitchen.

She couldn't figure him out. He seemed to like Charlotte, and Charlotte definitely liked him...but Elizabeth still got a strange vibe from him. It was almost as if he was being flirtatious, but at the same time, he seemed a little pervy. As long as Charlotte came with him, though, she figured there was no harm in letting him use the darkroom. She'd keep her distance and make sure they weren't alone, and if he got too weird, she'd have to say something to Charlotte.

As they were leaving, Charlotte had asked about Will. "When does your man come back, anyway?"

"Oh, he'll be home Friday." _I hope._

"That's good. Only a few more days," Charlotte said, wrapping an arm around Elizabeth's shoulder and giving her a squeeze.

"Yeah, I heard the boyfriend jet-setted off to Cali without you, Elizabeth?" George was definitely smirking at her.

"Yes, he's on a business trip_,_" Elizabeth replied nonchalantly.

"Shame you couldn't join him. Although, I'm sure he's not lacking for...things to do, shall we say? California has many pleasant distractions."

Elizabeth didn't miss his implications, and chose not to respond to them.

"Yes, a shame," she said, rolling her eyes as she walked to the door and opened it.

She saw Charlotte try to discreetly elbow him, and he turned to look at her innocently, as if to say, "What did I do?"

Charlotte shook her head and turned to Elizabeth. "Thanks again, sweetie. Want to get together this weekend? Huge holiday sales at the mall, we could make a day of it."

Elizabeth shrugged. "Sure. Call me Saturday morning." She didn't really expect Will to be back before Saturday night at this point anyway, so why not?

George turned and smiled at her, quickly grasping her hand to shake it lightly.

"Thanks again, Miss Lizzy, for letting me in."

"You're welcome, George. See you around."

She closed the door after them, and let out a big sigh. _I just don't like him_, she thought.

* * *

><p>It was late when George returned to his cousin's house. He had gone back to Charlie's place first, and had practically ripped her clothes off, he was so horny from being around Lizzy. It didn't take much to get him going when she was around...the memory of those green eyes looking at him was enough to get him hard almost instantly.<p>

Charlie, thankfully, was _very_ willing, and _very_ able, to take care of his needs. She was no prude, and had very few inhibitions. The few that she did have, he was steadily chipping away at. She let him do just about _anything_ to her, and in turn, he made sure she was a very satisfied woman.

He pulled the photos that he taken from Elizabeth's dark room out of his jacket pocket. He had taken care to rearrange other photos around the bare spaces he had left behind when he took what he wanted, so it wouldn't be obvious.

The first photo was of Elizabeth. He didn't know who took it, probably _Mr. Darcy_. She was laughing at something, bent over slightly, hands on her thighs, beaming into the camera. _God, she must be incredible in the sack. Something about her, _he thought. She looked as though she could handle a man quite easily.

The second photo was an unexpected treat. There she was, Miss Georgiana Darcy, dangling on the wall, right in front of his face. It was a new photo, he was sure of it...it hadn't been there before, he would have noticed it. She was sitting in an adirondack chair, outside, and was smiling at something in the distance. He had to take it...even though he risked being found out. If Lizzy was to notice that any particular picture was missing, it would probably be that one.

It was almost as if the Darcy's had magically fallen back into his lap. He shook his head and laughed to himself. He would be a fool to try to play that game again, but he was tempted...very much. And this time, the stakes would be so much higher. _That arrogant prick would have given me anything to save his sister. How much is the woman he loves worth?_

He placed the photos next to one that he already had of Charlie that he had taken himself. She looked breathtaking in it...it was a very provocative photo, and he loved it, although she was a little embarrassed when he suggested taking it. He had found a way to convince her though.

There they were, all lined up on his nightstand. He sighed as he felt desire surge through him.

He rearranged the photos, putting Elizabeth's at the front of the order.

"Looks like you're next, little Miss Lizzy. I can hardly wait."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth arrived home to find Jane and Caroline sunning themselves on her deck.<p>

"By all means, make yourselves at home ladies!" Elizabeth said mock-seriously as she got to the top of her steps. "How long have you been waiting for me?"

"Hey Lizzy!" Jane called out, getting up off a lounge chair to give Elizabeth a hug. "We just got here not even fifteen minutes ago. How was work?"

"Oh, fine. I was happy to have a reason to leave." She turned to look at Caroline. "How are you, Caroline?"

Caroline turned her warmest smile on Elizabeth. "I'm fine, Eliza...ooh, sorry, Elizabeth." She looked at her surroundings. "This is quite...cute. It's so..._cottagey_."

Inwardly, Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Oh, thanks. A Cape cottage is basically what it is, but its home, and I love it." She smiled at Caroline, still trying to puzzle the woman out.

"So are we off to the market?" Jane asked.

"Sure...let me get changed into something more comfortable, and we can head out. I have some suggestions for dinner, we can talk on the way into town."

Twenty minutes later, the three women were headed to the farmer's market in Jane's Saab. They parked at the public lot off of Main Street, and decided to poke their heads into some shops first, and visit the farmer's market last.

Caroline seemed to genuinely like some of the shops they visited. She was beginning to amass a large amount of shopping bags, and Jane and Elizabeth laughed when she suggested a trip to the car to leave everything off before going to the farmer's market.

As they walked in that direction, Jane asked about Will.

"How's his trip going so far?" Jane inquired.

Elizabeth smiled. "It's fine. He's fine. He has a lot to keep him busy. Plus, he gets to visit with his cousin Richard. They don't see each other much, obviously. They're going out tonight."

Caroline's eyebrows flew up at this bit of information. She could definitely use this to her advantage.

"Darcy is going out with Richard tonight, is he?" she smirked as she spoke the words.

Elizabeth looked at her curiously. "Yes...that's what he said."

Caroline chuckled as she shook her head. "That's a dangerous duo...I could tell you some stories that would -" She abruptly stopped talking, and glanced at Elizabeth. "Oh...um...forget it."

Jane looked at Caroline questioningly. "What do you mean, a dangerous duo?"

Caroline smiled at Jane, all the while thinking that this was working out very nicely. "It's just that..." she turned to glance at Elizabeth to make sure she was listening. "...they are quite a pair. Especially when let loose on the social scene. The women flock to them like moths to a flame."

Elizabeth felt her stomach flip. She looked at Caroline, wondering if she was purposely trying to irritate her.

Caroline continued. "I suppose you're not worried about that, though, are you Elizabeth?"

Once again, Elizabeth smiled. "Not at all. They'll have a third party anyway, Richard's stepsister Anne is going out with them as well."

"_Anne_?" Caroline said, as she stopped in her tracks. "Anne_ DeBourgh_?"

Elizabeth shrugged, looking puzzled. "I guess that's her last name, I'm not sure. Why?"

Caroline shook her head. "Oh, it's just...well, it's common knowledge that Anne has had her sights set on Darcy for quite a while."

Caroline watched as Elizabeth's brow furrowed. _Bingo_!

Jane chose that time to speak up, seeing that her sister's demeanor had changed slightly. "Oh Caroline, Will is mad about Lizzy. You'd see it if you were around them more. No one can turn his head."

Caroline smiled at Jane. "I'm sure you're right, Jane. Perhaps Darcy's bachelor days – as wild as they are, or were – are over now?" She snickered to herself. "Perhaps."

Although Elizabeth wasn't supposed to hear that last 'perhaps,' she did. She had to fight to quell the little knot of insecurity that threatened to bloom inside of her. She wouldn't let Caroline get to her.

"I'm not worried about Will. Not at all," she said, giving Jane and Caroline a completely confident look. "He misses me and can't wait to get home."

* * *

><p>After their walk along Main Street, the women browsed the farmer's market, where Elizabeth bought some fresh produce and bread, and some locally roasted coffee. They drove Elizabeth home and parted ways, agreeing to meet at seven for dinner at Siena, an Italian restaurant located in Mashpee.<p>

Elizabeth was feeling less than enthusiastic about spending the evening with Caroline. Her comments kept replaying in Elizabeth's mind, and she just couldn't shake the cloud that had fallen over her mood. She had sent a quick email off to Will before she left work, and decided to check to see if he had responded.

Sure enough, a message was waiting in her inbox.

_Hi Sweetheart,_

_Glad you're having a good day. I know you're meeting up with Jane and Caroline later...I hope you have a good time._

_Richard and I are just finishing up lunch. We looked at one building this morning, down on the waterfront, and have another one to look at this afternoon. He and Anne are dragging me out tonight, demanding that I stop 'holing up in my hotel and pouting', as Richard put it. I can only imagine what kind of trouble they'll try to get me into._

_I will call you later, although I'm sure I'll check my email as well...just in case...hint hint._

_Not to be redundant, but I miss you terribly. _

_I'll talk to you soon._

_xo  
><em>_W_

She smiled. He did miss her...he had said as much, over and over, since he had left. She shook Caroline's negative comments from her mind, and sent him a quick email.

_Hi Will,_

_Jane, Caroline, and I browsed Main Street and visited the farmer's market this afternoon. The market is at the park off of Main St., and I found myself daydreaming about dancing there with you last Friday night, and listening to you sing. What a nice memory._

_We are headed to Siena in Mashpee for dinner tonight, the food (Italian) is very good, I'm looking forward to it._

_Have fun tonight...try to stay out of trouble!_

Thoughts of Caroline's comments came rushing back as she typed, and she forcibly shoved them to the back of her mind.

_Miss you too..._

_xo  
><em>_E_

* * *

><p>Elizabeth strolled into Siena and found Jane and Caroline at the bar, perusing the wine menu. The bar area was extremely crowded, so there wasn't much space to stand. Unfortunately, they hadn't made a reservation, so they were stuck waiting there until the hostess called them for a table.<p>

The three women each ordered a glass of wine and settled in to wait.

"So, what did you ladies do today to fill the rest of your afternoon?" Elizabeth asked.

"Oh, not much of anything, really...we lounged around on the deck," Jane answered. "I talked to Charles, he said to say 'hello'."

"I made a few calls as well," Caroline said, smiling to herself, "then I read for a bit."

"What are you reading?" Elizabeth asked, always curious to find out what types of books interested other people.

"Oh...nothing special. I just flipped through the latest Cosmo, Vogue, and Lucky."

"What's on the agenda for tomorrow night?" Jane asked both women.

"Oh, um, I don't know...did you have any ideas?" Elizabeth replied, wondering what they could do that Georgiana would be comfortable with.

"I thought we could just cook something up for dinner, drink some wine, and maybe watch a movie?" Jane said, looking between Elizabeth and Caroline.

"Cook?" The word came out of Elizabeth's mouth at exactly the same time as it came out of Caroline's, and the three all began laughing.

"If there's any cooking to be done, it'll be done by you," Elizabeth said to Jane, still laughing.

"I second that," Caroline said. "I'm useless in the kitchen."

"Would either of you mind if I invited Georgiana to join us? I promised her we'd get together this week."

Both Jane and Caroline thought it was a good idea, and Jane mentioned that maybe Georgiana could cook with her.

"Don't bet on it. Will's been trying to get Mrs. Reynolds to give her a few cooking lessons. She's just as bad as me, apparently."

"Oh, but Georgiana is such an _accomplished_ young woman, just the same," Caroline gushed quietly. "She's a teacher, and she's a w_onderful _pianist." She turned to look at Elizabeth. "Have you had the opportunity to listen to her play?"

Elizabeth nodded slightly. "I have, once. I suppose when we get to know each other a little better, she'll be more comfortable playing in front of me."

"Oh, I've heard her play several times," Caroline said, quite pointedly. "She has an amazing talent."

Elizabeth knew a dig when she heard one.

_Bennet? Bennet?_

"Oh, that's us," Jane said, waving to the hostess. "Our table is ready."

* * *

><p>Dinner was somewhat enjoyable. The three women chatted about everything under the sun, and Elizabeth began to relax, just slightly, with Caroline. She just couldn't figure her out. She could be so nice, so normal, and then in the next second, she'd find a way to get a dig in...like the comment about Georgiana's playing. She just didn't know what to make of her.<p>

After dinner, they all ordered coffee with Baileys, and talked about how delicious the meal was.

"Don't expect anything like this tomorrow night!" Jane said jokingly. "I feel like I'm going to pop."

"Ugh, me too," Caroline said, leaning her head back against the chair and closing her eyes. "I had no idea that the Cape could offer such wonderful food."

Elizabeth looked at Jane and rolled her eyes, smiling. Jane smiled back and shook her head. Obviously, Caroline thought living on Cape Cod was akin to living in the boondocks somewhere.

Jane's phone began to chirp. She apologized as she looked at the screen.

"Oh...it's Charles. Do you mind?" she asked, looking back and forth between Elizabeth and Caroline.

"Of course not," Caroline said, "you can't possibly ignore my brother!"

They laughed, and Jane excused herself and got up to walk out into the small lobby of the restaurant, so as not to disturb the other diners.

"So, Elizabeth, how _are_ things with Darcy?" Caroline asked, sitting back in her chair.

Elizabeth decided to be circumspect. "Things are fine," she said, smiling at Caroline.

"You're a very lucky woman, you know," Caroline went on. "There are quite a few women who would love to be in your shoes." She cleared her throat and spoke quietly. "And, given time..." her voice trailed off.

"Excuse me?" Elizabeth said, not sure she heard her right.

Caroline leaned forward, as if she was sharing a great confidence with Elizabeth.

"Elizabeth...really. Darcy is not known for his..._longevity_ in relationships." She looked down at the fingernails of one hand, holding them up as if to inspect her manicure. "He flits...like a hummingbird. Samples one flower, takes his fill of the nectar, then eventually moves on to the next pretty bloom. That sort of thing," she said matter-of-factly.

Elizabeth, unsure of what to say, kept her mouth shut.

"Your _relationship_...or whatever it is...remember, it hasn't been too long. Don't become too invested, if you know what I mean." She put her hand down, and offered a sympathetic smile to Elizabeth. "I don't doubt you've enjoyed your time with him. He can be quite..._delightful_."

Elizabeth fully understood what Caroline was implying that was _delightful_ about Will. She wasn't about to enlighten Caroline about any aspects of her relationship with him, though. Still, she tried to find her voice.

"We are enjoying each other very much," Elizabeth said, plastering on a smile.

"Hmm, I'm sure you are. Darcy can be quite _amazing_, yes?" she said quietly, raising an eyebrow and casting a knowing glance at Elizabeth. "Just consider yourself forewarned. He gets bored quite easily. Believe me, I speak from experience. He's even worse with you Cape girls." She gazed at Elizabeth, shaking her head slightly. She almost looked sympathetic.

_Amazing? Cape Girls? And what __**experience**__ does she speak from? _ Thoughts were flying through Elizabeth's head.

Caroline smiled at Elizabeth and winked. "I'm sure his talents are not news to you. Anyway, I'm just trying to give you a friendly word of warning. Don't let yourself get too involved. You'll only end up getting hurt."

Forcing bravado into her voice, she looked Caroline straight in the eyes. "Perhaps, Caroline, the problem isn't the hummingbird. Perhaps it's the flowers he's been feeding from."

Caroline shrugged, smiling lightly. "Hmm...perhaps you're right. Time will tell."

Elizabeth felt her stomach sink. Was she really sitting here, having a conversation with someone who had a relationship with Will, someone who had _slept_ with him? That was certainly what Caroline was saying, though not in so many words. Could that be the reason that Will said not to trust her, because he had a past with her? Obviously, Jane didn't know, or she never would have made plans to come to the Cape with Caroline and have them all spend time together. But Will knew...he knew she was seeing Caroline this week, socializing with her. She felt sick.

At that moment, Jane joined them back at the table, beaming from ear to ear.

Elizabeth still felt as though her head was spinning, but again managed to work some bravado into her voice, sounding as though she was already dismissing her conversation with Caroline.

"Is Charles getting along okay without you?" she asked, smiling at Jane.

Jane laughed. "Oh, he's fine. I knew he'd be calling, he just wanted to check in again. He sends along another 'hello,' by the way."

"I must say, Jane, he's quite taken with you," Caroline said, smiling at Jane. "I daresay you may be stuck with him for a while."

Jane blushed and laughed lightly. "I'm quite taken with him as well. I wouldn't mind being stuck, that's for sure."

Elizabeth looked at Caroline. When she spoke to Jane, it seemed obvious that she was being genuine. That's what was so confusing. She really did look as though she was happy that Jane and Charles were together, and that their relationship was thriving. She wasn't being fake. She wasn't being condescending or manipulative.

Could what she said be true? At this point, Elizabeth was so confused she didn't know what to believe. All she knew was that she wanted this night to be over, so she could go home. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was nearing nine-thirty.

"Well, ladies, I'm afraid I have to head out. I do have to work tomorrow, bright and early."

"Ugh,work. I don't know how the two of you manage!" Caroline said, polishing off the last of her coffee drink. "I'm _definitely_ not cut out for the nine-to-five routine."

_What do you do all day_? Elizabeth wanted to ask, but didn't. She just needed to leave.

Jane was looking at her curiously. "Do you feel alright Lizzy?" she asked, concern in her voice.

Elizabeth produced a glowing smile. "I'm fine. I just know that I have a full day ahead of me tomorrow...and, I know I'll be getting my goodnight phone call soon," she said, turning her eyes to Caroline. "I don't want to miss that."

Jane pursed her lips, and Elizabeth could tell that her older sister didn't believe her for a minute.

"Okay," Jane said, still eying her. "Call me tomorrow when you're home from work, we'll figure out a time to get together. I guess I'm cooking, which means I get to pick what we're eating."

"That's fine with me," Elizabeth replied, "you know what I like anyway."

"Goodnight Elizabeth," Caroline said, smiling sweetly. "It was so nice to spend time with you today, I'm really looking forward to tomorrow."

Elizabeth faltered, but only for a brief moment. "Yes, me too. Bye ladies. Don't stay out too late," she said, smiling.

She walked out of the restaurant, and as soon as she did, she released a huge breath, one that she didn't even realize she'd been holding.

The drive home was a blur. Her conversation with Caroline kept flowing through her mind, over and over again. Before she knew it, she was walking up the stairs to her deck. She sank down into a chair and stared out at the water. Tears began to sting her eyes, and she willed them away.

Her cell phone rang, and she looked at the caller ID. Will, of course. He must be getting ready to go out, she thought, knowing it was close to seven in California. She knew if she didn't answer it, he'd only keep calling until she did, so she decided to get it over with.

"Hello," she said softly.

"There's my girl," Will said. "Are you home?"

"Yes, I just got home, actually."

"How was dinner?"

"Um, dinner was fine. Good," she said quietly. Her voice was flat, even to her own ears.

There was a pause. "Are you okay?"

"Mmhm, I'm fine."

"You don't sound like you're fine."

"I've just got a rotten headache, that's all."

"Oh, poor thing. Did you take something?"

"Not yet. I will before I go to bed."

"Don't forget. I'll let you go, then, so you can get some rest. Call me in the morning?"

She hesitated. "Of course I will."

"Still miss me?" he asked, and Elizabeth could hear the smile in his voice.

Her eyes clouded up again. "All the time."

"Me too. All the time." He paused again. "Are you sure it's just the headache? You sound awful."

She tried to lighten her voice. "Gee, thanks," she said, forcing a laugh. "Really, it's just a nasty one. I think it was the wine at the restaurant."

"Okay. Get to bed, then. I'll talk to you in the morning."

"Okay. Bye Will."

"Bye beautiful."

Elizabeth sat back in the chair, once again staring out at the waves. Sleep would not come easy tonight, if at all.

* * *

><p><em>Day 4<em>

Elizabeth had been right; sleep did not come easy. She had tossed and turned for most of the night, and had finally fallen asleep just before three a.m.. She groggily slapped at her alarm clock when it blared for her to get up at six-thirty. After hitting the snooze button three times, she knew she had to get moving.

Just before leaving the house, she picked up the phone to call Will. Butterflies were jumping around in her stomach. _Why do I feel like this? _To him, this was just another wake-up call. He had no idea of the thoughts racing through her mind.

The phone rang a few times before it was picked up.

"Hello," a woman's voice said, and Elizabeth froze.

"Oh...umm...I'm so sorry, I must have the wrong number."

"Who are you looking for?" the sleepy voice on the other end asked.

Elizabeth felt her face flush. "Oh, um...William?" she said, swallowing hard.

"Mmm...he's...he's sleeping."

Elizabeth could hear movement in the background, and she felt like throwing up. "Oh, okay. I'll...I'll try him later."

The woman yawned. "K." The line went dead.

She hung up slowly. Shaking, she walked out of her house and down to her car. She sat behind the wheel for a few minutes, not daring to drive just yet. She took several deep breaths, then forced herself to start the Jeep and get on with it. She had to go to work.

Two hours into her work day, a still-dazed Elizabeth briefly entertained the thought of calling Will again. After all, it would be seven o'clock out in California now; he should be up, right? She instantly berated herself and her thinking. A woman answered his phone. A _woman_. It was four-thirty in the morning in California when she called. There was only one reason why a woman would be in Will's room at that time of the morning.

Elizabeth thought about what Caroline had said about Richard's stepsister. Tears came to her eyes once again, and she wiped them away. _Work. Focus on work_.

The next time she looked at the clock, it was noon. Incredibly, the day was passing quickly, despite the fact that she felt as though it was crawling. She stood up to stretch and head outside to enjoy lunch, when her computer chimed to let her know she had an email.

The butterflies started up again as she clicked on it, knowing exactly who it would be from. She saw Will's name, and she moved the mouse until the cursor hovered over it. She tapped the mouse lightly with her fingertips, not sure if she wanted to commit to the click. She sighed, and gave in.

_Good morning Elizabeth,_

_How are you? I hope you're feeling better, you didn't sound at all like yourself last night, I was a little worried when I got off the phone with you. When I didn't hear from you this morning, I got even more worried. I was tempted to text you or call you, but I didn't want to interrupt if you were in the middle of anything at work._

_I'm not doing so hot this morning. I told you I was going out with Richard and Anne...well, suffice it to say, the whole idea of staying out of trouble didn't quite work out. I am now heading to a meeting with a little bit of a hangover. Despite the fact that Richard is older than me, he sometimes thinks he's still in college. As much as I tried to get away from him and Anne to head back to the hotel, they were having none of it. They followed me, and we ended up closing the hotel bar...it was a pretty late night, and the final hour or so is a little fuzzy. _

_Anyway, as the saying goes, 'you play, you pay', right? Well, today is my day to pay. Thankfully I don't feel __too__ horrendous. I can only imagine how the other two feel, they weren't nearly as stingy with their alcohol consumption as me._

_I'm sorry to say, it looks like L.A. is a definite. I'm getting my ticket changed so I can fly out of LAX, hopefully on Saturday morning. I don't want to leave any later than that._

_I hope you're having a good day, please email me when you have a chance. I would say text me, but I'll be in a meeting this morning, so I wouldn't be able to answer. Email would be best._

_Miss you~_

_xo  
><em>_Will_

Elizabeth read the email at least three times. The end of his night was _fuzzy_, he said. _How fuzzy?_ she wondered. Had he been so drunk that he had taken Anne up to his room? Slept with her? She shook her head to clear it, pushing the thoughts away, but more tears came.

He didn't even know that she _had_ called this morning. Of course, he was _sleeping, _right? He had probably looked to see if he had missed any calls. There wouldn't be any missed calls, though, because her call had been answered. By a woman.

Elizabeth pushed away from her desk and walked down the hall to Bill's office. He was at his desk, and she knocked lightly on the door.

He looked up quickly before turning back to the paperwork on his desk. "Hello Elizabeth, what can I do for you?"

Elizabeth swallowed. "I hate to ask this, Bill, but can I leave?"

He looked up again, this time taking a good long look at her. "You look terrible."

She grimaced. "Thanks."

"Sorry, but you do. Do you feel okay?"

"Actually, I don't. I feel awful."

"You're not just hung over, are you?"

Her mouth dropped open slightly and her eyes flashed at him. "No, I'm not hung over at all! What the heck kind of question is that?" The words instantly brought Will back to her mind.

He held up his hands. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Just checking." He watched as her eyes filled with tears. Slightly alarmed, he stood up. "Do you need my help? Can I do anything for you?"

Sighing, she shook her head and looked away from his face. "No. Thank you, but no. I just need to go home. I need to sleep. I haven't slept, and my head is pounding." This time, it wasn't a lie. "I have plenty of unused sick time, I'll just use a few hours for today. Okay?"

Bill nodded shortly. "Okay. Go home."

"Thank you," she whispered, as she turned and walked out of his office.

* * *

><p>At four-thirty in the afternoon, Elizabeth awoke with a start. She had laid down as soon as she got home from work, and conked out instantly. She had turned her cell phone and laptop off, and had shut the ringer off on her home phone, so there could be no interruptions. She knew Will would be calling once he didn't hear from her, and Jane would probably call about tonight, but she didn't want to talk to anyone until she had slept...especially Will.<p>

Now she lay in bed, letting the fog clear from her head. This was it. This is what she had been afraid of from day one. She was an infatuation for him, that was all. The novelty had worn off. Maybe she was just another Cape girl, as Caroline had said. Maybe he'd gotten tired of the chase, or maybe he decided he'd occupy his time with someone else while he was in the midst of the chase. Here, on the Cape, he hadn't been tempted by anyone else; he wasn't out socializing, he wasn't out there seeing what he was missing, seeing what he could be having. Apparently George Wickham was right; there are lots of distractions in California.

Elizabeth needed to call Jane. She wanted to talk to her, but knew it would be tricky with Caroline still around. Maybe Jane could get away from her for a little while.

She turned on her cell phone, and it instantly started chiming with missed calls and text messages. She sighed as she started to read through them.

The first missed text from Will had come at three o'clock.

_Are you there?_

* * *

><p>"I just don't get it," Will said, staring at his cell phone, then glancing back at his lap top.<p>

"Get what?" Richard said. They were ensconced at a table at a surprisingly empty Starbucks.

"Elizabeth. She hasn't called me, emailed me, or texted me. It's not like her."

"Maybe she finally came to her senses and dumped you."

Will reached over and whacked his cousin on the side of the head. "Shut up asshole."

"Ahh, Christ, Will," Richard grimaced as he held his head. "Keep your hands to yourself."

"Keep your comments to yourself," Will said, glaring at his cousin. He glanced at his watch again. It was nearing twelve-thirty, which meant it was just about three-thirty on the east coast.

"Maybe she's tied up at work," Will mumbled, mostly to himself.

"She could be," Richard mumbled back. He had never seen his cousin concerned about not hearing from a woman before. Usually, he _preferred_ not to hear from them.

"I think I'll text Georgie, see if she's talked to her." He typed into his phone, and patiently waited for a reply. It came almost immediately. He quickly read what she had written.

"She hasn't talked to her either, but they're supposed to get together tonight." He sighed, and stared at his lap top.

"You know, you won't make an email magically appear by staring at the screen. Something's obviously come up. Maybe she's sick, or she got into an accident."

Will turned on his cousin, a look of thunder in his eyes.

Richard closed his eyes and shook his head. "Ahh shit...please don't hit me again. I'm just putting some ideas out there...I didn't think. Sorry."

"Richard?"

"I know, I know. Shut up asshole."

"Couldn't have said it better myself."

"Look, we need to get going," Richard said, "we're meeting with senior staff soon. I have to get up to my office to get everything I need, and I'm desperate for some aspirin or something. My head is still throbbing."

"Where did you disappear to last night anyway?" Will asked. "One minute you were there, then you got a call, and you split."

Richard smiled. "I went to see a friend."

Will nodded. "I see. Awful late to visit a friend, wasn't it?"

Richard shrugged. "Not necessarily."

Will shook his head. "A playboy 'til the end. So...who's the mystery woman?" _Lauren Jeffries? _he wanted to add, but didn't. He had his suspicions though.

Richard paused for a moment. "No one special," he said quietly, staring straight ahead.

Will didn't miss the way his cousin had said that. If it was truly 'no one special,' Richard would have been bragging about his conquest in a heartbeat.

"Okay, I'll leave it alone," Will said. With one last glance at his laptop, he turned it off and closed it, his thoughts already back on Elizabeth.

* * *

><p><em>And...true to form, Caroline causes problems. Please leave a review, let me know what you think! Thanks!<em>


	15. Chapter 15

_I'm posting a little early, I didn't want to leave you all hanging! It's time to see if things get resolved. Thanks again for reading and for leaving reviews! I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 15<strong>

It was almost five o'clock when Elizabeth picked up the phone to call Jane. She needed to talk to her sister, and she needed to cancel for tonight. There was no way she could be around Caroline, or even Georgiana, for that matter. Jane picked up quickly.

"Hi Lizzy."

"Hi Jane."

"Caroline and I were just talking about dinner, and trying to come up with a good movie to watch."

"Oh...you haven't started cooking or anything yet, have you?"

"No, not yet. I was just going to throw some swordfish steaks on the grill."

Elizabeth closed her eyes. "Oh, that sounds great. Um, I...I need to cancel though. I'm not going to make it over."

Jane frowned. "Why?"

Elizabeth sighed. "Are you with Caroline right now?"

Jane walked through the great room at Charles's house and stepped out onto the deck, closing the slider firmly behind her. "Not anymore. What's up?"

"I really need to talk to you," Elizabeth said, and a quiet sob escaped her, as tears began to run down her cheeks.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"That's just it. I don't know. I need to talk to someone, I need to talk to you. I don't want to see Caroline though." Elizabeth sniffled.

"I'll do whatever you want me to," Jane replied. "I'll come over, if you want. Dinner can wait."

Elizabeth sighed with relief. She had hoped Jane would offer to come to her. "Are you sure it won't mess up your plans?"

"You're more important than dinner. Caroline can entertain herself for a while."

"Thanks."

"I'll be there in thirty minutes."

"Okay. Bye."

"Bye Lizzy."

Elizabeth looked at her cell phone again, once again reading the two text messages that Will had sent.

The first one said simply, _A__re you there?_

The second one, sent an hour later, was only slightly longer.

_Now I'm starting to worry. Where are you? Please call me._

She couldn't call him, couldn't talk to him. Not yet. She needed to talk to Jane first, needed Jane to help her sort out her jumbled thoughts. While she waited for her to arrive, she'd call Georgiana and cancel for tonight as well.

She dialed Georgiana's cell number, and after a few rings, she picked up.

"Hi Elizabeth," she said lightly.

"Hi Georgie," Elizabeth said, trying to sound upbeat. She failed miserably.

"What's up?" Georgiana asked. "Are we still on for tonight?"

"That's why I'm calling, actually," Elizabeth replied. "I'm going to have to cancel."

"Oh," Georgiana said, disappointment evident in her voice. "Are you okay?"

"Um, yes, I'm okay. Not feeling great. I'm just going to stay in tonight."

"Oh...okay. Do you need anything?"

"No, no, I'm fine. I feel like I might be coming down with something, that's all."

"Oh, I hope not. Hey, have you talked to Will today?"

"No, I haven't."

"Oh. He texted me a while ago, asking me if I'd talked to you. I told him I was going to see you tonight. I got the impression that he hadn't talked to you."

"He's texted me a couple of times, and emailed me."

"Oh, okay, so at least you've been in touch."

Elizabeth didn't bother to correct her assumption that she had emailed or texted him back.

Georgiana went on. "Sorry you're feeling lousy. I was looking forward to seeing you, and meeting Jane. Oh, and seeing Caroline, of course." She chuckled. "Not so much that last one, though."

Elizabeth forced a laugh. "I know what you mean." She paused, her mind racing. Georgiana would know if Will had ever dated Caroline. _Should I ask her?_ _No, she would think it was odd._

Georgiana paused. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine. Really. I'm going to go, I need to lay down. I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay. Get some rest."

Elizabeth could hear the concern in her voice. "That's my plan. Rest. Sorry, again, about tonight."

"No worries. I'll talk to you soon. Bye Lizzy."

"Bye."

* * *

><p>At three o'clock, Will's cell phone started vibrating. He grabbed it and walked out of the conference room, right in the middle of Richard's presentation, but he wasn't concerned. He looked down at the caller ID, and was slightly deflated when he saw that it was Georgiana.<p>

"Hey Georgie, what's up? I'm in the middle of a meeting."

"Sorry. I just wanted to know when you talked to Elizabeth last."

"I haven't talked to her since last night. I've e-mailed her, texted her...called her...I haven't heard a single word from her. Why?"

"Well, I just talked to her, and she didn't sound good. She canceled our plans for tonight, she said she didn't feel good, she thought maybe she was coming down with something."

"Oh, really?" He thought for a second. "She said she had a headache last night. I don't understand though, why would she call you, and not me?"

"Maybe she doesn't want you to worry."

"But why wouldn't she email me? Or text me even? It doesn't make sense."

Georgiana shook her head. "I don't know."

"If I don't hear from her tonight, I'm taking a red eye home."

"Will, don't be hasty. I'll try to call her again later, to check in on her, and I'll call you back. Okay?"

Will sighed. "Okay, okay. Fine. Call me, even if you don't talk to her. I want to know, alright?"

"I'll call you. Go back to your meeting, focus on work."

Will rubbed his eyes. _Yeah. Right._

"Bye Georgie."

"Bye Will."

* * *

><p>Jane was at Elizabeth's by six o'clock. She jogged up the steps and found Elizabeth sitting on her deck, curled up in a chair, staring off in the direction of the ocean. The air had become gray and damp, and the sound of the waves lapping at the shore was the only indication that the ocean was only a short distance from the deck; the fog had completely shrouded everything in, making visibility beyond thirty feet nearly impossible.<p>

Jane stared at her sister for a moment. "You look awful," she finally said.

Elizabeth looked at her and gave her a weary smile. "That seems to be the consensus today."

Jane pulled up a chair next to Elizabeth's and waited. She knew her sister would talk when she was ready.

Finally, she spoke. "Did you know that Will and Caroline had a relationship?" Elizabeth asked her quietly.

Jane's breath caught. "Oh, Lizzy...no, I didn't. Well, Charles had mentioned them having some kind of history...but he wasn't specific."

Elizabeth closed her eyes, feeling as though her worst fear was now confirmed. "You knew there was _history_ between them? Did you need Charles to spell it out for you?" She sighed, frustration evident in her voice. "What kind of _history_ did you think Charles was referring to?"

"I'm sorry," Jane said quietly. "I found out when you were up in Boston for the weekend. Charles told me, after I had already invited Caroline to dinner that night. He said it wasn't serious...he also said that Will had no feelings for Caroline at all."

"Gee, that's reassuring." Elizabeth couldn't keep the sarcasm from her voice. "I'm sorry. I'm not upset with you. It's just...well, let's just say, she took great pleasure in telling me, last night, how _amazing_ he was, how _delightful_..."

Elizabeth took a deep breath. "I'm no fool, Jane, I know that Will has not lived the life of a monk. I just didn't expect to be spending time with one of his ex-girlfriends, listening to her explain to me all of his dating habits..." she paused here, a sob threatening to escape, and took another deep breath, "...and how I'm basically just a distraction, a little piece of Cape Cod ass to tie him over for a while, 'til he gets bored again. Apparently, he seems to follow a predictable pattern."

Jane gasped, then just as quickly, got angry. "When did Caroline say all of this to you?"

"Last night, when you left to talk to Charles on the phone. She couldn't wait to tell me...she was chomping at the bit, I could see it."

They stopped talking for a moment, and once again, only the sound of the waves could be heard.

"What if she's right?" Elizabeth asked softly, tears now slowly dripping down her face. "What if I am just something to pass the time?" She wiped her tears away roughly.

"Oh, Lizzy, you _know_ you're more than that to him. Charles can see it; he's told me. Will is a different person since he's been with you."

Elizabeth laughed sadly. "Maybe not so different after all."

"What do you mean?" Jane asked, afraid of what she was going to hear.

"While he's been in California, I call him in the morning, before I go to work," Elizabeth started, once again speaking softly. "Even though it's only four-thirty or so out there, he wants me to call him...to say good morning." The tears came running down her cheeks again.

"When I called this morning," she continued, "a woman answered. I thought I had somehow gotten a wrong number, but I didn't. She said Will was there, but he was sleeping."

Jane couldn't hide the shock she felt. "Lizzy...are you sure? Are you sure it was a woman?"

Elizabeth's eyes flew open. "I'm pretty sure, Jane...I know a woman's voice when I hear it. I don't want to consider the alternative...a man? That would be worse!"

They both started laughing despite the situation.

"No, it was definitely a woman." She caught another sob, tried to swallow it, but couldn't do it. In an instant, Jane was next to her, wrapping an arm around her.

"There has to be an explanation for this," Jane said. "Something isn't right."

"He went out with his cousin Richard and Richard's step sister, Anne. You know, the one that Caroline said has the hots for him? What if it was her? I know they were drinking, he e-mailed me this morning and told me they had been...he said the last hour of the night was 'fuzzy.' What if he got drunk and slept with her?"

"No, no, that can't be it," Jane insisted. "That's not Will. He's crazy about you, Elizabeth, I know he is. Charles knows he is. He wouldn't do that to you."

"How do you know?"

Jane, not knowing what else to do, just shrugged. "I just have a feeling. Will is not _that guy_."

"I never thought Jason was _that guy_ either, the guy that just walks out. And guess what? He _so_ was _that guy_."

"Let's not go down that road, okay?"

"I have to go down that road, Jane! It's about trust. I was just beginning to trust Will...I was ready. Ready to go forward, to move ahead. I know it's only been five weeks..." She shook her head. "I want to trust him...so much. I'm falling in love with him, I know I am." She looked out at the ocean, then turned back to Jane. "What am I going to do?"

Jane hugged her sister, feeling incredibly helpless.

"Let me ask you this," Jane said, putting some firmness into her voice. "How do you know that everything Caroline was spewing wasn't all bullshit? She sounds like a jealous, bitter, jilted ex. If she had any class at all, she never would have said those things to you."

Jane watched Elizabeth's face as her sister was trying to process what she had just said.

She went on. "I wish I had answers, Lizzy, I really do." She paused, searching for the right words. "The only person who has the answers is Will. You're going to have to talk to him."

Elizabeth nodded. "I know."

Jane studied her. "Have you...slept with him?"

Elizabeth knew that Jane wasn't digging for details. She shook her head. "I haven't, yet. And he's been so patient, not pressuring me...he said he'd go at my pace." She laughed slightly. "Believe me, it hasn't been easy. Not easy at all." She sniffled. "Maybe if we had...if I had..."

Jane knew exactly where this was leading. "If he did sleep with someone else, and that's a big if, it's _not_ because you didn't sleep with him."

"No," Elizabeth said, now feeling anger swell up inside of her, "he slept with someone else because he was drunk, and she was there. Ripe for the picking. I mean, how could he say no, right?"

Jane's voice took on a soothing tone. "Lizzy, you don't know what happened. All I see is that right now, you're hurting and confused. You need to talk to Will, and the sooner, the better."

She paused. "I love Charles, I know I do. He says he loves me, and I hope we last forever. But we may not. Despite knowing that, I'm not going to try to push those feelings away. He's worth the risk to my heart."

Elizabeth sighed and brushed the tears from her face again. "So what are you saying? All this pain is worth it? That if he did sleep with someone, we should just work through it?"

Jane sighed. "No one can undo what Jason did to you. He was a selfish prick. I know you blamed yourself for a long time for him leaving, but you _know_ that what he did wasn't because of you, it was him. William is not Jason. You have to take a chance, Lizzy. That's the only way you'll know." She paused again. "If you walk away now, without looking back, you may be making a big mistake. One you'll regret. This could all be a misunderstanding."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but she knew Jane was right. "I have a lot to think about, I guess."

They sat there for a long while, not saying much. It was getting later, almost seven, and Jane stood up, deciding it was time to head back to New Seabury.

"Caroline is probably wondering what happened to me. I don't even want to talk to her now."

"Jane, you have to promise me that you'll act like you don't know anything about my conversation with her. If she knows I talked to you, then she'll know she got to me...and I don't want to give her the satisfaction. Just tell her I'm sick or something, and that you had to go to the pharmacy for me. Okay? Promise?"

"Okay, okay, I promise. But it's going to be awfully hard to pretend I don't think she's a _bitch_."

Elizabeth grinned halfheartedly. "Do your best."

They hugged and when Jane left, Elizabeth went inside. She was cold now...the fog rolling in and the wind off of the ocean were chilly. She walked into her bedroom to change, and spotted Will's Harvard sweatshirt draped over her chair. It had been washed several times since she claimed it, but it still smelled vaguely of him. At least, she imagined it did.

She threw on her Red Sox pajama bottoms and his sweatshirt. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten much all day. She headed to the kitchen to throw something together for dinner.

She knew Jane was right, she had to talk to him. _Not tonight,_ she decided. _Tomorrow. After I've slept and have had time to sort through my thoughts._

Her cell phone began to ring, and she glanced at the caller ID. She wasn't surprised to see Will's name, and let her voice mail pick it up.

_Tomorrow._

* * *

><p>Will was pacing back and forth in Richard's office. He looked at his watch again, as he had been doing every three or four minutes.<p>

"Darcy, will you chill out? Sit down. You're making me nervous."

Will stopped pacing, and glanced at his watch again. "It's four-thirty. That means it's seven-thirty at home."

"I realize that," Richard said.

Will turned to look at him, real worry now showing on his face. "What the hell is going on? I can't stand this. I'm flying home tonight. What if she really is sick? She told Georgiana she felt like she was coming down with something."

"If it was something serious, she'd call. She probably doesn't want you to worry."

"She's smart enough to know that _not_ calling is going to make me worry just as much."

Richard sighed. "Look, you do what you want, you're a grown man, obviously. I just think it's ridiculous for you to alter all your plans and rush home because you haven't heard from your girlfriend today."

Will closed his eyes and exhaled loudly. "When you put it like that, it does sound kind of crazy."

"Exactly," Richard said calmly. "Wait til tomorrow to decide what you're going to do. If we need to reschedule L.A., we'll reschedule."

Will clearly heard the disappointment in Richard's voice. "No, we won't reschedule. I'll fly home tomorrow, as planned, and I'll leave L.A. in your hands."

Richard's eyebrows went up. "You'll leave it in my hands?"

Will nodded. "Yes. Look, you've proven yourself to be extremely capable. I know I don't need to watch over every single thing you do out here. I trust you. Move ahead with everything...and just keep me informed."

Richard nodded, clearly pleased by Will's decision. "I'll take care of everything."

"I know you will," Will replied seriously. He thought, once again, of Richard's secretary, sitting down the hall at her desk. "Keep your head on straight though, right? No distractions. No problems. No _potential_ problems."

Richard knew exactly what Will meant. "Point taken."

"Good," Will said, as he reached out to shake Richard's hand. "Look, I'm useless right now. I'm going back to the hotel."

"Alright, I'll call you later."

* * *

><p>Two hours later, Will was in his suite, staring out the window, his mind playing back the events of the day. His phone rang, and he jumped at it, hoping it was Elizabeth. He was disappointed to hear Richard's voice on the other line.<p>

"Hey, Darcy...um, we need to chat."

Will didn't like the sound of his voice. "Chat? About what?"

"Last night. Or rather, this morning."

"What? What about this morning?"

"Well, I just talked to Anne. We were talking about last night, and she got to talking about how you just kept going _on and on_ about your new girlfriend, and how it was driving her insane, _Elizabeth_ this, _Elizabeth_ that -"

"Just get on with it Richard," Will demanded, impatiently interrupting his cousin.

"Well, all of a sudden, she just stopped talking. Umm, she remembered something."

Will was getting frustrated, not knowing where this was leading.

"Okay, I'll take the bait. What did she remember?"

Richard cleared his throat. "That your phone rang bright and early this morning, and umm, she answered it, half asleep. She said it was a woman, and that she thought she had dialed the wrong number."

Will felt his stomach drop. "Ohh..." _Shit._

"Anne told her that you were sleeping." He cleared his throat. "I have to ask...why was Anne in your suite at 4:30 this morning?"

* * *

><p><em>Day 5<em>

Elizabeth awoke to her alarm clock at six-thirty, and though she knew she'd pay dearly, she called out sick. She couldn't deal with going to work. It seemed immature and selfish, and she felt a little guilty, but she just needed the day to think. She had not used much sick time at all, ever, while working at the Reserve, so they couldn't really accuse her of abusing it. Plus, as far as Bill was concerned, she wasn't feeling well yesterday, so he'd believe it.

After leaving a message on Bill's office voice mail, she lay there thinking about what the day would have in store for her. She knew she'd have to talk to Will today, she couldn't keep avoiding him. Her eyes welled up with tears again, and she rolled over to force herself back to sleep.

When she woke three hours later, she looked outside at the gray, misty day. The fog was as thick as pea soup; she could barely make out where the beach met the ocean.

_Fits my mood perfectly,_ she thought.

She contemplated going for a run, and decided against it. It just looked too dreary out. She got up, put some coffee on, and since it wasn't raining, she headed outside, deciding that a nice hot shower would make her feel better.

An hour later, she was cozied up once again in Will's sweatshirt and an old pair of jeans, sipping a cup of coffee and eating some Portuguese sweetbread that she had gotten at the farmer's market. She opened her laptop, and tried to quell the disappointment she felt at not seeing a new e-mail from Will. Her phone also had no new texts, and he hadn't tried to call.

_Has he walked away already?_ Part of her wanted to scream out,_ please don't give up, don't walk away__!_ Another part of her, though, was almost hoping that he had, so she wouldn't have to talk to him, wouldn't have to hear his voice.

She realized that all this time, she had been fooling herself. She thought that without the physical relationship, without the act of giving herself to him fully, she was still holding on to a piece of herself, a piece of her heart. How wrong she had been. The pain she was feeling was immeasurable, and was a sure sign that it was too late for her; that piece of her already belonged to him.

Her phone chimed with a text. Her heart jumped, until she saw it was from Jane.

_Didn't want to call in case you were at busy at work. You ok?_

_I'm fine, not at work, playing hooky. Will call you later, getting courage up to talk to Will._

_OK. C and I leaving early afternoon, want me to stay longer?_

_No, you go home to Charles. I'll call you._

_Ok. Love you._

_Love you too. Thx for last night._

_Anytime sis._

She glanced at the clock. It was almost eleven. She probably should call Georgie, just to check in, but she didn't feel like getting on the phone. As she glanced outside, she noticed that although it was still pretty gray out, the sun was struggling to peek through the clouds. She decided to go for a walk down the beach.

The air had warmed, so she traded in her jeans for a pair of cut-off shorts. She left her hair down and put on her sunglasses. Grabbing her iPod, she popped in her earbuds and off she went.

* * *

><p>Will was almost to the Cape. He was exhausted. His flight had left California at 1a.m, arriving six hours later in Boston. Add to that the three hours from the time change, and it was just after ten a.m. on the east coast when he landed. He expected to hit heavy traffic as he neared the Bourne Bridge, as it was the start of the July 4th weekend, but it was still early in the day, so traffic was light.<p>

He debated driving to Woods Hole, knowing Elizabeth would be at work, but decided to just head straight to her house. He could stretch out on the deck and think about what he was going to say to her, how he could fix this.

Thirty minutes later he was in her driveway, pulling up next to her Jeep. _She must have ridden her bike_ _in_, he thought. Walking toward the stairs to her deck, however, he noticed her bike chained up where she always kept it.

He took the steps two at a time and walked to the door. He knocked loudly and waited. No answer. He knocked again; still no answer. Turning the doorknob, he discovered it was unlocked. He knew that she could be in the darkroom working, and he didn't want to scare her. When he walked in, though, he saw that the door to the darkroom was open.

"Elizabeth?" he called out quietly. No answer. He looked into her bedroom, but she wasn't there.

He sighed heavily. _Where could she be_? Then it came to him. She must have gone for a run. He'd just sit and wait for her to return.

He walked back out onto the deck and stretched out on a lounge chair, taking in the scenery before him. The fog was finally lifting, and the sun was really starting to shine. There was a nice breeze coming in off the water, so it wasn't too hot.

He looked down the beach, first to the right, toward Nobska Light, then to the left. His breath caught and his heart skipped a beat as he spotted Elizabeth coming out of the fog, heading slowly towards home. He watched as she walked along the water's edge, kicking up the spray with her feet. She played tag with the waves for a few minutes, but kept steadily walking towards her house.

He stood up and walked down the stairs to the beach below, and after kicking off his socks and shoes, he started heading towards her. He wanted to break out into a full run, but made himself walk.

He knew the moment she saw him. She stopped walking and stared straight at him. He kept moving at a steady pace until he was standing a foot away from her.

"Hi," he said softly. He was dying to reach out to her, to touch her, but he didn't dare.

"What...what are you doing here?" she stammered as she removed her earbuds, unable to believe he was standing in front of her, when he was supposed to be on his way to, or already in, L.A.

"I came to see you."

"You're supposed to be in L.A."

He nodded. "I know. I would be, if you had called me back, or texted me, or e-mailed me."

She looked down at the sand and spoke softly, haltingly, unable to meet his eyes. "I couldn't...I didn't know what-"

"Look at me," he said firmly but quietly, interrupting her. "You need to look at me."

She raised her eyes to his. He took off his sunglasses, then reached out to remove hers. She made no effort to pull away or stop him. For a moment, they just looked at each other, and each noticed the shadows under the others eyes.

"I didn't sleep with anyone in California," he said quietly. "I didn't even _look_ at anyone in California."

Her mouth dropped open slightly. "How...who...did you talk to Jane?" she whispered, clearly confused.

His brow furrowed and he shook his head, confusion showing on his face as well. "No. I talked to Richard. I'll explain everything, okay? But you have to know, right now...you have to believe me. I didn't cheat on you. I wouldn't."

He stared straight into her eyes as he spoke. A tear slid down one cheek, and as soon as Will saw it, he moved closer to her, reaching up to gently wipe it away.

Elizabeth looked away again. Her heart was pounding madly. She wanted to believe him. Could it all be a huge misunderstanding?

"Look at me, please," he said again, and she did. He gently pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her in his warm embrace, lowering his face into her hair and breathing her in. She hugged him tightly, inhaling his scent, feeling his warmth.

"I didn't sleep with anyone. I didn't," he whispered again, desperately wanting her to believe him. "Tell me you believe me. I need to hear you say it."

She pulled back to look at him, and he looked back at her beseechingly. She could see the angst in his eyes, and hear it in his voice.

"I believe you," she said quietly, suddenly realizing that she did. She believed him.

He sighed. "Thank you," he whispered softly.

He reached up to cup her face with both hands and leaned in to kiss her, ever so gently, not demanding, just reassuring. The touch of his lips brought a fresh onslaught of tears to Elizabeth's eyes, but this time, they were tears of relief. For the moment, all of the sadness of the past twenty-four hours faded from her mind. He was here, with her, and that was all that mattered.

* * *

><p>They walked back up the beach to her house, and Will pulled her down to sit between his legs, her back to his chest, on one of the lounge chairs. He explained the progression of that night, when he was out with Richard and Anne; they started at dinner, then went to a sports pub, then a martini bar, then eventually to the hotel bar, since they were only doors away from it.<p>

Will closed his eyes and sighed. "Anne was hammered. I let her crash on the pull-out couch in my suite. I didn't feel like babysitting while she waited for a cab, and Richard had ditched us." He rubbed one hand down his face. "I left my phone on the end table near the couch...I forgot to take it into the bedroom with me. When it rang, she just grabbed it..."

His voice trailed off, and Elizabeth turned to look up at him, needing to see his eyes, his face, as he explained everything. She didn't talk, didn't say a word.

Will could still see questions in her eyes, even though she said she believed him. While he was en route to the airport in California, Anne had called him, apologizing profusely. She had even offered to call Elizabeth to set things right.

"Hopefully that won't be necessary," Will had said to her, "but I appreciate the offer."

Now, still sensing a distance in Elizabeth, he was wondering if he should extend Anne's offer to her. It was clear that she was still unsettled with everything.

"Elizabeth, come on," he said, wrapping his arms tighter around her, "I can tell that you're still doubtful." He cleared his throat. "Anne feels horrible; she feels it's completely her fault." He paused. "If you need her to...vouch for me, or something...she will. She'll talk to you."

Elizabeth pulled back to look at him again, a look of disbelief on her face.

"I don't need to speak to Anne," she said firmly. "I said I believe you, and I do. Don't _you _believe _me_?"

"Yes...I do. Well, I want to...but you still seem...hesitant. I feel like I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop."

_Yeah, the other stiletto_, Elizabeth thought grimly.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth put on more coffee while Will went down to his car to get his suitcase so he had a clean set of clothes. When he came back upstairs, he put the suitcase on her bed and walked back into the living room. She was standing there, holding a towel out to him, looking at him uncertainly.<p>

He walked over to her, taking the towel and tossing it to the couch. He very gently pulled her into his arms.

"Why do I feel like we still have more to talk about?" he asked her. He felt her shrug in his arms.

"I'm not sure," she lied. She knew she had to ask him about Caroline, but right now didn't seem to be the time. It could wait, couldn't it? Couldn't they just spend the rest of the day being together?

She sighed loudly, pushing away from him and walking to sit on the couch.

"I just didn't want to talk about anything...anymore...today," she said, shaking her head. "I just wanted to be with you. Hold you all day. Smell you." She smiled as he rolled his eyes.

"I'm thinking I probably don't smell so hot right now...and don't try to change the subject. Something is going on...and as much as I'd love to ignore it and hold _you_ all day, I'd rather get everything out in the open at once. Why put it off?"

She sighed again. "You're right." She panicked slightly, not knowing where to start.

He saw a look of anxiety pass across her face. "Okay, here's the deal. I'm going to take a shower outside. You sit and sip your coffee, get comfortable, and I'll join you in a little bit. Deal?"

She nodded. "Deal."

He walked over to give her a kiss, then walked into her bedroom with the towel. Minutes later, he came out with it wrapped around his waist, and her heart just about stopped. She felt her face flush. She had seen him without a shirt on, obviously, they had been at the beach together many times...it was the towel. _Damn_, he looked sexy.

Seeing the look in her eyes, he smiled and winked at her. "Care to join me?" he said, offering up his dimples, totally teasing her.

Her heart pounded in her chest. _Oh, the temptation. _"Umm, I'll pass. You go on," she said quietly, still blushing.

He chuckled as he walked out and shut the door behind him.

Twenty minutes later, he was dressed in shorts and a t-shirt, hair wet and curly, sitting on her couch. She handed him a cup of coffee, which he promptly set down on the coffee table so he could pull her down to sit with him, cuddling her into his body. She turned her face to his chest and inhaled loudly and deeply. He immediately laughed.

"You really do smell unbelievably good," she said.

"Well, you can thank Giorgio Armani for that."

Elizabeth smiled at him, content to just stare into his eyes for a few moments. She thought about what she needed to say to him. She just needed to spit it out.

She cleared her throat. "So...you're right. There is more I need to talk to you about. But you need to promise me something."

"Okay..." he said slowly, hesitantly.

"You have to promise me you won't interrupt me. Just let me tell you everything first, okay?"

He shrugged. What was he going to do, say no? "Okay. I won't interrupt."

She took a deep breath, her nerves suddenly making her entire body feel tense. "Okay. You know I went out to dinner Wednesday night with Jane and Caroline." He nodded. "Well, it ended up that Caroline and I were alone at the table for a bit, while Jane took a call from Charles."

She paused, taking another deep breath, and found that she had a hard time looking at Will's face.

"She told me, basically, that I was just a cog in the well-oiled wheel of your love life. She said that you 'flit' from one woman to another, and that there's essentially a long line of women waiting to fill my shoes."

She glanced up at him. His face was tight, and he opened his mouth to speak, but she stopped him. "You said you wouldn't interrupt."

He closed his mouth. She sighed, and plunged forward.

"She said you were amazing...and delightful...and made it _very_ clear what she was referring to. She also told me not to become too 'invested' in you, because as soon as you were bored with me, as you've become bored with all your other women, especially those _Cape Cod_ girls, you'd move on. She said she spoke from experience."

She looked at him again, and was surprised to see that his eyes were closed. His face was expressionless though, so she had no idea what was going through his head.

He got up from the couch and started pacing back and forth in the middle of the living room.

"Is that it?" he asked her, and she started at the tone in his voice. She could definitely read his expression now. He was angry.

Elizabeth said nothing, she just stared at him.

He took her silence as a yes. "Good, because I don't want to hear any more." He stopped pacing, and ran a hand through his damp hair restlessly, looking away from her.

"Obviously, you believed her," he said quietly, not really asking, but stating it as though it were fact. "I knew something was wrong when I talked to you that night. You said you had a headache. You didn't, did you?"

She shook her head, saying nothing.

"You believed her," he said again, staring at her.

"No...I didn't know what-"

"Yes, you did. You believed her. Why else would you have been like that on the phone with me?"

"I didn't know what to say to her, what to think. She completely blindsided-"

He cut her off again. "So, instead of having a little bit of faith in me, you decide to believe _her_. Someone I can barely stand, mind you, which I thought I had made clear to you." He shook his head, looking at her with a mixture of anger and sadness. "Do you really believe I'm the man that she described?"

She looked back at him, shaking her head. "No...I _told_ you...I didn't know what to believe."

He rolled his eyes and turned away from her, looking out the window at the ocean. "That's bullshit, and you know it," he said forcefully, his voice rising. He had to remind himself to try to keep his cool. It was awfully hard at the moment, he was so _angry_. Mostly at Caroline, but partly at Elizabeth too.

"_Don't_ tell me what I felt or what I believed," she fired back at him, her voice controlled, but the emotion clearly there. He turned back to face her, and could see that she was angry as well. Her eyes were on fire, shooting sparks at him.

"I know you're angry," Elizabeth went on, "but I told you, she _blindsided_ me. I had no idea which end was up by the time our conversation ended. And yes, I know how you feel about Caroline. But can you at least try to see the position I was in? At all?"

"Do you think that I would purposely _**put**_ you in that position?" His voice was slightly louder now. "You think I'm so insensitive, so callous, that I would let us all have dinner together in Boston? That I would be okay with you hanging out with her, if I'd _**slept**_ with her?" He shook his head. "That's amazing to me. _**Fucking**_ amazing."

He paused, waiting for her to reply, but she remained silent, watching him, her face pale. She still looked mad, but less so. He took a deep breath, willing his heart rate to slow down, trying to get a rein on his anger.

"I...I'm sorry," he said softly, running a hand through his hair. "I shouldn't have said that. I shouldn't have used that...I'm sorry." He made himself calm down.

After a moment, he spoke again, quieter and more in control this time. "I know how Caroline can be, and I know she took advantage of the situation. I warned you about her. She knows how to play people, and she played you."

"If you know that about her," Elizabeth said, her voice calm, "then you should be able to see how all of this happened. If you're going to be pissed off at someone, be pissed at her. She's obviously an evil bitch."

She swallowed. "Charles had mentioned something to Jane, that you had a history with Caroline. I didn't hear that from Jane until _after_ Caroline had said all those things to me. It was like the straw that broke the camel's back."

Will sighed, shaking his head. "My history with Caroline goes no further than a few outings to society events, purely because I needed a date and she was available. If Caroline made those little outings seem like something more than what they were, then she's delusional."

He hadn't moved from the middle of the living room, and she was still sitting, now looking down at her lap. She was upset, and he felt horrible.

"I'm going to say this once, and only once. I have never, _ever_ slept with Caroline Bingley. I have never even so much as kissed her, except on the cheek." His voice was much calmer now. "Not that she hasn't tried for more...she's been after me for as long as I can remember. I've never encouraged her though, never given her _any_ reason to think that she would ever be more than an acquaintance."

He looked at Elizabeth again, and when she looked up at him, he saw tears in her eyes. "I don't want her, and I never have. If it wasn't for Charles, I wouldn't have anything to do with her at all."

He knew he had to address the other things that Caroline had said as well. He sat back down on the couch, gently taking Elizabeth's hand in his, and pulled her close to him, so he could wrap his arm around her. She needed his reassurance, not his anger.

"The women I have dated are just that...women that I've dated. There have been a few, but there has never been anyone special to me, ever. The relationships never lasted long, they always just ran out of steam, and honestly, it never mattered to me when they did." He turned toward her to kiss her temple.

He thought about what he wanted to say, how much of his feelings he could put into words.

"I've told you that I think about you all the time and I do. I've never said that to anyone before." He took a deep breath. "I've never told a woman that I've dreamed about her. I've never taken a woman out for an ice cream, or cheered her on in a softball game."

He reached up to stroke Elizabeth's hair as she turned her watery eyes up to him.

"I've never danced in the ocean with a beautiful woman, and watched the sunset with her." He smiled softly down at her. "Oh, and I've _never_ taken a woman to Fenway Park. Ever. Well, unless you count Georgie."

He cleared his throat, and his expression became serious again. "I've never, ever sung to a woman," he said quietly, looking down at her and caressing her cheek. "I've done all of those things, with you. In a month. _One month_."

"Five weeks," she whispered, and he smiled again.

"Okay, five weeks," he repeated. "What I'm trying to say is..." He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again. "I feel like I've lived an entirely new life in that small amount of time. Because of you." He couldn't take his eyes from her face, and wiped the one lone tear that rolled down her cheek.

Not knowing what to say, and astounded by all that he had just said to her, Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his neck, breathing him in. She knew he had opened himself up completely to her.

He tipped her head up, and leaned down to kiss her softly and lightly, letting his lips caress hers gently. All the anger he had felt was gone. It felt so good to tell her how he felt, how she made him feel. She made him feel...alive.

Elizabeth laid her head on his shoulder and took a deep breath. "I'm so sorry," she said softly. "I can't believe I let her do that to me...I was so ready to believe her and doubt you."

She thought about why it had been so easy for her to do that.

"I think it's because everything has been such a blur. I was just living my life, pretty happily, and all of a sudden, boom...you were in it. It's been...a whirlwind. A good whirlwind, but still...every once in a while, I catch myself wondering if this is just a fluke...if I'm just a little summer fling that will go away when you go back to Boston for good, back to your other life. Maybe that's why it was so easy for me to fall into Caroline's trap."

"There is no _other life_," Will said softly but firmly. "You aren't a summer fling. I don't want that."

"I didn't know that...not for sure."

"Now you do."

She nodded gently. "Now I do."

She didn't really want to talk about her past...not yet. She froze up just thinking about it. Still, she needed to let him know one thing, at least.

"I...I have trust issues. It's hard for me..." _to trust a man_, is what she should have said. She could tell by the look on his face that he wanted to know more, but she was hesitant to say too much. "I haven't been in a serious relationship in a very long time."

"Look, I've already told you that I'm willing to do this at your speed," Will said earnestly. He reached up to play with her hair, twisting a curl around his finger, and sighed deeply. "You need to know, though, that I don't want anyone else. I only want you."

She looked up at him. "Me too. Just you."

They kissed again, and all the emotion that had been flowing between them was released. Will felt the tears on her cheeks and kissed them away, holding her tightly to him. They sat there for a while, embracing and kissing softly, before a quiet grumble from Will's stomach interrupted them. They both began to laugh quietly.

"Hungry?" Elizabeth asked.

"I suppose I am...I haven't eaten since..." he shook his head, trying to think. "I don't know when I ate last, actually."

"How about some breakfast for lunch?" she asked him, wiping at her eyes. "I might not be a wonder in the kitchen, but I do know how to make a mean omelet."

He kissed her temple. "That sounds perfect."

"Okay. An omelet it is."

Later on, after eating and helping with clean-up, Will sat on the couch and put his head back. Elizabeth could clearly see that he was exhausted.

"Were you able to sleep on the plane?" she asked.

"No, I never can. I watched a movie...tried to, anyway. Looked over some paperwork. I couldn't really concentrate though." He yawned. "I'm beat."

She could see the bags under his eyes. "Why don't you go stretch out on my bed, take a nap," she suggested, hoping he'd do that, rather than head back to New Seabury.

"You look tired too," he half-heartedly teased. "Will you join me?"

She laughed. "Hmm...I think not. You need to sleep."

He sighed. "You're right." He stood and walked over to her. "You don't mind?"

"Of course not. Go take a nap. You'll feel better after."

He kissed her on the forehead, and hugged her tightly. "Okay. Don't let me sleep too long, though. Once I'm out, I'm out cold...so an hour at the most."

"Okay. Go," she said, gently pushing him toward her room.

She heard the mattress shift under his weight, heard him moving around a little. She settled on the couch with a book, and about fifteen minutes later she heard him sigh, and wondered if he was having trouble adjusting to the brightness in the room. She got up and peeked around the corner, and saw that he was sound asleep.

She walked to the edge of the bed and studied his face. His long eyelashes rested on his cheekbones, and a light stubble covered his cheeks and chin. There were shadows under his eyes, and she realized that although it was unintentional, she had caused them. She felt a wave of remorse. _How could I let Caroline get to me like that?_

She walked around to the other side of the bed and gingerly lowered herself down onto it, moving over slowly to curl behind him, spooning him lightly. She was close enough to him to inhale the scent of his hair, and she had to restrain herself from pushing her nose into the curls at the back of his neck.

He startled, and turned his head slightly to try to look behind him, feeling her presence.

"Elizabeth..." he said hoarsely.

"Shhh," she whispered, "go back to sleep." She draped one arm over his waist and curled her legs up behind his. He reached over to pull her tighter to him, wrapping her arm in his, pressing it against his chest, and he was instantly back to sleep. In a matter of moments, sleep claimed her too.

* * *

><p>Hours later, Will woke suddenly, squinting his eyes from the light filtering into the room. It took him a few moments to remember exactly how he had come to be where he was, and how the arm draped over his waist had gotten there as well.<p>

She had come to lay with him, and was now curled up so closely behind him that he could feel every inch of her pressed up against him. He listened to her slow and steady breathing, and realized that she probably had not gotten much sleep over the past couple of nights either. She needed the nap too.

He stroked her arm lightly, and snuggled his body back further into hers. He felt her arm tighten where it lay across him, and heard her breathing hitch. She was waking up. He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to the inside of her palm, and listened again as she yawned a little.

"What time is it?" she asked him quietly, finally giving in and pushing her nose into the curls at the base of his neck, inhaling his scent.

He glanced at the clock on her bedside table.

"It's almost six," he said. "We've been asleep for a while."

"Mmm, we needed it."

He rolled over to face her, tangling his legs in hers, reaching up to stroke her cheek, and she smiled at him. The smile wavered briefly and was gone.

"What?" he asked her.

Elizabeth knew the time had come; she had to talk to him, open up to him. He had opened himself up to her so much; about Georgie, about his past, and especially about his feelings for her. If they were going to go any further, move this relationship forward, she had to be honest with him, she had to share that part of her that was walled off. He was taking the wall apart, brick by brick, anyway. Slowly, painstakingly, he was dismantling it.

"The last serious relationship I was in was a long time ago."

His heart jumped as he realized that she was finally going to open up to him. He snuggled her close to him, wrapping her up in his arms. "How long ago?"

"Mmm...about six years. We were together while we were in college."

Will felt Elizabeth curl into him even tighter, tangling her legs into his. He hesitated. "We don't have to talk about this now, if you don't want to. It can wait...I can wait."

"No...I want to tell you." She sighed. "It's just...it's hard to tell you about feelings I had then, feelings that were for someone else. Part of me doesn't want to even think about it, but I have to if I'm going to be completely open with you."

Will searched for something to say to reassure her. "The way I see it is like this...those feelings, that part of your life, somehow made you into the person you are now, the person that's here with me. If you can deal with talking about all of it, I can certainly deal with listening."

She reached up to kiss his neck, feeling a rush of warmth at his words. Fidgeting with the collar on his t-shirt, she began talking.

"Jason and I met at the beginning of our junior year at B.U. He transferred in from another school...he was studying Marine Biology. We had a couple of classes together, had some of the same friends, so we ended up becoming friends as well. Eventually, it became more than that...we started dating, casually at first, but then it got more serious."

She stopped as memories from that time came crashing back, memories that she had stored away and not relived for so long. After everything that had happened, after all these years, she could still see Jason so clearly, as if she had just seen him yesterday.

Will kissed the top of her head, silently urging her to continue. "We fell in love. We moved in together after graduation, rented a little apartment, a tiny little run-down thing, but...I was happy. We were happy. We sublet our apartment in Boston during the summer, and rented an apartment with Denny in Woods Hole."

"Denny...the bartender?" Will asked.

She nodded against his chest. "Yes. He met Lydia through me, and they were together. Those summers were crazy...we worked hard, trying to make as much money as we could, but we played hard too. You know...as independent as I was, and still think I am, I loved it...I loved that feeling, that comfort, of having a partner who was always there...who said he'd always be there. "

She stopped then, taking a deep breath, and Will squeezed her tightly, again waiting for her to go on.

"We both got into the master's program at B.U. We always had fun together, but we had our priorities; we were both very serious about school. Everything was great...at least, I thought it was. I thought we were headed towards a lifetime together...marriage. I knew we were young, but still...I knew how I felt, and I thought I knew how he felt."

She paused, taking a deep breath. "About two years into the master's program, he came home one night, and told me he was...done. He didn't want what we had anymore. The whole 'domestic thing,' he had said, 'just wasn't working for him anymore.' Just like that, he left. He told me he had transferred into the masters program at UC San Diego in California. He had arranged everything, even found a place to live out there. He never looked back, and once he left, I never heard from him again."

Will did a double take. "You _never_ heard from him again?"

She shook her head lightly against his chest. "Never."

"Wow."

"Yeah. Wow." She cleared her throat. "I was a wreck. He completely disappeared out of my life, but everywhere I looked, everywhere I went...there were constant reminders of him. I couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, and eventually, I had to withdraw for the remainder of the semester. Jane was my lifeline...she was already living in Boston by then, and was with me as much as she could be. I wouldn't have survived without her. My Aunt Vee, too, on the Vineyard. I talked to her a lot...she would have done anything for me, I think. "

He squeezed her again.

"There's a little bit more to the story." She took a deep breath. "Shortly after Jason left, I found out I was pregnant."

Elizabeth felt Will's hands stop their movements on her back, and she moved back from him, letting her eyes drift up to his.

"About five weeks after he left, I realized that...well, I knew something wasn't right. I thought it was stress, but then I started to feel odd."

Elizabeth thought back to those days. Though they had always tried to practice safe sex, sometimes urgency won out against caution. She hadn't been on the pill, and as they say, the only completely effective method of birth control is abstinence. They definitely hadn't practiced abstinence.

"Did you tell him?" Will asked quietly.

"Eventually. I tried to reach him, but he changed his cell phone number. Denny helped me. He finally got in touch with Jason, and gave me his new number. I thought it was important, of course...I thought Jason had the right to know that I was pregnant with his child. I thought for sure he'd talk to me...I mean, I was carrying his _baby_...how could he just ignore that, and pretend it wasn't happening?"

She stopped for a moment, feeling her voice catch, feeling the pain of that time well up in her throat. She curled back into Will's chest and he pulled her closer. When she began speaking again, her voice was just a whisper. "I miscarried while I was still early on in the pregnancy." She let out a shaky breath. "He never called me. Not once."

She sniffled as she realized tears were rolling down her cheeks, all the emotions she felt so many years ago rushing back into her like a tidal wave. "As sad as the miscarriage was, I felt a sense of relief, but then I felt guilty...for feeling relieved. I felt awful, like I was this horrible person for feeling that way. I knew, though, that if I hadn't miscarried, I would have had the baby...I would have loved it unconditionally. I wouldn't have had an abortion, it wasn't an option for me, and neither was adoption."

Will had begun running his hands through her hair and rubbing her shoulders. She felt like she was in a cocoon, and it gave her the courage to continue, to finish.

"Jane, Denny, and Jason were the only people who knew that I had been pregnant. I never told anyone else, not even my aunt...there didn't seem to be much reason to at that point."

"It took me a long time to realize that I wasn't to blame for everything. For so long, I wondered why he left, wondered what I had done to make him want to leave me. He made me doubt my self-worth, made me think that there was something wrong with me, that I wasn't good enough for him. For anyone." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I felt so weak. I don't ever want to feel that way again."

"It took a long time, but I finally began to see that it wasn't me. It was him. I've dated a little since then, but not much. I just...I can't take that final step. I'm so afraid of letting myself feel, of just letting go and trusting. I told you, that day in Boston, that I couldn't just jump in over my head. I had to test the waters first." She wiped at her eyes. "The past few days...all those feelings of insecurity and doubt came rushing back."

Will felt horrible when he thought about what she must have been thinking, what she must have been feeling. "No wonder you didn't want to talk to me." He lifted his head to kiss her softly. "I wish I could take back the past couple of days."

She shook her head. "It's over with. When I saw you walking toward me on the beach...somehow, I knew it would be okay."

Will sighed. He looked...sad. Upset.

"What is it?" Elizabeth asked him, reaching up to stroke his cheek.

"I just can't believe you had to go through that...I can't believe someone would do that to _you_. It just floors me. How does someone just...walk away like that?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "I don't know. I don't let myself think about it anymore. I can't. It doesn't do any good, and it's a part of my past that I want to forget."

She started to sit up on the bed, and he sat up with her. He smiled softly at her, and she reached up to cup his face in her hands.

She swallowed. "Waking up with you here, being with you, it feels...right. I feel safe. I want to see where we go from here; I want to be a part of your life."

* * *

><p>After their impromptu nap and conversation on Friday, Will left to go back to New Seabury, knowing he needed to check in with Georgie and see how she was doing. He didn't say anything to Georgie about what had happened between himself and Elizabeth; at this point, he would leave it up to Elizabeth. If she wanted to talk to Georgie, confide in her, it would be her decision.<p>

Before going to bed, he called Elizabeth to say goodnight. As they talked, he sensed that something still wasn't quite right. He asked her what she was thinking.

"I feel awful," Elizabeth whispered. "You're supposed to be in California, taking care of business, and instead, you're here. How did I let this happen?"

"Think about it," Will said patiently. "You hear all this stuff from Caroline about me, and you don't know what to believe, then you call me the next morning...and a woman answers my phone. I'm lucky you even decided to talk to me to let me explain. If the situation was reversed..." he trailed off, not finishing his sentence.

Elizabeth waited for him to continue, but he didn't. "If the situation was reversed...what? Wouldn't you give me the same courtesy?"

Will shrugged. "I don't know. I would like to think that I would...but who knows? I guess it would depend on the situation."

Elizabeth was puzzled. "How can you say that? Let's imagine, for one second, that the situation was truly reversed. Say it was me out there, in San Francisco, and you had gone to dinner with some buddies in Boston, and one of them had made some...implications...about a past relationship with me."

"I'd hit him."

She laughed quietly. "Well, because you're a guy, you probably would. But then, say you weren't sure if he was telling you the truth or just trying to get to you. Then, the next day, you call me, and a man answers my cell phone."

The thought of it made Will's stomach turn.

She continued. "I fly back to Boston, desperate to talk to you, and show up on your doorstep. When you see me, you..."

"I...what?" he asked.

"I don't know. Fill in the blank. Do you slam the door on my face? Or do you invite me in to talk?"

Will was silent. He honestly couldn't answer her...would he believe the worst? Or give the benefit of the doubt? He had learned a painful lesson with Georgie about believing the worst.

"I don't know," he finally said. "But since we'll never have to find out, why even discuss it?"

She didn't say anything, so he continued on.

"I do know this. If you had walked away, and not given me a chance to explain..." He paused, trying to find the words to explain the loss he would feel.

"Would you have given up?" she asked quietly. Her heart pounded.

"No," he said quietly. "Never."

* * *

><p><em>So, they've managed to work things out. Just a warning: the real angst in this story comes much later on. For right now, though, and for the next several chapters, it'll be the 'honeymoon phase.' And yes, I know what you're all waiting for...and it's coming, I promise! Please review if you can! Thanks.<em>


	16. Chapter 16

_Thanks to everyone that has taken the time out to review, I really appreciate it! I won't say much about this chapter, it pretty much speaks for itself. There are a few song lyric references in this chapter, all credit is given at the end of the chapter. Oh, and one more note: just a reminder, this story is rated 'M'._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 16<strong>

Elizabeth and Will reluctantly agreed to spend Saturday apart. She had already made plans with Charlotte, and didn't feel right about canceling them. They went for a run, then headed to the Cape Cod Mall to do some shopping. It seemed a shame to spend such a beautiful day inside, but there were some amazing 4th of July holiday sales.

Elizabeth skillfully managed to avoid talking too much about William, although he was never far from her thoughts for most of the day.

Later in the afternoon, after returning home, she called Jane. She had gotten a semi-frantic text from her while she had been shopping, and felt terrible that she had not called to let her know that things were okay.

Jane answered on the first ring.

"Lizzy! I've been waiting to hear from you."

"Hi Jane, I'm so sorry I didn't call sooner! Will came home-"

"He came home?" Jane repeated, interrupting her.

"Yes, he came home. We talked everything out. It was all exactly as you said...a huge misunderstanding." She filled Jane in on what had happened with Anne, and heard Jane's sigh of relief.

"I knew Will wasn't that type of guy." She paused. "I told Charles...and he was convinced, one hundred percent, that it had to be a mix up of some sort. He said Will would never do that, especially to you. What about all the other stuff, did you talk about that?" Jane asked.

"We did. I told him everything Caroline said."

"And?"

"It was all lies. He's never been more than a friend to Caroline...although, she seems to think that she'll eventually be more than a friend. She's been pursuing him for a long time, apparently...but he's never been interested in her."

"I knew it," Jane said sharply. "She was purposely trying to hurt you, trying to get you mad at Will!"

"Did you tell Charles what she said?" Elizabeth asked.

Jane sighed. "I didn't. I figure it's up to either you or Will, not me."

"You're right. I'm sure Will will say something to him." She took a deep breath. "Just so you know...I told Will what you said to me, about him and Caroline having a history. I didn't want to keep anything hidden, you know? I hope you understand."

"That's okay. To be honest with you, I didn't ask Charles to explain what he meant when he said that, so I have no idea what he was referring to. I just...jumped to conclusions, I guess."

"We both did."

Jane sighed. "Okay, can we move on to happier subjects now?"

Elizabeth laughed. "By all means. Any ideas?"

"Well, Charles and I are in New Seabury, and tomorrow is the 4th! Fireworks, cookouts...we need to make a plan."

"You're right, we do. What did you have in mind?"

* * *

><p>Will kept himself busy on Saturday as well, catching up on things that he had been away from while in California.<p>

He walked down to Charles's house Saturday evening, after calling to make sure he and Jane weren't busy. He had a short conversation with Charles, filling him in on the basics of what Caroline had said to Elizabeth. Charles was shocked, to say the least. Will made it very clear to him that he would not tolerate her any more, and wanted nothing to do with her.

"I don't blame you," had been Charles's response. "I wish I could say it was all a misunderstanding, but it certainly doesn't appear to be one."

Will cleared his throat. "Jane mentioned to Elizabeth that you told her that Caroline and I had some kind of history."

Charles's face dropped.

"Look, I'm not upset about it," Will continued, "but I want to know what you think my history with your sister is."

"I...I didn't mean it _that_ way...I know you and Caroline have never been...involved. When I told Jane that, I was talking about the fact that Caroline has always had a thing for you, and that she's pretty much done her best to latch on to you. I didn't mean anything more than that." He sighed. "I guess I should've clarified that comment, and not let Jane's imagination run wild with it. That's my fault, I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I told you I'm not upset. I just wanted to make sure that you really understood our _history_. Well, I guess that's not the right word...we don't have a history to speak of. And just so you know...the next time I see her, it's not going to be pretty."

Charles shrugged. "She'll deserve whatever she gets. She's a grown woman, responsible for her own behavior. She made her bed, now she can lay in it."

* * *

><p>The next day, July 4th, found William at Elizabeth's house, spending the day with her. He loved being there; it was so cozy and peaceful. <em>Thankfully<em>, it was cozy and peaceful. From what he could see, there were no lingering after-effects from the miscommunications and misconceptions of the previous week. Elizabeth seemed happy, and Will was _definitely_ happy.

Not seeing her yesterday had been torture. They had talked on the phone half a dozen times, not really talking about anything important; each just needed to hear the others' voice.

He had arrived at Elizabeth's house in the morning, and had found it hard to keep his hands off of her. She seemed to feel the same, as if the small touches and caresses were a way to reinforce that things were really okay between them.

Jane and Charles were due to arrive at Elizabeth's at around four o'clock with Georgie. Charles had agreed to pick her up on the way over, saving Will a trip back home.

Elizabeth was determined to make the "ultimate pan of brownies" from scratch for all of them to enjoy that night. She was puttering around in her little kitchen, singing along softly with her iPod, which she had placed on a dock so they could both listen, as usual. 'You and Me,' by the Dave Matthews Band was playing.

_Wanna pack your bag, something small  
><em>_Take what you need and we disappear  
><em>_Without a trace, we'll be gone gone  
><em>_The moon and the stars will follow the car  
><em>_And then when we get to the ocean  
><em>_We gonna take a boat to the end of the world...*_

Will leaned against the doorway, not saying anything. He was happy just to watch her as she slowly swayed her hips to the music. She was wearing impossibly tiny denim shorts and a tie-dyed tank top. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail, but the ever-present stray curls fell down her neck. She was barefoot, no jewelry, no makeup...unless the flour smudge on one cheek could count as makeup. He couldn't help but stare...she was beautiful. He smiled to himself as he listened to her sing along, completely caught up in the task at hand.

Out of the blue, he felt a wave of emotion come over him. He felt as though he had been run over by a truck. His heart was pounding and he felt, for a second, like he couldn't breathe. Then it all became crystal clear, this sensation, this warmth spreading over him.

_I love her. I am in love with her._

He had thought about this moment; knew, in a way, that it was coming, and had admitted as much to himself not that long ago. He just didn't know how it would feel, what it would be like when he finally realized it...when he finally really _felt_ it. He was surprised to feel very...calm.

She turned to him then, and she must have seen an odd look on his face as he stared at her.

"What's going on in that gorgeous head of yours?" she asked innocently, not having any idea about the thoughts that were whirling through his mind.

He felt like he had swallowed his tongue, and he knew his face was flushed. All he could do was smile at her, and he was sure he must have looked ridiculous. He was a goner.

"Ahhh," she said, "you're waiting for a taste of the ultimate brownie batter." She scooped up a large glob of the batter with her finger and licked it off, then proceeded to give him a mind-numbing kiss. He loved to kiss her, and usually when he got started, it was awfully hard to stop. This time was no exception. His already scrambled brain was now completely useless.

She broke away slowly and smiled up at him. "Taste good?" she asked, slightly breathless.

He realized he had to say something or look like a complete idiot. "Delicious," he whispered, pulling her back towards him. "Betty Crocker doesn't stand a chance against you." _Oh God,_ w_hat did I just say?_

She laughed quietly. "Aww, that's the sweetest thing anyone's ever said to me," she said while batting her eyelashes playfully at him. "That deserves another kiss."

This time, he kissed her with as much tenderness and feeling as he could put into it. He wanted to communicate how he felt about her through that one kiss. He backed her up against the counter and cupped her face in his hands, letting his lips move over hers again and again, slowly caressing her tongue with his, then moving to kiss her cheeks and her eyes, _those beautiful eyes,_ before finally just pulling her close and holding her, swaying lightly, as the music played in the background.

_You and me together, we could do anything, baby  
><em>_You and me together, yes...yes  
><em>_The two of us together, we could do anything, baby  
><em>_You and me together, yes...yes*_

Elizabeth rested her head on his chest, listening to his heart pound away, knowing that her own heart matched the beat of his. "Remind me to make these brownies more often," she said quietly, feeling quite dazed, and they both laughed softly.

He wanted to tell her, he felt like he was going to burst with wanting to say those three little words to her, but he didn't want to just blurt it out. He wanted the moment to be just right. After that, there would be only one thing left to do...he had to do everything in his power to make her fall in love with him.

* * *

><p>Charles and Jane arrived, with Georgiana in tow. Their 4th of July celebration was fun and festive. They cooked burgers on the grill and sat out on the deck, enjoying watching all the boats that had come out to get good spots for the fireworks. As dusk drew closer, they decided to grab blankets and head down to the beach. Will had long ago brought one of his guitars to Elizabeth's house, and it had taken up permanent residence there. He grabbed it at the last minute.<p>

"Oh, don't tell me I finally get to hear you play!" Jane teased, "I was beginning to think my sister's boasts of your talent were all fictitious!"

Will turned to look at Elizabeth and whispered in her ear. "You boast of my talents?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and laughed. "Only your singing and playing talents. So now, it's up to you to prove to her that I haven't made it all up."

"I will be happy to take requests, but there are rules." He looked at them all seriously, and Georgiana groaned.

"Oh Lord, here we go," she said teasingly.

Will shot her a mock-evil stare. "First rule, no laughing, heckling, or throwing things at the entertainment."

Elizabeth had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing.

"Second rule," he went on, "no requests for anything ridiculous, or for anything that's, basically, lousy music."

Charles interrupted. "Who decides that?"

"Ah, that gets me to the third rule. I have the final say on what is ridiculous and lousy."

Georgiana spoke up. "Obviously, you're going to play what you want, so why even ask us for requests?"

Will's face took on the expression of someone pondering some great truth. "You're right. Why bother?" He pulled away as Georgiana reached out to playfully slap at his arm.

"How about a James Taylor song?" Charles asked. "Does that meet with your approval?"

"Okay, good choice, I can go with that." Will launched into a song, and when he began playing, Elizabeth couldn't help but look at Jane to see her reaction. She was obviously impressed, and looked back at Elizabeth and winked. When he started singing, Jane's eyes widened, and she looked at Elizabeth and mouthed the word "wow". Elizabeth smiled and turned her attention back to Will.

When he finished, Georgiana asked for Jimmy Buffett, and Will was happy to oblige. He played a couple more songs, sometimes just playing quietly, not singing, so everyone could keep talking and not feel like they had to focus on him. He really didn't like to be the center of attention...unless, of course, it was Elizabeth's attention.

He started to play the opening guitar licks of "Someone to Call My Lover," and Elizabeth's and Jane's eyes flew wide open as they started to laugh. It took Charles a minute, but then he recognized the song, and began laughing as well; it was the song that Jane and Elizabeth had danced to at Monday Night Madness. Will smiled at them, knowing they were all thinking back to that night.

Looking back, he realized that he was already falling under her spell that night. He never would have admitted it then, but it was easy to admit it now. It wasn't until they had their first real 'civil' conversation outside of Wicked that he realized she was worming her way under his skin. He stopped playing, and Elizabeth grinned at him, knowing exactly what he was thinking about.

Georgiana had walked up to the house to use the bathroom, and Charles and Jane were laying next to each other on their own blanket, whispering and lost in their own world.

Elizabeth was laying on her stomach, sharing a blanket with Will, facing him so she could watch him play and sing. He laid his guitar down and scooted over to stretch out next to her, pushing her onto her side and pulling her into a great big bear hug. Laughing, she wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her face into his chest, inhaling his scent, loving the feeling of being completely wrapped up in him.

They lay that way for a few minutes, content in just being close.

"Are you done playing?" Elizabeth whispered into his neck.

He chuckled. "Should I be done? Is that a hint?"

"No, of course not...I was hoping I could get you to play one more for me."

He pulled back a little so he could see her face. She was smiling up at him, her eyes sparkling, and as he did so often when he was with her, he felt that familiar fluttering, that lurch, in his stomach. He was beginning to get used to it, to like it, really.

"For a price," he said, smiling down at her, feeling the pull of her eyes.

She laughed. "Oh, that's right...there's a price for 'one more'." She wrinkled her nose playfully. "The price hasn't gone up, has it?"

He leaned back and laughed loudly. "Hmmm, I didn't think of that." She giggled with him, holding him tighter, feeling his body bounce against hers as he laughed. "No, for you, a kiss will still buy you a song."

She tilted her head up as he leaned his down, and they shared a soft, tender kiss. At the same time, he reached around with one hand, fidgeting with her ponytail, until he managed to pull it out of its clip.

"I guess there is an additional cost," he said against her lips, loosening her hair and gently pulling it around her shoulders, where he briefly buried his face in it. He inhaled deeply, then exhaled, and felt her laugh against him as she poked him in the stomach.

"Leave it down?" he asked her quietly, with a playfully pleading look in his eyes.

She sighed, rolling her eyes. "Pathetic," she said teasingly. She fluffed out her hair, tucking the clip into her pocket. "Down it is," she said, laughing once again at the smug look on his face.

Will sat up, crossed his legs and grabbed his guitar again. He began playing a Coldplay song that had become one of his favorites as of late. No one was really paying attention to him except her, so he sang quietly, directly to her.

_Honey you are a rock  
><em>_upon which I stand  
><em>_and I come here to talk  
><em>_I hope you understand...  
><em>_That green eyes  
><em>_yeah the spotlight  
><em>_shines upon you.  
><em>_And how could  
><em>_anybody  
><em>_deny you?_

_I came here with a load  
><em>_and it feels so much lighter  
><em>_now I met you.  
><em>_Honey, you should know  
><em>_that I could never go on without you.  
><em>_Green eyes...**_

The song was simple, but beautiful, and Elizabeth let his voice wash over her, watching his eyes, listening to the lyrics as he sang to her. There was that look again...like when they were in the kitchen earlier. She didn't know what it meant, but she liked it just the same. It made her feel adored.

Georgiana walked back down to the group from the house, and she saw that Will was singing to Elizabeth. She avoided walking over to them, and headed over to pester Jane and Charles. She couldn't miss the look on Will's face, or the look on Elizabeth's, for that matter. _They are so in love with each other, _she thought. _Too bad they don't know it yet._

Will quietly finished the song, and they shared a smile.

"Thank you," she said quietly, reaching over to hold his hand, watching her small fingers thread through his large, strong ones. He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it softly.

"You're welcome," he replied just as quietly, smiling softly at her.

Elizabeth decided to head back up to the house to grab the brownies. She had only taken a few steps when she felt Will tug on her arm and turn her to him. Without saying anything, he gently pulled her toward him, wrapping her up in his arms, and gave her a soft, tender kiss on the lips. He nuzzled her ear, singing softly, _g__reen eyes, green eyes, oh oh oh...oh oh oh…**_

He pulled away slightly to look at her, still humming a little, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

He kissed her again, softly, holding her tightly to him and lifting her slightly off the sand. Elizabeth stretched her arms up and around his neck.

"Hey, get a room!" Charles cat-called. Jane and Georgiana laughed.

They broke away from each other, and Elizabeth could feel that she was blushing slightly.

"I'm going to get the brownies...anyone need anything?" she asked the group.

"Will needs a cold shower," Charles said, laughing at the besotted look on his friend's face. Will picked up a clump of dry seaweed and threw it at him and they all laughed.

"Wait 'til you try these brownies," Will said, talking to everyone else but looking at Elizabeth, "best I've ever tasted." He winked at her and smiled.

Feeling herself blush even more, she turned and walked toward the house, not even trying to stop the huge smile that was spreading across her face.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth came back down to the beach with the brownies, and laughed when she saw a birthday cake, made completely out of sand, with a sparkler stuck in the center as a candle. Will played "Happy Birthday" on his guitar, and they all sang to her.<p>

"I wanted to celebrate today, even thought it's early, since I won't see you on Thursday," Jane said. She then reached into a bag and pulled out a box from Cupcake Charlies, Elizabeth's favorite bakery.

"Yeah! Cupcakes!" Elizabeth said, clapping her hands together. Jane handed her a red velvet one, her favorite. "I guess I shouldn't have bothered with the brownies."

"I'm having both," Will said, smiling at her.

After stuffing themselves with sweets, Jane handed Elizabeth a small square box, wrapped in pink paper with a little white bow, and two cards. She took her time reading the cards...the first, a silly one of course, from both Jane and Charles, and the second a more serious "sister" one that brought tears to Elizabeth's eyes. She reached over and gave Jane a hug.

She pulled off the pink paper and when she opened the box, she was surprised to see the final piece to her Cape Cod jewelry set – the earrings. "Oh, these are beautiful!" She leaned over to give both Jane and Charles each a hug. "Thank you so much! I love them."

Georgiana had brought a gift as well. Will hadn't realized that she had gotten Elizabeth something. He turned to look at Georgie, who could read the question going through his mind. She smiled at him, shrugging slightly.

Elizabeth opened the package and found a necklace inside. The charm was a small sterling silver flip flop, on a thin silver chain. Inside the flip flop was a small ruby, her birthstone.

"Georgiana, this is gorgeous. It's very thoughtful of you." Elizabeth leaned over to give her a hug, and Georgiana blushed.

"I thought you might like it, since flip flops seem to be your favorite footwear." She smiled at Elizabeth and they all chuckled.

Suddenly, William felt everyone's eyes on him.

"Oh no," he said, holding his hands up, "Elizabeth's birthday is four days from now. Thursday. Not today. She gets her gift on Thursday, and not a minute sooner."

Georgiana's mouth opened in disbelief.

Will shook his head, laughing. "Today is _not_ Elizabeth's birthday. I guess she'll just have to wait a few more days." He smiled at Elizabeth and said, "You can wait, right?"

She smiled back. "I can wait."

Georgiana sighed unhappily. "You're terrible." She pouted at him, and he laughed.

They all sat back to watch the fireworks. They were set off from a barge that was moored off of Falmouth Heights beach, and from their spot in the sand, they could see them perfectly. Elizabeth had brought out a portable radio, as one of the local stations, WMVY, played music that went along with the show. They were delighted to see that the fireworks in Oak Bluffs, on Martha's Vineyard, were also visible way off in the distance.

Jane and Charles snuggled up on one blanket, and on another, Will sat with Elizabeth in front of him, wrapping his legs and arms around her. Georgiana shared their blanket as well, and leaned to rest her head on his shoulder. He had never felt so content. _Best 4__th__ of July ever, hands down._

* * *

><p>"I want to stay with you tonight."<p>

Will held Elizabeth while they stood at the water's edge. The fireworks had just ended, and they had decided to take a stroll to dip their toes in the ocean.

Her heart pounded furiously in her chest, and she was convinced he could probably feel it.

"Will...I don't know...I'm not sure..." she left off, not knowing what to say. She hadn't expected him to ask to stay with her. He had never asked before.

"Nothing has to happen, honestly. I just want to hold you, that's all." He knew he'd be testing his limits, but he didn't care. He just wanted to wake up with her in his arms, like he had on Friday afternoon. "I just want to hear you say 'good morning' to me in person. Not on the phone."

"What about Georgiana? You've never stayed here before. What will she think?" Elizabeth was trying to stall a little, give herself more time to think.

Will shrugged. "Georgie's not a little girl. Charles will drive her home, he's only right around the corner. She wouldn't give it a second thought."

Elizabeth wanted him to stay...she wanted to know what it would feel like to be held by him all night, to wake up and have his gorgeous face be the first thing she looked at in the morning. She didn't have to work tomorrow because of the holiday. Closing her eyes, she released the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding.

"Okay," she said, and thought that a more beautiful smile had never graced his face.

* * *

><p>After saying goodnight to Jane, Charles, and Georgiana, they lingered outside for a while, before deciding to get ready for bed. Even though Will had said that nothing would happen, Elizabeth felt that every nerve in her body was at full alert. She dug out an extra toothbrush for him and left it on the bathroom sink. She changed into a pajama tank top, threw on the tiny pair of matching shorts, and brushed her hair out.<p>

When she walked back out of the bathroom, Will was not in the living room, or in her bedroom. Walking to the door, she saw him standing on the deck, leaning on the railing, staring out at the water. She walked out and wrapped her arms around his waist from behind. He pulled her around to stand in front of him, her back to his front, and did the same to her. He pushed her hair aside and bent down to place kisses on her neck, and she sighed and moved her head to give him better access.

"You smell amazing," he said, as he began nibbling on her neck as well. He stopped and rested his cheek against her hair. He brought his hands up and began rubbing her arms slowly from her shoulders down to her hands, up and down. They stood like that for a while, watching all the boats as they made their way back to wherever they had come from. Will slowly rocked them back and forth, still humming "Green Eyes." She smiled to herself as she listened to his voice.

He turned her around to face him, and suddenly lifted her up to sit on the deck railing. She gasped and turned around and looked down briefly, and he laughed softly. "I won't let you fall."

For some reason, those words struck a chord within her. _I won't let you fall._

He could sense that she was weighing what he said. Even though he hadn't meant it _that_ way, she had caught a double meaning. He moved to stand in between her legs, and for once, she was actually taller than him. He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I won't let you fall," he whispered again, placing a soft kiss at the base of her throat. _I love you...I won't let you fall. _The words rang out in his head, but he wasn't ready to voice them yet.

She leaned down to kiss him and ran her fingers through his hair, loving the feel of his soft curls. He kept a firm grip on her waist, and she felt his thumbs making circular motions on the skin under her shirt. She shivered, and wasn't sure if it was due to the breeze coming in off the water, or if it was from the effect he was having on her. Will felt it and pulled her into a tight embrace, wrapping his arms around her waist.

He pulled her off of the railing and into his arms, slowly setting her down. They walked back into the house and closed the door behind them. Will reached up to stroke her cheek. "Be right back," he said, and disappeared into the bathroom.

Elizabeth walked into her bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed, her thoughts racing.

By the time Will walked back into the bedroom, he could see by the look on her face that she was fighting some kind of internal battle. He sat down next to her.

"Are you okay?" he asked, reaching out to stroke her hair, running his fingers through her curls. She closed her eyes and let herself enjoy the sensation.

"I'm fine...I'm just..." she hesitated. "That's the problem, I guess. I don't know what I am." He couldn't pull his eyes away from hers, and he didn't want to interrupt her. He knew that she was opening up even more to him, and he wanted her to say what she needed to say.

She looked down and traced the stitching on her comforter with her finger. When she finally looked back up at him, she had tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry, it's so unfair of me...especially after everything that's happened, after everything we've talked about." She sighed. "Tonight was so...perfect. It really was. I'm sorry I've screwed it up."

He reached over to pull her into his arms. "You haven't screwed anything up." He kissed her forehead. "Staying was _my_ idea, and I know I surprised you. I told you I didn't expect anything from you, and I meant it. I'm happy just to be here with you. Holding you. If you can give me that, it will be enough. I mean it. Don't apologize; you have nothing to be sorry for."

He held her and stroked her hair. The fact that she had spoken to him about her past, about all of her doubts and fears, showed that she felt strongly for him. Maybe she didn't love him yet, but that was okay. He could wait. He felt like they had moved forward by leaps and bounds in the past few days, and for him, it surpassed anything physical that could happen between them. As much as he wanted her, she had to decide when it was time. It was her decision, it was in her hands.

Not trusting her voice, she looked at him and nodded. She felt awful, sure that he was disappointed. But when she looked at him, and listened to him, she didn't see or hear disappointment. She heard caring and sincerity in his voice. She saw tenderness and...something else, in his eyes. Her heart was aching to accept it, and she wanted so badly to return it.

He stood up and walked back into the living room, locking her door and turning off the lights. When he came back into the bedroom, she was already snuggled under the comforter, waiting for him. She watched as he pulled his sweatshirt over his head, and marveled at his muscular body. He unbuttoned his jeans and pulled them off, laying everything over the chair in the corner of her room.

She couldn't take her eyes off of him. _He's beautiful. _He walked around the bed in his boxers, and climbed in behind her. She reached over to turn off the light, and then rolled over to face him. They kissed, gently caressing but keeping the rest of their bodies separated, careful not to let things get out of control.

He rolled her over and pulled her toward him, spooning her, and she realized that she could feel his arousal pressed against her. Will didn't seem to mind; he wrapped his entire body around her and held her, and she felt a sudden sense of belonging. This is where she belonged, with him, like this, at this moment.

"Will?" she asked quietly.

"Mmhmm?" he replied, pulling her close and kissing her head. His mind was battling his body, trying to stay in control, and so far, it was winning. Barely. He was determined, though, to keep himself in check. _Breathe in, breathe out._

"Can you sing me to sleep?" She was still whispering, loving this feeling of intimacy between them. She felt a little silly asking him, but she desperately wanted to hear his voice.

"Care to make a request?" he whispered back.

She laughed softly. "No, no requests. Sing anything."

He paused for a few seconds. He began to sing quietly, almost whispering.

_I think that possibly, maybe, I'm fallin' for you.  
><em>_Yes, there's a chance that I've fallen quite hard over you.  
><em>_I've seen the path that your eyes wander down,  
><em>_I wanna come too,  
><em>_I think that possibly, maybe, I'm fallin' for you._

He tightened his hold on her, and when he felt her curl her body further into his, he knew she was reacting to the words he was singing to her.

_No one understands me, quite like you do,  
><em>_Through all of the shadowy corners of me.  
><em>_I never knew, just what it was, about this old...ice cream shop...I love so much.  
><em>_All of the while, I never knew._

Elizabeth smiled through the tears that sprang up and hugged his arms harder. She knew the song, and knew the words were "coffee shop," not "ice cream shop." He was changing the words to suit them, and it made more tears come to her eyes.

_I think that possibly, maybe, I'm fallin' for you.  
><em>_Yes, there's a chance that I've fallen quite hard over you.  
><em>_I've seen the waters that make your eyes shine,  
><em>_Now I'm shining too.  
><em>_Because, all because, I've fallen quite hard over you.***_

He stopped singing, and it was silent for a little while.

"How was that?" he asked her quietly, as he held her to him.

"That was beautiful," she whispered. She felt the tears continuously sliding down her face, dropping silently onto her pillow. With that song, she knew he was trying to tell her, without _really_ telling her, how he felt. She knew she would never forget this night, or this moment, for as long as she lived.

She sighed and closed her eyes, and the last thing she remembered was feeling Will's lips kissing her neck, and his voice telling her to have sweet dreams.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth woke early the next morning, feeling the warmth of an arm across her waist, and listened to the slow and steady breathing of the man in her bed. She didn't open her eyes right away; instead, trying not to wake him, she scooted her body closer to his, and felt him respond by pulling her closer.<p>

She couldn't resist. She opened her eyes, and facing her from not a foot away on another pillow was the beautiful face of one Fitzwilliam Robert Darcy. There was barely any light filtering into the room, and she glanced back over her shoulder to peek at her alarm clock.

_Ugh, 5:20. Too early to be up._

She turned back toward him, letting her eyes adjust to the dim light, and took advantage of the fact that he was lying before her in such a vulnerable state. She wanted to study him.

She started with his hair, all shaggy waves and curls falling across his forehead, then let her gaze fall to his eyes. He had the most beautiful brown eyes...they were dark brown, but had specks of gold in them. _Root beer candy. _Even closed they were beautiful, long lashes resting against his cheekbones. His eyelids moved, and she wondered what he was dreaming about. She admired his perfectly straight nose, and below that, his absolutely perfect lips, made to be kissed, slightly parted now. She eyed his neck, and was very tempted to kiss it...she loved his neck, kissing it, burying her face it in, caressing it.

He moved a little in his sleep, sighing, and pulled her closer still, tangling his legs in hers. Tentatively, not wanting to wake him, she raised her hand and lightly traced an eyebrow, then let her finger run down his cheek, along his jaw, across his bottom lip. He didn't stir.

Her mind wandered back to the conversation she had with Jane while Will was in California. She remembered Jane saying something like, _you have to take a chance, Lizzy, that's the only way you'll_ _know_. Charles had told Jane that Will was a changed man.

She knew she couldn't stop the feelings that she had for Will, any more than she could stop the sun from rising. Did she have insecurities? Yes. Did she worry that this was all too good to be true? Yes. Did she sometimes feel like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop? Yes.

_Do I care about him? Yes. Do I want him in my life? Yes. Am I falling in love with him? Yes yes yes._

At that moment, her mind was made up. She didn't want to hold back any more; he was here with her, proving to her over and over again, with his actions and his words, that he cared about her and wanted her to be a part of his life. This beautiful, complicated, loving man wanted _her_.

It was time to push all the doubts and the 'what ifs' away. She had to take a chance...she was ready to take a chance. With him.

She scooted her body over to him until they were chest to chest, wrapping one arm over his waist and lying face to face with him, lightly rubbing her hand up and down his warm, muscular back. Her movements were beginning to wake him up, so she gently placed her lips against his and began to lightly kiss him, caressing his lips with hers.

His eyes fluttered open, and without skipping a beat, he closed them again and pulled her closer, wrapping her completely in his embrace. Their kisses stayed gentle and unhurried, and after quite a few minutes, he slowly pulled away and laid his face inches from hers.

"Well. Good morning to you too," he whispered. "I wasn't sure if I was awake or if I was just having a very good dream."

She laughed softly and placed her hand on his bare chest, needing to touch him.

"How did you sleep?" he asked, reaching out to push some curls off of her face.

"Great. I don't think I moved all night." She lifted her hand up to stroke the stubble she could barely see growing on his jaw, and decided she liked it very much. "How about you?"

"Never better." He grinned at her. After a moment, the grin faded, and he just _looked_ at her in the dim light. She felt as though he was seeing her for the first time, seeing _inside _of her.

"You are...stunning. I could stare at you forever," he said, his voice barely a whisper. He reached out to caress her face, just as she had done to him earlier while he was asleep. He traced his fingers over her eyebrows, her eyes, down her nose, across her cheek and across her lips. She closed her eyes and sighed, lost to his gentle touch and the feelings he was evoking in her.

Unable to resist anymore, he raised himself up and leaned over to kiss her, pushing her back onto her pillow. She reached up to put her hands on either side of his neck, letting her thumbs stroke his jaw, and felt his weight settle over her.

They kissed for what seemed like forever to Elizabeth, and eventually, hands began wandering, breathing became heavy...and Will pulled away. She felt his body leave hers, and she instantly missed his warmth.

He sat up and rubbed his hands over his face, knowing he was courting trouble. "We should stop now, or I won't be able to. It's one thing to kiss on the couch, or on the deck, or even in the car...but we're in your bed."

He looked at her helplessly, almost pleadingly, and she saw everything she wanted to see in his eyes.

Instead of answering him with words, she reached up and pulled his head down to hers for another hungry kiss. She wanted to leave no doubt in his mind that this was what she wanted. She wanted _him, _all of him.

He groaned, giving in to her once again. His lips left hers and he slowly kissed along her jaw to her ear, flicking her earlobe, before moving down her neck. He stopped at her pulse point, suckling her there lightly, making her gasp. He could feel her heartbeat against his lips, the rapid pace of it matching his own. He lifted his mouth from her neck and moved over her until he was straddling her legs, leaning down once again to kiss her deeply.

Elizabeth took advantage of his new position immediately, lifting her hands to explore his chest, letting them run over his skin and through the hairs there. His body was amazing. He was all hard muscle, but all of that hardness was covered with the smoothest, warmest skin. She lightly ran her thumbs over his nipples, teasing them just a little, then moved her hands slowly down his stomach, feeling the muscles of his abdomen tighten at her touch. She ran her fingers slightly under the waistband of his boxers, then over them, tracing the length of his arousal, and she felt him suck in his breath.

He stopped kissing her and moved her hand away, and she groaned in frustration. She opened her eyes to see him gazing at her intently. She smiled up at him, knowing he was again giving her the opportunity to stop him. She reached up to cup his face in her hands. "I want this, Will, I do. I want you...all of you."

He looked down at her swollen lips and flushed cheeks, and finally into her gorgeous eyes, turned brilliant green with desire, and knew that she had made her decision, that she was coming to him without reservations. His heart felt as though it was about to burst, it was so full of his feelings for her.

"You...you're sure?" he asked hoarsely, needing to hear her say it again.

"Yes, I'm sure." She reached up to stroke his cheek. "I am so very, very sure."

He sat back on his heels, still straddling her legs, and continued to stare at her. He reached down to the bottom of her tank top, and slowly began pushing it up.

"I want to see you," he whispered. He wanted to see her body, and touch her without being impeded by her clothes. As he pushed the shirt up, they never broke eye contact. Feeling bold, she lifted herself up slightly and completely removed it, then lay back down. She felt her nipples tighten, as much from the air as from the way he gazed at her body.

"You are so beautiful," he whispered to her. He moved his hands to her stomach and slowly caressed her, moving ever-so-slowly up her body, feeling her skin quiver at his touch. He reached her breasts, and slowly began massaging them, teasing their centers and slowly stroking his thumbs across them. He couldn't decide if he wanted to look into her eyes or look at her body.

He leaned over, one hand on each side of her head again, and began to kiss her, over and over, deeper and deeper. He stretched out his whole frame, slowly lowering himself onto his forearms, so the entire lengths of their bodies were touching. The feeling of her bare breasts pressed against his chest was intoxicating. He moved his mouth along her jaw, then worked his way down her neck, sliding his body down hers as he went lower. His mouth reached her breasts, and he slowly drew his tongue across one sensitive tip, then the other, going back and forth, teasing relentlessly until he finally drew one into his mouth, suckling on it gently, reaching up with one hand to roll and stroke the other.

Elizabeth reached down to clutch at his hair, his lips and tongue and fingers still loving her breasts, and wanted to hold his head there forever. She arched herself further up into his mouth and his hand, moaning softly, and he responded by sucking slightly harder, making her hips come off the bed to push up against him.

He slid himself back up her body to attack her lips again. His body was screaming at him to just rip off her shorts and plunge inside of her, but he wanted to make their first time memorable; he wanted to make sure she understood that this was all about her, that he was there to do whatever it took to make her happy.

As they kissed, he rolled off of her and lay on his side next to her, never breaking the kiss. He let one hand drift slowly down her body, leaving a trail of heat as it went. After a prolonged stop at her breasts, he continued down her stomach, and lower, until his hand slid under the waistband of her shorts. His fingers came to rest between her thighs, and he began to slowly and gently stroke her, parting her, his fingers seeking and finding the warm, swollen flesh he was looking for. Again, he lowered his mouth to her breast, and the rhythm of his mouth began to match the movement of his fingers.

Elizabeth rolled onto her side slightly to face him, and pulled his face back up to hers to kiss him more. Still, he kept his hand at her core, never ceasing the gentle, rhythmic caresses that were consuming her, making her whole body feel as if it was on fire. She let her hand drift over his chest and stomach and down to his boxers, until she could feel the warmth of his erection. She found the opening and slid her hand in and began caressing his length, slowly and tentatively at first, until she heard him moan against her mouth.

The sound of his pleasure emboldened her, and she began to caress him harder and slightly faster, squeezing him gently and letting her thumb circle around his tip. He groaned again, louder this time, and reached down to move her hand away from him. His mouth broke from hers.

"If you keep doing that," he said in a quiet, low voice, staring into her eyes, "this will be over long before either of us wants it to be."

In return, she gently nipped at his bottom lip, sucking it into her mouth. She reached up to push her hands into his hair, holding his head to deepen the kiss. He began to stroke her slightly faster and more insistently. She lifted one leg to hook it over his hip, drawing him closer to her, wanting to be _closer_ to him, and gasped as she felt him ease first one finger up inside of her, then another, still stroking her with his thumb. She was breathing heavily, and her hips began moving in rhythm with the slow thrusts of his fingers.

The feeling of his fingers sliding in and out of her, her muscles clenching around them, was almost too much for him to bear. He deliberately slowed, then stopped, the movements of his hand, wanting to suspend the moment. At this point, he was so aroused it was almost painful. He sat up, and slowly slid her shorts and panties the rest of the way down her legs, tossing them to the floor to join her shirt.

For a moment, he just looked at her; he couldn't believe the vision before him. She gazed back at him, skin flushed, her eyes full of desire and longing. Her body was mostly tanned, except for where she wore her bathing suit. In those areas, her skin was pale, creamy, almost as though she was wearing a flesh-toned bikini.

"Do you have any idea," he said slowly, trying to keep his breathing even, "how beautiful you are?"

Elizabeth could only look at his face, into his eyes. There was so much emotion in them, pouring out to her. She gazed back at him, keeping her eyes locked on his, and smiled at him.

He smiled back at her sweetly and leaned down to place soft, warm kisses on her stomach. In between kisses, he murmured to her, "You don't know, do you? You have no idea. So beautiful...so very beautiful."

Elizabeth reached down to run her hands through his hair as he moved his kisses from her stomach to her breasts, and she lifted his head so he would look at her.

"Do you know how beautiful you are?" she whispered to him, pulling him up so they were once again face to face. She held his face between her hands, and kissed him slowly and lovingly. They broke the kiss and for a moment, just stared at each other, embracing the intensity of what was happening.

A light bulb suddenly went off in Will's head_. _"Don't move," he whispered, "I'll be right back."

She looked up at him and shook her head, knowing what he was about. "You're not going anywhere." She turned her upper body and reached over to her small nightstand, opening the drawer and pulling out a condom.

She unwrapped it and looked at him. "I want to put it on you," she said softly, almost shyly, and for a second, he hesitated, not knowing if his body could handle her touch again. The look in her eyes, the desire he saw, decided it for him.

They both sat up as he removed his boxers. He thought he would burst as she slowly unrolled the condom onto him. He felt himself growing even larger and harder in her hands as he watched her stroke him up and down. Groaning, he pushed her back to the bed again.

He let most of his weight fall on top of her, wanting to feel as much of her against him as he could. Lifting himself onto his elbows, he looked down at her. _Never_ in his dreams was she as beautiful as the reality laying beneath him. He began another assault on her lips, and settled himself between her legs. She lifted her hips, silently telling him what she wanted, and reached down to grasp him and try to guide him into her.

He shook his head lightly, smiling down at her, feeling breathless. "We're almost there. Don't rush it," he whispered. He kissed her neck, and worked his way back down to her breasts, going from one to the other with his mouth, while one of his hands moved to her core, bringing her to the brink of climax once again.

"Will, I don't want to wait anymore." She was breathing heavily. "Please. I want you inside of me."

He lifted his head and looked at her, smiling softly, and raised himself over her. "Say it again," he whispered, his smile replaced by a look of raw need.

She raised her eyes to his. "I want you inside me, now-"

In an instant, she felt the whole length of him slide slowly and smoothly inside of her. For a moment, she couldn't breathe, couldn't move. She closed her eyes, and felt her body stretching to adjust itself to the very large object that had just made its presence known.

"Elizabeth? Are you okay?" Will was struggling to keep himself still until she got used to the feeling of him. She opened her eyes and nodded, smiling up at him, and the rush of emotion he felt, seeing her look at him that way, was overwhelming. Slowly, he could feel her body relaxing, and they both sighed, smiling at each other. They didn't move right away; both wanted to just enjoy the sensations they were experiencing.

Will leaned down to kiss her, and finally began to move. He pushed himself up on his hands so he could look at her and watch her. He watched himself thrust in and out of her, and then watched the expressions of pleasure play across her face. She raised her eyes, so green with desire, and looked straight into his.

He lowered himself back down to her as he began to move slightly faster and his thrusts became harder. As the demands of her body grew, she wrapped her arms and legs around him, pulling him as far into her as she could. He lowered his head down to her body, grazing her neck with his mouth. Leaning on one arm, he reached down with one hand to gently stroke between her legs, finding her swollen center and teasing it with his fingers, applying more pressure as he felt her body responding.

Elizabeth's breath caught in her chest as she felt herself spiraling into an incredible orgasm. She felt her body clenching around his length, and couldn't stop the cries that came out of her mouth. Moments later, she heard him call out her name as she felt him reach his release, his hips completely joined to hers. He slowly lowered his full weight on top of her as he thrust one last time.

They lay there, neither one wanting to move, both breathing heavy, until finally Elizabeth began kissing his shoulder and neck, and any other patch of skin she could reach with her mouth. He lifted his head and looked at her, and began slowly kissing her, over and over again, until his breathing returned to normal.

Rolling off of her, he gave her another kiss and whispered "Be right back." He disappeared into the bathroom and was back very quickly. He climbed back into bed and pulled her over toward him so they could embrace, once again lying on their sides. Wrapping her in his arms, he kissed her lovingly, deeply, but without the urgency that had consumed them both before.

"Good morning again," he said quietly as he hugged her.

"Good morning," she replied, holding him tightly.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes...I'm very okay." She kissed him again.

"Really? I mean, you're happy with...everything?" He suddenly felt the need for reassurance, needed to know that this was truly what she wanted, especially after the emotional roller coaster they had been on for the past few days.

She looked up at him, an expression of disbelief on her face, and quietly said, "You couldn't tell?"

He couldn't help himself, he began to laugh softly, and she joined in with him. They kissed more, not ready to let the intimate moment end, but soon settled down and pulled each other close.

"Are you happy?" Elizabeth whispered, burying her face in his chest. It had been so long for her, she needed reassurance too; she needed to know that he was happy as well.

Will chuckled sleepily. "_Mmhmm_. _Very_ happy. Happy, and _right_."

Elizabeth pulled back slightly to look at him. "Right about what?"

"You don't remember?" he said, his voice rough and deep. "I told you a month ago that when we finally made love, when it finally happened, it would be amazing." He smiled, pulling her closer and tucking her back in under his chin. "It was the arrogant versus confident thing again."

Elizabeth sighed, hugging him tight. She spoke the next words into his chest. "Go ahead, say it."

He smiled widely into her hair. "I told you so."

They both laughed. As the sun began its ascent into the sky, they pulled up the comforter and snuggled underneath, dropping off into a contented sleep.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth woke again, gradually letting her mind wrap around the morning's events. She stretched and rolled over, encountering an empty bed. Slowly, she opened her eyes, wondering if she had dreamed the whole thing. Then she spotted Will, sitting in the chair in her room, with just his jeans on, guitar on his lap, watching her.<p>

"Hi," she said, feeling slightly self-conscious. She glanced at the clock, which read 9:30."Oh, it's late. How long have you been up?"

"Hi yourself." He smiled at her and strummed his guitar lightly. "I haven't been up long. I've been watching you sleep. You've been making some interesting noises." He grinned when he saw her blush.

In actuality, 'interesting' could not _begin_ to describe the noises she was making, and he had a pretty good idea of what she had been dreaming about. The comforter had slipped down, revealing a very attractive breast, and he felt himself growing hard just looking at her as she was sighing and lightly moaning in her sleep. Eventually she had shifted position, covering herself up again, and the sexy noises had subsided, helping something else to gradually subside as well.

He had enjoyed watching her sleep, her beautiful hair spread out on the pillow, her face relaxed, lips slightly parted, begging to be kissed...once again, a current of emotion flowed through his body.

_I love her. I love her_. It was all he could think about as he looked at her.

Being with her this morning, making love to her, was an amazing experience. It was so much more than he thought it would be, and he knew it was because his emotions were tied into it. It wasn't just sex; it wasn't just about fulfilling a physical need. It was so much more. Even knowing this, he had a hard time trying to form the words in his mind. How could he ever tell her how much she made him feel? He didn't think he'd ever be able to put his thoughts, his emotions, into simple words.

"Have you already been playing this morning?" She thought she had never seen a sexier picture than the one in front of her. Will, clad only in his jeans, hair a curly mess and stubble covering his jaw, sitting in a chair in _her_ bedroom.

"I have been, yes, but very quietly so I wouldn't wake you. I hope I didn't." He strummed again.

"I would love to wake up to the sound of you playing, and singing, any time." She sat up in the bed, propping up the pillows to lean against them and pulling the comforter up under her arms.

"I would love to wake up to the sight of you, just as you are right now..._all_ the time." He couldn't tear his eyes away from her, lips still red from being kissed so thoroughly, dark hair a tumbling, curly mass around her shoulders, cheeks pink, and eyes shining bright.

"Where is your camera?" he asked her.

"What? My camera? Why?" She squinted her eyes at him. "What are you thinking?" She actually knew exactly what he was thinking, and she was slightly mortified. He had gotten up and walked over toward the bed, and she started to get up.

"Don't move!" he said, holding out his hands to stop her. "Just tell me where it is."

Abruptly, he stopped, and a look of shock crossed his face. He turned to look at her, wondering what she must be thinking of him. "_Oh shit_...I'm sorry...I shouldn't even be thinking like that. Oh, God. Oh shit. I'm sorry."

For a moment, Elizabeth was completely confused; then it clicked with her. _He's thinking of Georgiana._

"Will, its fine. I wasn't thinking about...that. It didn't even enter my mind! Not at all. This is...it's completely different. It's a totally different situation. I'm just a little self-conscious, that's all."

"I wasn't going to do anything...inappropriate. It's just...your face. Your expression...your eyes. I want to be able to see that, to see you like that...whenever I want to. I just want a picture of your face."

She tried to lighten the moment. "Selfish man."

He shrugged. "If that makes me selfish, then yes, I guess I am." He gazed at her, wishing she could read his thoughts, read the love that was there. "You look so beautiful, just as you are right now. Will you indulge me?"

She smiled shyly. "Okay."

He walked out into the living room. "Where is your camera?" he called out to her.

She covered her face with her hands. "Aren't you worried the moment is lost now?"

"I can get the moment back, I'm pretty sure about that. Where is it?"

"It's in the black bag on the floor of the darkroom." She couldn't believe she was actually going to let him do this.

He walked back in, camera in hand, with a fresh roll of color film. He stood there, bare-chested, in his jeans, looking like he had just rolled out of bed...which he had, basically...and he was devastating. She felt her whole body tingle.

"Do you want me to load the film?" she asked him hoarsely, holding out her hands.

He looked at her and rolled his eyes. "I have loaded film into a camera before, you know. You just sit back and be your pretty little self."

He got the film in and came over to sit on the edge of the bed, setting the camera down on her night stand. Putting a hand on either side of her body, he leaned in and began kissing her slowly, lingering, letting his tongue move sensually with hers, then pulling away to suck on her bottom lip. He pressed his chest against her, and she lifted her hands to hold his head, feeling herself beginning to ache for him all over again.

He moved his lips to her neck, and as he did, he slowly pulled the comforter down, exposing her breasts. He looked up at her. "You are so beautiful. Your body is perfect...it was made for me." He lowered his head, taking first one nipple into his mouth, sucking gently on her and flicking his tongue over her, while his hand caressed the other. He then switched his attentions, moving his mouth to her other breast, switching his hand as well. The ache she had begun to feel instantly turned into a throbbing need.

He could hear and feel her breathing change, felt her hips beginning to move, and knew he was having the desired effect on her. Still, he lavished her with attention, wanting to get her as excited as he could. She held his head and ran her hands through his hair. He looked up at her face and saw that her eyes were closed, her cheeks were flushed pink, and her lips were slightly parted. _That's it._

He stopped suddenly and pulled away from her, raising the comforter back up to cover her breasts. He grabbed the camera and scooted back over to the chair. Slowly, she opened her eyes, as if coming out of a dream, and he saw that they were that beautiful shade of deep green, a color fueled by desire.

"I told you I'd get the moment back." He grinned at her smugly, despite the fact that he was in the same shape as her, incredibly aroused, almost painfully so.

She sighed. "Are you teasing me?"

Elizabeth stared at him as he took one or two pictures, and when he lifted his gaze to her, his eyes were pools of dark brown, looking at her with barely restrained lust. He gave her a sexy half-smile, but to her, he looked as if he was going to make her his next meal. Her stomach fluttered in anticipation.

After one or two more photos, he set the camera down. In a flash, he peeled off his jeans, yanked back the comforter, and had her pinned to the bed.

"I never tease," he said, practically growling the words.

"Prove it," she said breathlessly.

He yanked open the drawer of her bedside table, praying that he'd find another condom there, feeling a wave of relief when he did. He quickly unwrapped it and put it on.

He lowered himself onto her, pinning her hands out to her side on the bed, and slowly began to slide into her, almost losing control at the sounds that escaped her lips.

He couldn't stop himself. He plunged deep, thrusting in and out hard and fast. She wrapped her legs around him and begged him to let her hands go so she could touch him.

He shook his head no, smiling at her wickedly. He lifted her hands, pinned them directly above her head, and held them with his left hand, reaching down with his right to caress her breast, teasing and stroking the peak, feeling it harden even further under his hand. His fingers left her breast and traveled along her side to stroke her hip, and eventually slid between them, once again finding that swollen spot, and stroking it in rhythm with his thrusts. He felt her body tightening, getting ready to release.

"Look at me," he whispered to her, and she opened her eyes and gazed back at him. He slowed his thrusts down to a maddeningly sensual pace, still stroking her with his hand. He wanted to watch her as she lost complete control.

Elizabeth stared into his eyes, and she couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't do anything but feel. Warmth suffused her body as she felt herself climbing up, up, up, and she cried out, feeling as though her body was bursting into a million pieces. He finally let go of her hands as he braced himself to thrust into her harder, deeper, and she pulled her knees back to give him as much of herself as she could.

He felt her body squeezing his over and over, heard her cry out, and with one final thrust, he released himself into her, pushing into her as far as he could.

"Oh, Lizzy," he said quietly as his body trembled and he struggled to catch his breath. He realized that he was completely smothering her, and tried to lift himself off of her so she could breathe.

She squeezed him tighter with her arms and legs. "Don't even _think_ about moving," he heard her murmur quietly. He began to chuckle, and stayed right where he was, trying to slow his breathing.

"Do you know what you just did?" she asked him quietly, also trying to catch her breath.

"Yes, I have a pretty good idea...I'd be glad to do it again if you need clarification."

She smacked him lightly on his bottom and they both laughed.

"No, I'm not talking about _that_." She smiled up at him. "You called me Lizzy. You've never called me anything but Elizabeth before...well, if you don't count 'Miss Bennet', or 'one of those Cape Cod beach girls', that is." It was his turn, and he reached down to lightly pinch her bottom.

She jumped. "Hey!"

He nuzzled her neck, breathing in her scent. "It just slipped out, I guess." He smiled at her. "But I have called you Lizzy before. Don't you remember?" he asked, as he nibbled her earlobe.

"No, actually...I don't. When?" she said breathlessly, as he continued to kiss her neck and ear, making her insides turn to a quivering mess again.

He stopped and lifted his head, a grin on his face. "That night we were at Wicked...Lydia kept calling me _Willy_, which you found very funny, if I remember correctly."

Elizabeth started giggling. "Oh my gosh, I completely forgot about that. You called me Lizzy when I teased you."

She reached up with her mouth to place kisses on his neck, licking and sucking gently on his skin. "I kind of like it," she whispered. "It sounds very sexy, coming from your delicious mouth."

"I'll have to remember that...Lizzy," he murmured against her lips, giving her a long, slow kiss, making her toes curl and her entire body tingle.

After lying there, kissing contentedly for a while, they decided that they should probably get up, although neither was truly happy about it. Elizabeth decided to shower, and although Will contemplated joining her, he realized it would have to wait for another time. He had no clean clothes to change into, so they decided that once Elizabeth was ready, they would head back to New Seabury so he could shower, and they would plan the rest of their day from there.

Elizabeth found herself humming and smiling as she took her shower. _I made the right decision,_ she thought. She wasn't feeling any doubts, any second thoughts. She felt a much deeper connection to him, one that existed on an entirely different level, and knew by the way he looked at her, the way he had _loved_ her, that he felt it too. He was unbelievable...just thinking about his body, his hands, his mouth, was enough to set her stomach fluttering all over again. It wasn't just physical, though, and she knew that. She shut off the faucet and dried off, still grinning from ear to ear.

"We need to include food in this plan somewhere. I'm famished." Elizabeth said, as she dug through her refrigerator after her shower, looking for something easy to munch on until they could have a real meal.

Will lay back on the couch in the living room, watching her walk around wrapped in a towel, and had to restrain himself from getting up and dragging her back to bed again.

"Want an apple?" She tossed him one, and walked into her bedroom to get dressed. He was unable to stop the smile spreading across his face as he munched on the apple.

He knew something momentous had happened this morning. It wasn't just a case of Elizabeth deciding she wanted to have sex. If it was as simple as that, it would have happened weeks ago. No...he knew, in his gut, that something in her mind, something in her heart, had changed. It was as if a switch had been flipped. She had made a decision about him, about them. He wanted to talk about it, but would wait for her cue. _I can't wait to see those pictures,_ he thought.

Elizabeth walked back into the living room carrying a small duffel bag. "I'm bringing a change of clothes...in case we plan something for later."

"Good idea." Will's gaze looked her over appreciatively. She was wearing white shorts, showing off her beautiful, tanned, long legs, and a sexy Boston Red Sox tank top. Her hair, still damp from her shower, fell around her shoulders. On her feet were the usual flip flops, navy blue this time. He felt his body reacting to her. _Thank God she can't read my mind_.

She grabbed her sunglasses, cell phone, and purse, and turned to look at him, wondering if she should go change. "Is this okay? Should I put something else on?" He was looking at her oddly.

He shook his head. "You look fantastic." He walked over to her and dropped a kiss on her neck, then her shoulder. "I have an idea. Let's take your camera with us, so we can use up that film we popped in this morning. The quicker we use up the film," he said, as he reached to run his hands through her hair, "the quicker I get my pictures." He grinned at her, and she laughed.

"Good idea...I'll find some unsuspecting souls to take photos of at the beach."

He grabbed her around the waist as she laughed, pulling her into him. "Isn't it funny how things turned out?" His voice was teasing. "You invaded _my_ _privacy_, and caused my sister and me _tremendous_ upset...and yet, you turned out to be the best thing that's ever happened to me." He kissed her softly, then looked at her. "Ready?"

Elizabeth sighed. "Ready," she replied, looking up at him. _I __am__ ready. I'm ready for this. For all of it._

* * *

><p><em><strong>Finally<strong>, right? Please leave me a review, I love to hear from the readers. Song credits are below. Thanks! _

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><p>* <em>"You And Me" by the Dave Matthews Band<em>

** _"Green Eyes" by Coldplay_

*** _"Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop" by Landon Pigg_


	17. Chapter 17

_I wasn't going to post today, I'm not due for an update until tomorrow, but then I thought, 'what better day for the readers to meet Mrs. Bennet than on Mother's Day? It seemed so appropriate. A lot of readers have been commenting/asking about George. He will pop up regularly in the story, but he and Will won't actually bump into each other. And, to put some fears to rest, the pics that Will took of Elizabeth will not become an issue. They are safe from harm. _

_Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing, and to all you moms out there, Happy Mother's Day! _

_Just a note...this chapter starts part 3 of the story._

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><p><strong>PART 3<strong>

**Chapter 17**

Elizabeth's cell phone rang as she and Will were headed to New Seabury, and she saw it was Jane.

"Hi Jane!"

"Hi Lizzy. I just wanted to check in with you, to see how the rest of your night went." She paused. "How are you?"

"Great." She glanced at Will out of the corner of her eye. "I'm with Will, we're heading back to New Seabury. What are you and Charles up to?"

"Well, that's what I was calling about. We're heading over to say hi to mum and dad this afternoon, we thought maybe you...and Will...could join us."

Elizabeth sighed and closed her eyes. "I don't know, Jane...I don't know if I want to subject Will to them quite yet." She glanced at him again, and saw he had turned to briefly glance at her as well. "Can I call you back once we get to his house?"

"Sure...but you know, you've been seeing him for over a month now...you told mum you'd bring him over sometime soon." She paused, but when Elizabeth didn't say anything, she went on. "Lydia is supposed to be there too...believe it or not, she's looking at some classes she may take at the community college, and she wants dad to look over some things with her."

Elizabeth was surprised at that bit of news. Ever since Lydia had begun speaking to Denny again, she would call Elizabeth occasionally to discuss him, really just to bounce thoughts off of Elizabeth. Not once did Lydia ever mention taking classes. Then again, she never asked about Elizabeth's life, either. Didn't ask what was going on with her, her job, nothing. It was all Lydia, Lydia, Lydia.

Elizabeth didn't mind talking to her; she sounded as if she was finally trying to get her life on track, trying to come to grips with what had happened all those years ago, when Denny had left town, almost as suddenly as Jason had. Everyone knew why Denny left; he wanted to make their relationship permanent, and Lydia didn't. Frustrated and heartbroken, Denny had bolted. Lydia had tried to come off as being fine about it, but Elizabeth knew she had been hurt.

Elizabeth had a hard enough time dealing with her own past, and now finally felt as though she was moving on, full steam ahead. The last thing she wanted to do was become embroiled in her sister's past.

"What time are you going over?" Elizabeth realized that Jane was probably right, she couldn't hide Will from her family for much longer.

"Probably around four-ish. Maybe we could go for an hour or so, then the four of us could have an early dinner before Charles and I head back to Boston. Having dinner plans will give us an excuse to leave, if we need one."

"Oh, we'll need one, trust me," Elizabeth said.

There was another brief pause.

"So...your night was good?" Jane asked tentatively, obviously poking for information.

Elizabeth cleared her throat and felt her face flush. "Yes. Very."

"Okay then...I'm sure we'll have a chance to talk later."

"I'm sure we will," Elizabeth said, knowing that at some point Jane would corner her and demand some details. "I'll talk to Will about this afternoon and give you a call back in a little bit."

"K. Bye Lizzy."

"Bye." She clicked off her phone, then laid her head back against the headrest, eyes closed.

Will reached over to take her hand and said, "You'll talk to Will about what?" He stroked his thumb over her knuckles.

"Jane and Charles are going to see my mum and dad later today, and Jane wants us to go with them. Apparently, Jane thinks it's time you met the parents." She sighed again. "Does it matter that _I_ don't think it's time you met the parents?"

"I'll meet them whenever you want me to." He thought for a second. "What's the big deal, anyway? Are you trying to keep me hidden away?" He kissed her hand.

She laughed shortly. "No, I'm trying to keep you safe! You have no idea what my mother is like. She can be unbearable, I've told you that. My dad is...well, he's harmless, compared to my mother." She shook her head. "If I show up over there with you..." Her voice trailed off quietly. She hated even the thought of it.

"I think I can handle her," Will said confidently. "She's just your mother, after all."

She turned to look at him and let out a short laugh. "You have no idea."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth gave in and called Jane back to tell her that they would be at her parent's condo around four. That gave Elizabeth and Will plenty of time to loaf around and use up the film in Elizabeth's camera, like they had planned.<p>

"Where in Mashpee do your parents live?" Will asked. He had just gone back out to the deck, fresh from his shower, where Elizabeth was sitting with Georgiana, soaking up the sun.

"Actually, they're right around the corner from here, at Southport Village." She turned to look up at him, and her heart skipped a beat.

She looked him up and down, taking in his appearance. He wore khaki cargo shorts with a plain white t-shirt, which offset his tan wonderfully. His hair was damp from the shower, and she watched him as he worked at strapping his watch onto his wrist, watching his fingers fiddle with the buckle.

When she finally raised her eyes back up his chest to his face, with memories of those fingers and the morning's activities flashing vividly in her mind, she saw that he was looking at her with an expression of pure satisfaction.

He leaned over to kiss her cheek and nuzzle her neck. "Like what you see?" he whispered, and she felt herself blush.

"Very much," she whispered back. He gave her a quick kiss on the lips and stood up.

He cleared his throat. "So...where are we going?" He looked at his watch, and saw that it was almost one-thirty. "We have a couple of hours, anyway."

Georgiana, who hadn't moved since Will came out on the deck, noted Elizabeth's camera and turned her head. "What are you taking pictures of?" she asked.

"Nothing in particular," Elizabeth answered. "Whatever strikes my fancy, I guess," she said, winking at Will and letting her gaze drop to his chest.

She thought of the nearby conservation area that had a small park and lots of walking trails. "There's a spot nearby, if you don't mind walking in the woods." She looked at Will and then at Georgiana, silently asking him if they should ask her to come along.

"Hey, Georgie, do you want to join us?" he asked her, really hoping she would stay put so he could have Elizabeth to himself for a little while longer.

Georgiana looked up at her brother and thought he couldn't be more transparent if he tried. "I'm actually content to sit in the sun for a bit. I've got some email to catch up on, so I'll probably do that in a little while. You guys go on."

"Are you sure?" Elizabeth asked. "I hate to monopolize all of your time with Will."

"Oh, please. You kids go have fun." She winked at them and went back to listening to her iPod and catching some rays.

Will rolled his eyes, and reached over to pull out one of her earbuds. "How about dinner with us later?"

"That sounds great. What time?" Georgiana asked.

"Probably around five. We'll be back in a little while though." Will said.

"Okay. See you in a bit." She popped her earbud back in.

* * *

><p>Georgiana actually had something else on her mind. A job.<p>

After being on the Cape for almost six months, she had decided that she really enjoyed living here. She found out that she was able to terminate her leave of absence from the Boston school system, and effectively end her employment with them. She wanted to find a teaching job here, on the Cape, preferably in Mashpee or Falmouth, perhaps even in Barnstable.

She had been checking around, and found an open position for a full-time elementary teacher in Falmouth, and another open position for a permanent substitute teacher in Mashpee. Both were for the upcoming school year. She had been working on her resume, and had called the administration departments for both school systems, getting the information she needed to find out if she was qualified for either job.

She felt so much healthier now, mentally and physically. Mrs. Reynolds was right; the sea air was good for her. She still had nightmares, but they were fewer and farther between, and they didn't leave her with that lingering feeling of despair and fear the next day. She was able to push them to the back of her mind, and get on with it.

_Get on with it_. That's what she needed to do. She loved teaching, loved being around children, encouraging them, watching their little faces light up when they accomplished something. She missed it and wanted to get back to it.

Just as she had been thinking about her future employment, she had also been thinking about her living arrangements. Being here with Will was all well and good for now, but she couldn't live with him forever. She glanced across the large expanse of lawn to the guest house. In a matter of minutes, she was standing in the middle of the small cottage, looking around.

She hadn't been out here in quite a while, but it was just as she remembered. It was all one level, and was very cozy...perfect for her. It was fully furnished and tastefully decorated. It had two bedrooms, a living room that opened up into a small dining room, and a bright eat-in kitchen. There were also two full baths, one off the master bedroom and one off the hallway. She smiled as she remembered running out here as a child to visit Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds, racing across the lawn with Will.

She knew Will would protest her 'moving out', but really, she wasn't...she was just moving across the backyard. She was thrilled that his relationship with Elizabeth seemed to be moving ahead, and knew the possibility existed that Elizabeth could eventually become a permanent part of her brother's life. The thought made her smile. Living here would give her a little more independence, and give Will privacy at the same time.

She walked out of the cottage and back toward the main house, intent on setting up interviews for both jobs. She felt excited now, at the prospect of working again, and having a little place to call her own. She was determined, finally, to get on with it.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Will held hands as they walked along through the Mashpee River Woodlands, following the well marked trails. They were wide and flat, so the walk wasn't strenuous. Most of the trail lay parallel to the Mashpee River, and they could hear the water as they walked. Although it was warm, the trail was shaded and comfortable. They had passed a few people, but other than that, they had the woods to themselves.<p>

Will looked at Elizabeth out of the corner of his eye. Her camera was hanging around her neck, and she was looking around, no doubt searching for the perfect photo opportunity. She had her sunglasses on, so he couldn't read her eyes, but he didn't miss the smile that played on her lips.

He broke the silence. "What are you smiling about?"

She looked at him, and blushed slightly as she shook her head and shrugged. "I was just...thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

"Hmm...about you." She smiled fully now.

"What about me?" he asked, now smiling himself.

She stopped walking, making him stop as well.

She sighed. "I'm thinking about...how happy I am. How everything seems...brighter today. More vivid." She shrugged again, feeling a little self-conscious. "I'm just...happy."

He felt a wave of emotion, and found that he was momentarily speechless. He just stared at her, and eventually reached up to cup her face with both hands.

"You have no idea," he said, never taking his eyes from her face, "how that makes me feel. Just knowing that. Knowing you're happy."

He leaned in to kiss her, pushing his hands back into her hair and running them through her curls. He kissed her softly and slowly, gently coaxing her tongue, pulling it into his mouth to play with his. She pressed herself against him and wrapped her arms around his waist, and he felt his pulse quicken. He lowered his hands to her shoulders and let them slide down her back, reaching down to gently cup her bottom and pull her more tightly to him. She moaned softly into his mouth, and he felt his body's immediate reaction to that small sound.

The snap of a twig brought them back to reality, and they broke apart, but neither looked toward the sound, they only stared at each other. Elizabeth leaned into him and buried her face in his chest, hugging him, her camera pressed between them. Will glanced up to see a much older couple walking by, both smiling at him, holding hands as they passed. Will returned the smile sheepishly, and the man winked at him.

Once again, they were alone.

"Where were we?" Elizabeth asked, raising one eyebrow and lifting her face to kiss him again.

Will kissed her back, then broke away from her slowly. He gave a low laugh as he hugged her. "_We_ were going to keep walking, because if we don't, some of these other walkers will see a lot more wildlife than they bargained for."

Elizabeth laughed into his chest, and his stomach flipped.

_That's the sound I want to hear forever,_ he thought. He brought his arms tighter around her, giving her a huge bear-hug, and lifted her off the ground as she squealed.

"C'mon, we need to use up that film. Let's head down to the river," he said, setting her down and smiling happily.

* * *

><p>Just after three o'clock, Will and Elizabeth came strolling back into Will's house, greeting Georgiana as she sat at the table in the dining room. She had her laptop out, and several pieces of paper were strewn about the table.<p>

"Hey Georgie," Will called out as he headed to the kitchen for drinks.

"Hey guys," Georgie said. "How was your walk?"

Elizabeth smiled at her. "It was great. It's such a pretty area to walk in. There are some osprey nesting near the river, up on a platform. I think I got some great pictures of them."

She nodded toward the mess on the table. "What's all this?" she asked.

Georgiana glanced toward the kitchen as she started picking up the papers. "I'm working on my resume, trying to update it."

Elizabeth's brows furrowed in confusion. As far as she knew, Georgiana had a job, and was on a leave. "What for?"

Georgiana answered quietly. "I've decided to look for work here...on the Cape. Don't say anything to Will, I haven't mentioned it to him yet." She looked toward the kitchen again. "I'm looking into two jobs right now...they're both in elementary ed." She stacked the papers and put them under her now closed laptop.

"Wow, Georgie, that's great!" Elizabeth said softly. "Let me know if you need help with anything."

"Thanks," Georgiana replied, just as Will walked out of the kitchen.

"What have you been up to?" Will asked, looking at the laptop curiously as he handed Elizabeth a bottled water.

"Oh, nothing...just printing out some things...catching up on some email."

The answer seemed to satisfy Will. "Do you still want to go to dinner with us tonight?"

"Sure," Georgie answered. "Where are we going?"

"Don't know yet. We'll figure it out when we see Jane and Charles, I guess," Will said.

"How about Bleu? Or Siena?" Georgie offered, looking from Will to Elizabeth.

Will shook his head. "Not Siena." He glanced at Elizabeth, and she just shook her head, eyes wide open.

"Maybe we'll just go to the pub in the Commons...they have good food," Elizabeth said, appreciating Will's effort to avoid the place she least wanted to go at the moment.

"Whatever you guys decide is fine," Georgie replied, "I'll be ready when you get back."

Elizabeth took another drink of water and glanced at her watch. "I need to get changed before we go to my parents," she said, looking down at her tank top.

"Come with me," Will said, smiling. He grabbed her bag and began walking toward the stairs.

She followed him up the stairs, down a long hallway, into a cozy sitting room. The walls were painted a pale blue, and there was a desk, a beautiful wingback chair, a small couch, and a coffee table. The furniture was all dark mahogany wood, giving it a very solid, masculine feel. One wall was completely covered in windows that overlooked the backyard and the ocean beyond. Those, and a well placed skylight, brightened the room immensely. Bookcases lined two of the walls, filled top to bottom and end to end with books of all types. A large flat-screened television was mounted on the third wall.

Will disappeared into another room off of the sitting room, but Elizabeth slowed her pace so she could look around. This room was well used, she could tell. Magazines and books littered the coffee table, and a sweatshirt was thrown over the wingback chair. The whole room looked comfortable and inviting.

"This is nice," Elizabeth said as she passed through slowly, glancing out the windows at the view.

"Thanks," she heard Will call out from the other room.

She grinned. He seemed to be in a hurry, as he was already well into the other room before she caught up. As she walked through the door, she realized she was walking into his bedroom.

It was a massive room, and instantly Elizabeth felt it suited him to a tee. It was warm and manly...just like him. The color on the walls and the dark mahogany carried through into here as well. There was a king size bed facing a gas fireplace, another wingback chair (currently holding her bag), a long, low dresser with a mirror, and an armoire. She heard his voice, but didn't see him.

"You can get changed here. There's a bathroom if you need it, it's the door near the bed," he called out. As in the sitting room, one wall was all windows, with the exception of a pair of French doors in the center, which looked like they led to a small balcony.

She followed his voice into another room, which ended up being a walk-in closet. She leaned against the doorway as she watched him look through a selection of shirts.

"I could have just changed downstairs," she said.

He turned around, holding a clean shirt in his hands, and walked over to her. "That wouldn't have been much fun. I need to change too...so why not change together?" He smiled at her, with a little gleam in his eyes.

She laughed and arched an eyebrow at him. "I already know what you're thinking, and we don't have time. We have to be at my parents in..." she glanced at her watch, "...thirty-five minutes." She laughed again as he came closer to her, recognizing the look in his eyes and feeling her heartbeat accelerate.

"I was only thinking that it would be a shame to waste an opportunity...to look at your gorgeous body." He stopped when he was standing close enough for their bodies to touch. "Plus, you may need my help." He walked over to the bedroom door and firmly closed it before walking back over to her again, leaning up against the closet doorway, standing very close to her.

She kept smiling, enjoying the flirting, and leaned up against him. "What would I need your help with exactly?"

He shrugged. "Oh, I don't know...tank top removal? They can be tricky," he said as, he fingered the strap of her top, slowly sliding it, and her bra strap, off of her shoulder and kissing her there softly. "The zipper may get stuck on your shorts, I could _definitely_ help with that."

He slowly propelled her backwards with his body toward the large bed that dominated the room, and she felt her skin flush and her stomach flip. He tossed the shirt he was holding onto the nearby chair.

"So, you're pretty handy, are you?" she asked, slightly breathless, as he moved her backwards.

"Mmhm...handy," he said against her lips as he bent to kiss her, just as the back of her legs bumped against the bed. She fell backwards onto it, and immediately he bent over her to kiss her again, his lips persuasive, encouraging hers to open so he could kiss her harder, deeper.

She reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, and they both slowly moved until their bodies were lying across the bed. He resumed kissing her as she lowered her hands to quickly pull his t-shirt up.

As he pulled away from her and sat up to finish removing his t-shirt, he smiled at her. He tossed his shirt to the floor, then stopped for a second, admiring the vision in front of him. Her face was flushed, her eyes were shining, locked onto his, and her hair was spread out behind her...he took it all in, and his smile grew as his heart pounded heavily in his chest. He had wanted to see her here, like this, for so long.

Elizabeth sat up so she was facing him, lifted her tank top over her head, and tossed it to join his t-shirt. She reached out to touch his chest, loving the feel of his skin, and the softness of the hair that was lightly sprinkled there. She loved his entire body. He was muscular, but not overly-built; everything was perfectly proportioned, and his skin was a beautiful bronze from all their time spent playing in the sun. He was truly stunning.

She leaned forward and pressed several warm kisses to his chest before raising her eyes up to his. "I thought you were going to help me," she whispered, smiling seductively.

The feel of her lips and the sound of her voice broke his reverie, and he reached behind her to unclasp her bra, making quick work of it.

"I am helping. See?" he whispered, as he dangled her bra in front of her before adding it to the growing pile of clothes on the floor.

"Very helpful," she whispered as she climbed up onto his lap, wrapping her legs around his waist, wanting to feel his skin pressed against her. She bent her head to slowly place warm, wet kisses on his neck, and he tilted his head back so she could continue, groaning at the sensations she was creating; her lips on his neck, her breasts against his chest, her legs holding him firmly.

He reached down to unbutton her shorts, desperate to be rid of them and his own, which were now extremely restricting. She lifted her face back up to his, kissing him passionately as he reached up to cup her face and push his hands back into her hair. He felt her hands glide down his chest and stomach, to the button on his shorts. Her fingers became distracted by the bulge there, and she began to stroke him through his shorts.

He unwrapped her legs from around his waist and lowered himself backwards to the bed so she was straddling him. Her face hovered over his, her hair a curtain around them, as they both breathed heavily, staring at each other. He lifted his hands to run them through her hair, sighing with pleasure. She smiled at him, and his heart pounded so hard in his chest, he wondered if she could hear it.

_I love you, Elizabeth_. He didn't say it out loud, said it only in his mind, but knew it was just a matter of time before the words came tumbling out of his mouth.

He let his hands trail slowly down the sides of her neck to her breasts, where he lightly and gently caressed them. Lifting his head, he teasingly grazed each nipple with his teeth, lingering at each for a moment. He heard her intake of breath, and felt her hips gyrate slightly against him. Lowering his head back to the bed, his hands continued to travel to her shorts, now sliding the zipper down.

He smiled up at her. "I thought you said we didn't have time?" he whispered, his hands beginning to work at tugging her shorts down.

She smiled back, her eyes shining brightly at him. "I guess we're going to be late."

* * *

><p>Once ensconced in Will's arms, on his bed, Elizabeth decided that she didn't want to leave.<p>

"We should get ready," he said lazily as he held her close, stroking her back.

"I don't want to," she replied sleepily, snuggling into him more. Her body was completely draped over his. "We should just take a nap."

He chuckled. "Are you relaxed?"

"Ohh yes. Very."

"Me too," he said as he kissed the top of her head, "but we have to go to your parents. They'll be upset if we don't show up. Not to mention Jane and Charles."

"Ugh. You're not supposed to talk me into getting _up_, you're supposed to talk me into staying _here_."

He chuckled again. "My only thought, since we kissed in the woods, was to talk you out of your clothes and into my bed. My job here is done."

She lifted her head off of his chest to look at him, mouth wide open. "You are unbelievable." She bit down lightly on his left nipple, making him jump in surprise and start laughing. He instantly flipped her over onto her back and pinned her to the bed with his body as she giggled.

"I would like nothing more, would _love_ nothing more, than to keep you here with me until you had to go to work tomorrow. You would be my very own prisoner." He lowered his lips to kiss her slowly, and she moaned into his mouth. He lifted his head and looked down at her. "However, duty calls."

"I know. You're right," she said, lifting her head to kiss him again. She looked at him tenderly, raising a hand to stroke his cheek, running her thumb across his lips. "I hope you're ready for this."

He kissed her thumb and smiled at her. "Babe, right now, I'm ready for _anything_."

* * *

><p>They pulled up in front of the Bennet condo at four-twenty and walked toward it slowly, holding hands. Elizabeth felt as though she was going to walk in, and everyone would know immediately what she had been up to for the past hour. She felt like it was written all over her face, and said as much to Will. He laughed as he turned to look at her.<p>

"Hmm...you do look a little flushed...you're glowing a bit, I think," he said teasingly.

She raised her eyebrows as she took in his appearance. "You look a little flustered yourself."

"That's because I am, I'm in a complete fog." He grinned and squeezed her fingers. "Just remember," he said, leaning down to talk softly into her ear, "if they figure out what _you've_ been doing, your father will very quickly realize that I'm the one you've been doing it _with_."

Elizabeth burst out laughing as they reached the front door. She turned to kiss him, just as the door swung wide to reveal her father.

They broke apart self-consciously as he cleared his throat.

"Hello, daughter," he said, smiling at Elizabeth. "I thought I heard you out here." He turned his twinkling eyes to Will. "Is this the man your mother and I have been waiting forever to meet?"

"Hi dad," Elizabeth said, reaching up to kiss her father's cheek. "Yes, this is him, and it hasn't been forever. Can we come in?"

Her father moved out of the doorway, holding the door open and gesturing for them to enter. "Please, please, come in."

After stepping inside, Elizabeth made the formal introduction. "Dad, this is William Darcy. Will, this is my father, David Bennet."

Will held out his hand, which was firmly grasped by Mr. Bennet's. "Hello Mr. Bennet. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Instantly, Will noticed Mr. Bennet's eyes. They were a vivid green, a trait he had obviously passed on to his daughter. He was tall, almost as tall as Will, with a full head of silver hair. He smiled at Will, and his eyes twinkled.

"You as well, William. Please, call me David, no need for formalities here." He looked at Elizabeth. "Let's drag him into the kitchen to see the rest of the clan, shall we Lizzy?"

Elizabeth walked behind her father, Will walked behind her. She could hear Lydia before she saw her.

"I can't believe she's finally got a boyfriend...do you think this one will stick around?" Lydia's voice was loud enough to carry down the small hallway.

"Lydia!" she heard Jane say loudly.

Mr. Bennet continued to the kitchen, but Elizabeth stopped and turned to face Will. It was clear by the look on his face that he heard Lydia as well.

She reached up to place her hands on his chest. "Can I just tell you right now that I'm sorry for anything and everything that's going to happen in the next hour?"

He leaned down to kiss her, seeing the anxiety in her eyes. "So this next hour isn't going to be as nice as the last?" He smiled and kissed her again as she sighed.

She laughed. "Oh, God no. Not even close. Really...I'm sorry."

He reached up to stroke her cheek. "Don't worry about it. I'm not. What happens here has nothing to do with you and me, okay?"

She smiled. "Okay. I'm holding you to that."

She heard her father clear his throat as he stepped into the hall again. "You two are already twenty minutes late, are you trying to make it thirty?"

Will could feel himself blush slightly as Elizabeth led him into the kitchen. Seated at the table were Jane, Charles, Lydia and Denny. Denny raised an eyebrow toward Will, then smiled at Elizabeth and winked, and she smiled back. She knew he was thinking of their conversation about Will when they had gone out to lunch.

"Hi everyone," Elizabeth said.

"Hi Lizzy," Jane said, as she stood to give her sister a hug.

Charles rose to shake Will's hand, and introduced him to Denny. Each recognized the other from Monday Night Madness. The three men immediately started to chat.

"We thought maybe you guys had ditched us," Jane said quietly to Elizabeth, elbowing her lightly.

Elizabeth grinned, realizing no one was paying attention to them at the moment. She blushed slightly. "Umm...we were...we got busy." she stammered quietly to Jane.

Elizabeth visibly cringed and then they both started giggling at the inadvertent admission in her statement.

"Umm, TMI, but good for you," Jane said, smiling devilishly. Elizabeth turned to see Will looking at her, a small grin playing on his lips, and felt her face grow even hotter.

"Hi Jane," Will said.

"Hi Will," Jane replied, barely able to contain her grin.

Elizabeth looked at Lydia, who couldn't quite hide her shock that Elizabeth was with Will.

"You remember William, right Lyddie?" she asked, hoping she wouldn't make a fool of herself and would actually show some decorum.

Lydia smiled. "How could I forget Willy?"

"Hello Lydia," he said flatly.

"Well, now, the two of you have met?" Mr. Bennet said to Lydia. "You didn't say so, Lydia. All this time you knew Lizzy's young man, and you didn't say anything?"

"Well, when I met Willy, he wasn't _Lizzy's young man_," Lydia said. "Isn't that right Lizzy?"

"That's right," Elizabeth answered. "We had just met not too long before that."

"We all had dinner at Wicked," Lydia said.

Just then, Mrs. Bennet walked into the kitchen. One thing was for certain; Fran Bennet always knew how to make an entrance. Her salt and pepper hair was styled perfectly. She was wearing a light linen skirt and a bright white top, her pedicured toes painted a vibrant coral. Gold jewelry dripped from her neck, arms and ears, as she was a firm believer that one should never skimp on accessories. She was petite, but only physically; her diminutive body contained a formidable personality.

"Oh, Lizzy, you're finally here! Can't you get yourself anywhere on time?"

"Hi Mum," Elizabeth sighed, feeling already like she wanted to grab Will's hand and run. Feeling her tense, Will squeezed her hand, and she smiled at him gratefully.

Fran Bennet came walking straight over to her daughter, bright blue eyes looking her up and down, appraising her appearance silently. Finally, her eyes lit on Will, and she looked up at him warily.

"So," she said quietly, "you're Lizzy's new catch." Her eyes focused on Elizabeth again. "Better late than never."

Elizabeth closed her eyes briefly. Thankfully, no one else was paying attention to them at the moment. She could see the look of surprise register on Will's face as he tried to figure out if Mrs. Bennet was joking or not.

He cleared his throat and held out his hand to shake hers lightly.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Bennet."

"Mum, this is William Darcy," Elizabeth interjected.

"Well, it's nice to _finally_ meet _you_, William Darcy," Mrs. Bennet said pointedly. "What's say we all go sit on the patio, its lovely out, isn't it?"

Elizabeth and Lydia were the last to leave, so Elizabeth took the opportunity to stop her before they walked outside.

"I just want to let you know...I heard what you said when I was coming in, about 'this one sticking around'."

Lydia had the courtesy to look contrite. "Oh. I didn't know you heard that."

"I did. So did Will. I'm not angry about it, but I just want you to remember something. If you recall, Denny didn't stick around either."

Lydia's expression changed to one of annoyance. "What's your point?"

"My point is, I have enough shit to deal with from mum, I don't need it from you too. What happened in the past is in the past, and it needs to be left there. "

"Exactly," Lydia said sternly. She paused, and Elizabeth could see that she was thinking, that the wheels were turning. "Okay, I get it, I get it. Point taken," she said finally.

"Thank you," Elizabeth said. She turned to walk out the slider.

"Lizzy? I had no idea you were seeing Willy. How long have you been together?"

Elizabeth shrugged, trying to be nonchalant. "About a month or so."

"You didn't tell me...you let me go on and on about Denny, but you never mentioned Willy."

"You always wanted to talk about you, and your life, your issues...you never asked. Even if you had, I probably wouldn't have said anything."

Lydia, for once, felt that she had been selfish. "I'm sorry."

Elizabeth shook her head lightly. "Don't be. Lydia, I _do_ want you to be happy. With Denny, without Denny...I just want you to be happy."

"I know you do. Denny and I are still getting together a lot...nothing has, you know, _happened_ or anything, but...we're talking. Christ, we're talking _all the time,_" she said, sounding slightly exasperated.

"Talking is good."

Lydia sighed. "I know it is."

"But no more talk about the past, okay?"

"Okay...and Lizzy, I want you to be happy too."

Elizabeth smiled lightly. "Thanks, I am. I'm very happy." Her eyes went to the slider, out to where Will was talking with her mother. "Did you look at classes with Dad?"

Lydia nodded. "I did. I'm going to start in January, I think. That'll give me the fall to save more money."

"Good for you."

Lydia nodded. Before going outside, she walked over to Elizabeth and gave her a quick hug. "I really am sorry. I do have to say one thing, though."

"What's that?"

"Willy is freakin' gorgeous!" Lydia said, eyes wide, leaning toward Elizabeth. "What a hottie! Damn, Lizzy. Good for you."

Elizabeth couldn't help but laugh. "Thanks...I think. He is, isn't he?" She laughed again, then sighed. "Could you _please_ do me a favor though? Could you stop calling him Willy?"

Lydia laughed. "I guess I can do that."

* * *

><p>Will was hoping to get Jane alone while Elizabeth was distracted. He had something planned for Elizabeth for her birthday, but needed Jane's help in setting it up. No such luck…Mrs. Bennet immediately latched on to him, pulling him away from the group, out into the small backyard.<p>

"Now then, William Darcy, tell me a little about yourself. Where did you meet Lizzy?"

Will smiled. _Not telling that story_, he thought. "We met at Charles' house…"

* * *

><p>As they walked out, Elizabeth immediately saw that her mother had cornered Will in the backyard, over by the dogwood tree. He looked at her as she walked out, and she could tell he was checking to see if everything was okay. She smiled at him, letting him know she was fine, then mouthed 'are you okay?'<p>

He nodded to her, just once, and she noticed that his usually expressive features were once again shut away behind the Darcy mask. Definitely not a good sign.

Lydia had wandered over to Charles, Jane, and Denny, and they were enthusiastically discussing their next trip to Monday Night Madness. She looked at her father, being his usual observant self. He liked to watch people, and she could see he was now watching Will.

"Lizzy, my girl, come sit with your dad."

Elizabeth walked over and sat in the patio chair next to his.

"Your young man is in real estate."

Elizabeth smiled at her father's serious tone. "He is."

"It looks as if he's making quite an impression on your mother."

Elizabeth turned to see her mother beaming up at Will. She smiled, but felt nervous anxiety building in her chest. "I can see that," Elizabeth said. "What do you suppose they're talking about?"

"Oh, knowing your mother, they're now talking about the high society in Boston, how many cars he has, how much money he has invested...and just what _is_ his net worth? Does he have any other homes? Has he ever been married before? Engaged? How many children does he wish to have? What are his intentions?" He paused. "How long does he plan on staying around?"

Mr. Bennet, getting no response from his daughter, turned to look at her. "Shall I go on?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No dad, you can stop," she said quietly. She lifted her eyes to look into her father's, mirror images of her own. "Don't tease me."

"Very well. You know what your mother is all about." He was looking at her closely. "Tell me about him, Lizzy."

She looked down at her hands, feeling a little deflated by her father's comment. "What do you want to know?"

Mr. Bennet sighed, not really sure he was interested in knowing anything at all. "How did you meet?"

"We met...accidentally. We didn't like each other at all, not at first anyway. Then, we sort of started to...well, we just kept seeing each other, because of Charles and Jane. We started to talk a little more...and it just started there, I guess." She smiled softly. "He's wonderful, dad, he really is...he's just...he's fantastic."

David watched his daughter talk as she gazed at William_, _and he realized without question that his daughter was in love.

"He's quite a handsome fellow, too, isn't he?" he said, laughing as he watched the color rise on his daughter's face.

"I think so," Elizabeth said, turning to her father. "Very handsome."

"Handsome...wealthy. Fits all the requirements, then...a perfect ten for your mother," he said, once again teasing her.

Elizabeth chose not to acknowledge his comment. She wouldn't have been able to come up with a clever reply anyway, and that was exactly what her father was counting on...a clever, witty response in answer to his not-so-subtle provocation.

Mr. Bennet realized he had probably gone too far. "Sorry, my dear. You know how your old dad can be." He reached over to pat her knee.

Elizabeth shook her head silently, absolutely finished with this conversation. She turned to see her mother leading Will back up to the patio, her arm looped through his. Denny and Lydia had grabbed a blanket and were sprawled on the lawn talking.

"Now Lizzy, this one's a keeper," she said, making Elizabeth smile self-consciously. Jane and Charles laughed, realizing that Jane had been told the same thing the first time she brought Charles around.

"Don't push _this_ one away, not like that Jason -"

"Mum!" Jane spoke up, cutting her off. "How about some lemonade or something? What have you got?" she asked, standing up and guiding her mother by the elbow toward the house.

"Oh! Forgive me! For heaven's sake, I can't believe I haven't offered something cold to drink."

Will turned to look at Elizabeth. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine. I'm just ready to leave. Haven't we been here long enough?"

"I'm ready to go when you are. What about Charles and Jane?"

"They'll go when we go. Let me just walk in ahead of you for a moment."

She walked in and closed the slider behind her. Jane and Mrs. Bennet were talking quietly in the kitchen.

"Oh, Lizzy, I was just telling Jane that she really should take you shopping. Look at the nice outfit she's wearing! She looks so girly, so feminine."

"Mum," Jane said vehemently, "will you knock it off? I think Lizzy looks great, she always does."

Elizabeth had chosen to wear a denim skirt, not too short, and her off the shoulder green blouse with a black thin-strapped camisole underneath. Before they had left Will's house, he had commented that he remembered the blouse from Monday Night Madness, and had thought of little else but her bare shoulders for several days after that.

"But men like to see their women in frilly things...dresses, skirts, heels...show a little cleavage, work with what the good Lord gave you."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Geez, mum, really? 'Work with what the good Lord gave you'? I'm not going to work at Zachary's*, for Pete's sake."

"Oh, stop being so dramatic. You'll need to keep this man's attention somehow, you know. Whatever wiles you used on that last man of yours obviously didn't work, so you had better come up with something that will work on this one. A man that looks like that, with all that money...I'm sure he isn't lacking for female attention, and you're not getting any younger."

Jane's mouth dropped open. "That's _it_, mum, that's enough! What has gotten into you?"

Elizabeth stared at her mother. "I don't think my wardrobe is going to be the deciding factor in my relationship with Will," she said flatly, feeling her eyes sting, just a little. _She will not do this to me. Not today._

"Well, I'm just making a point; one has to think of _everything_. I'd hate to see this one lose interest and wander off like that Jason did."

Before Elizabeth could reply, the slider opened, and in walked Will and Charles, followed by Mr. Bennet.

Mrs. Bennet rambled on, as if the men weren't even there. "I'm just _saying_, you should wear something to flatter your figure more...though, Lord knows your figure will never be what Jane's is," Elizabeth's mother stated emphatically.

"God, mum, really!" Jane said, frustration evident in her voice.

Elizabeth closed her eyes and sighed, knowing that the three men had heard her mother, clear as day.

She opened her eyes to see Will gazing at her intently, a sad smile on his lips.

"Time to go?" she asked, brightening a little.

"I think so," he said. "We have to go pick up Georgie."

"Where are we going for dinner?" Jane asked, looking at Charles and Will.

"Umm...Elizabeth suggested the pub in the commons?" Will said, looking again at Elizabeth.

Elizabeth nodded. "That's fine with me."

"Us too," said Jane.

"Oh, you kids, going to a pub? A _pub_?" Mrs. Bennet chimed in, rolling her eyes. "Leave it to Lizzy to suggest a _pub_. You should all be going to a nice restaurant, not that _pub_."

Elizabeth ignored her mother and walked over to her father. "Bye dad," she said, kissing him on the cheek.

He reached out to give her a quick hug. "Don't mind your mother, Lizzy. You know how she prattles on," he said quietly. "Go to the pub and have a good time."

She nodded. "Thanks. I'll talk to you soon."

"Okay. Have a good week at work...I'm sure we'll talk to you on your birthday."

"I'm sure you will."

They said their goodbyes and were out the door, agreeing to meet Jane and Charles in half an hour, which would give them enough time to get Georgie and get to the pub.

Will opened the car door for Elizabeth, then walked around and slid in behind the wheel. He turned to look at her as she stared straight ahead out the windshield.

"Elizabeth?"

She turned to look at him.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded, still not saying anything, just looking at him.

He reached out to stroke her face, and then leaned over to kiss her.

"What did she say to you?" Elizabeth asked quietly.

Knowing he wasn't about to divulge the contents of _that_ conversation, especially to her, Will tried to mask his annoyance at Mrs. Bennet and avoid Elizabeth's question at the same time. "You know that everything your mother said went in one ear and out the other. None of it matters."

She sighed, shaking her head, feeling tears prickling at her eyes, determined to keep them at bay. "I know...I know that. My mum just...she doesn't have a filter. After all this time..." Her voice trailed off as she turned and looked out the passenger window. "She really doesn't know me at all, doesn't understand me."

It was quiet for a moment, then she turned to him, forcing a small smile. "Poor Jane. She feels awful when my mother does that, when she compares us. It drives her crazy."

Wanting to somehow lighten the moment, Will sighed dramatically. "Well, it's true...you'll never have Jane's figure," he said, forcing sadness into his voice, shaking his head and frowning.

Her eyes flew open and her jaw dropped, but she smiled genuinely, recognizing the tease. "Fitzwilliam Darcy!" she exclaimed as he began to laugh.

He reached over to pull her close to him, over the console in his car.

"I. Love. Your. _Figure_," he said, punctuating each word with a kiss, "especially when it's on top of _my_ figure."

She smiled against his lips. "Yes, I think I remember you saying as much this afternoon."

He laughed lightly. "I was hoping I'd made myself clear."

She kissed him again, lingering at his mouth. "Very, very clear," she said against his lips. She leaned back, gazing into his eyes, feeling better already. "Thank you."

He smiled. "My pleasure."

* * *

><p><em>*Zachary's is a not-so-upstanding strip joint on the Cape.<em>

_So, what do you think of Mrs. B? She's a real charmer, isn't she? Oh, and Lydia too, let's not forget her! Thanks for reading, and as always, reviews are appreciated!_


	18. Chapter 18

_Mrs. Bennet made quite an impression on a few of you! I'm going to try to get my posts down to twice a week now, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. I'm posting today because I know I won't have the time tomorrow. Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 18<strong>

Dinner at the pub was loud and lively. The food and service were good, and the crowd was very into the Red Sox game showing on all the televisions around the bar. Will took turns watching Elizabeth and Georgiana.

Elizabeth was easy to watch. The tension of the previous hour was dissipating, and she was beginning to relax as she sipped her beer. He had thought that she'd keep poking and prodding him for more insights into his conversation with her mother, but right now, she seemed more interested in forgetting about it...at least for the time being. That was fine with him; he had no desire to revisit that twenty minutes of hell.

He remembered what he had said about her appearance earlier. _She's definitely glowing,_ he thought. He smiled to himself, feeling slightly puffed up. Everyone was laughing at something that Charles had just said, and he watched as the curls framing her face bounced as she tossed her head back.

She leaned over to kiss him lightly, and rose to go to the ladies room. Will watched as she walked toward the back of the pub, his eyes never wavering from the sway of her hips. When she finally disappeared from sight, he turned back to the table to see everyone staring at him. He instantly felt himself blush.

Georgiana laughed openly at him. "You should have just gone with her." Charles and Jane were smiling.

"Oh, don't look so smug, Bingley. You're just as bad," Will said.

Charles kept smiling, and turned to look at Jane. "I'm probably worse."

Georgiana rolled her eyes. "Not possible," she said, and the four of them laughed.

Will took advantage of Elizabeth's absence.

"I want to plan a little surprise for Elizabeth for her birthday, but I need some help."

"Ohhhh, I love surprises," Georgie said, rubbing her hands together. "Are you having a party for her?"

"Well...no, not really. Just a small thing. Just for her and I, actually. But I still need help."

"What do you need?" Jane asked.

"I need to get her out of her house for an hour or so on Thursday night. Just so I can get in and...set some things up."

Jane frowned. "I can't get back here on Thursday," she said. "Sorry."

"I can help," Georgie said. "Why don't I come pick her up, take her for a bite to eat or something?"

"Eat? No, you can't feed her. I'm feeding her."

Charles gave a quick shush as he noticed Elizabeth heading back to the table.

"We'll talk more at home," Georgie whispered, just as Elizabeth sat down, immediately leaning in to Will and planting a kiss on his cheek.

As Will watched his sister, he could see that she was definitely coming out of her shell, and was finally comfortable being out in public. She wasn't at all self-conscious. Will noticed a couple of young men glancing her way, and it temporarily soured his mood. He knew he was being overprotective, as usual, but he couldn't help it. He turned his glare on one particularly over-attentive bar patron who couldn't seem to stop staring at her, and the young man eventually looked away, clearly intimidated.

He felt a hand squeeze his leg under the table, and turned to see Elizabeth pursing her lips at him. She leaned over to whisper to him.

"Are you going to do that to every man that looks at your sister?"

"Yes," he said firmly.

"Do you see that your sister isn't paying attention to anyone in this place except us?"

He looked at Georgie again, as she chatted animatedly with Charles and Jane. She had instantly taken a liking to Jane when they had met over the weekend.

Will shrugged. "So? What is that supposed to mean?"

Elizabeth squeezed his leg again, making him turn his eyes to her. "She's just happy to be out, with us, at a pub, having a glass of wine and chatting, enjoying the moment. She's not at all interested in anything else but that."

Will sighed. "Okay, I know, I have to ease up."

The man that had been eying Georgie rose from the bar, and with one last short glance, walked out.

Elizabeth giggled. "You're scaring people out of the pub with that face. Would you smile please?"

Her hand moved higher up on his thigh, and as he felt the trail of warmth it left behind, his eyebrows rose and he did, indeed, smile.

"Miss Bennet, I hope you're not trying to grope me under the table," he said softly, leaning toward her. "That would be extremely inappropriate."

"I've been told, Mr. Darcy," she answered, as her hand moved even higher, "that a guy likes a good grope every now and again."

He kissed her lightly. "Well, I can't speak for all men-" he inhaled sharply as he felt her hand come to rest very firmly on the crotch of his shorts. He looked at her, and the devilish gleam in her eyes made it impossible for him to finish his thought.

"You probably _could_ speak for all men," she said.

He shook his head, biting his lower lip as he felt her hand begin to move slightly. "No, only for myself," he said quietly, feeling his body respond to her attentions. "For me, it definitely depends on who is doing the groping."

She smiled at him, and he could see the change in her eyes, the way they darkened even though they still sparkled with mischief. She squeezed him gently as she felt his body's response as well.

"I hope my groping you is okay."

He reached under the table to cover her hand with his, all the while staring at her. "As you can tell, it's more than okay."

"Ahem," Charles said, very firmly.

Both Will and Elizabeth casually turned to look at him. Elizabeth slowly slid her hand back down Will's thigh until it was resting comfortably on his knee. Neither had noticed that Jane and Georgie had left the table.

"Yes, Charles, what is it?" Will asked, feeling slightly annoyed at the intrusion.

Charles raised one eyebrow. "Just wanted to make sure you two were still with us."

"Don't you need to go to the men's room or something?" Will asked him.

Charles laughed. "No, but don't worry, we're leaving soon." He smiled at Will. "My treat tonight, since you treated at Wicked last time."

"Sounds good to me."

After the bill was paid, the five walked out together, said their goodbyes in the parking lot, and then went their separate ways. Charles and Jane headed back to Boston, while Will headed back to New Seabury with Elizabeth and Georgie.

Once back at the house, Georgiana made excuses to leave them alone, and hugged Elizabeth, saying goodbye.

Will took Elizabeth's hand and led her out to the deck, pulling her down into his lap in one of the large lounge chairs. She turned her face into his neck, breathing him in, then tried valiantly to stifle a yawn.

It didn't escape Will's notice.

"Tired?" he asked, as his arms snaked around her, pulling her tight to him.

"Mmm...a little." The truth was, she could snuggle up into him and fall asleep immediately, if she let herself. She felt achy in certain places, muscles twinged here and there, and though she was happy for the reason, it contributed to her overall feeling of fatigue.

"I was thinking about tonight," he said. "Do you want me to...drop you off at home? I mean, you could stay here, but I wasn't sure...you have to work...I didn't know what-"

She reached up to place two fingers over his lips, silencing him.

"I want you to stay with me," she said quietly, ending the conversation before it even got started.

"You're sure?" he asked, not wanting to push too much.

"Of course I'm sure. After everything that's happened today...starting with this morning," she smiled up at him, "I'm not ready to let you go just yet."

"Good, I'm glad. I didn't want to..._assume_." He smiled down at her. "I think I may go to Boston tomorrow morning, though, and stay until Wednesday afternoon."

Elizabeth frowned. "Oh, okay."

He squeezed her. "Only because I don't want to go on Thursday and Friday. I want to spend your birthday with you."

The frown quickly vanished from Elizabeth's lips. "Good idea," she said, kissing his chin. She batted her eyelashes at him. "Got anything planned?"

He laughed at her, knowing she was trying to pry something out of him. "If I did, I certainly wouldn't tell you."

She sighed and pouted. "I thought you wouldn't. Oh, I have a softball game Wednesday afternoon."

He smiled. "I'll make sure I'm back for it."

* * *

><p>Will left Elizabeth briefly to go upstairs and talk to Georgiana. She ended up coming downstairs again, to say goodbye to Elizabeth and give her another hug. While upstairs, Will had packed a small bag and grabbed a suit, carrying them with him out to the car.<p>

Elizabeth felt a sudden surge of guilt. Noticing her silence as he started the engine, he waited until they were on the road before talking to her.

"What's up?"

She smiled at him, shrugging. "Nothing," she said lightly, obviously trying to hide what was bothering her.

"Uh uh. Fess up."

She sighed. "I feel like we're deserting Georgie."

Will's eyes grew wide. "Deserting Georgie? Are you kidding me? When I went upstairs to tell her I was staying with you tonight and that I'd be in Boston 'til Wednesday, she practically danced with glee. She couldn't shove me out the door fast enough. Believe me, you shouldn't feel badly. She loves the time alone." Three months ago, he wouldn't have been able to say that, but now he could. She didn't need him there all the time, watching over her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. She wants me to do what makes me happy." He turned to glance at her, smiling. "That's what I'm doing."

* * *

><p>The sun had just set when they arrived back at her house. Instead of sitting outside like they usually did, they decided to watch a movie. Gradually, though, their attention drifted away from the movie and toward each other.<p>

Everything was slow and unhurried, just the two of them tangled up on the couch, kissing and caressing, whispering to each other, sometimes serious, sometimes laughing. Neither minded the fact that there was barely enough room on the couch, and neither was in a hurry to move.

This was what Elizabeth loved, this closeness, this feeling of belonging to someone. She snuggled into his chest, his shirt having been unbuttoned long ago, and laid her face against his warm skin, turning to plant a kiss over his heart.

"What are you thinking about?" Will whispered to her as he stroked his hands over her back, holding her close to his body.

She pulled him closer. "Today. This entire day, start to finish, has been a little of a blur. Well, some of it isn't so blurry," she said, kissing his chest again, "it just seems like a lot happened."

"A lot of good things," Will said, kissing her forehead, "don't you think?"

"Mmm...a lot of very good things." She paused, and a vision of her mother popped into her head. "Some not so good as well. My mum, for starters. Lydia..." She felt Will shrug.

"They were fine. It wasn't a big deal."

"What exactly did you and my mother talk about?"

Will hesitated. Should he really say what he thought of her mother and her horrible comments? _Lizzy has her faults, and Lord knows she's no Jane, but if you're patient with her, and can learn to overlook those things, I'm sure you'll see that she can offer you __something__. _

He had been so shocked when she had said that, he hadn't been able to think of a response. God, he got mad now just _thinking_ about it. He had tried to remain passive; he didn't want to let on how much her mother had aggravated him. Her questions, about his business and his money, were incredibly direct and intrusive. He just grinned and bore it, not wanting to make waves. Honestly, he wouldn't care if he ever saw that woman again.

He remembered that Elizabeth was waiting for an answer. "We didn't talk about much, really. She let me talk quite a bit, so I talked about you." This, at least, was true...when Mrs. Bennet _did_ give him the chance to speak, he made sure to flatter Elizabeth in every way possible. It managed to render Mrs. Bennet speechless, at least temporarily.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, not sure if she believed him or not, but willing to let it go for now. After a few more moments of silence, Elizabeth spoke.

"My turn. What are you thinking about?"

His hands stroked slowly up and down her back, and he paused to gather his thoughts. He still wanted to talk about this morning, and what had made her change her mind about him, about them.

"I was thinking about what we talked about on Friday. About you being afraid to trust, afraid to let yourself go."

She leaned back to look up at him. "I _was_ afraid," she whispered. "I still am, in a way, but I realized that if I didn't get past that fear, if I couldn't overcome it, I would risk losing you. I wasn't willing to let that happen. There has never been anyone else that has made me feel that way."

Will understood the importance of what she was saying. "Until me."

She nodded again. "Until you."

He kissed the top of her head, hugging her tighter. "So, this morning, when you told me you were sure, and that you wanted me...that was a huge leap for you, wasn't it?"

She raised up so she could look at him, and saw warmth in his eyes. "Yes. A very huge leap." She reached a hand up to stroke his cheek.

Elizabeth felt Will's hands stop their movements on her back, and she let her eyes drift back to his.

He swallowed. "I won't ever hurt you...you know that, don't you? I would never hurt you in any way, at all."

She nodded. "I know that. I trust you."

He leaned forward, pressing a warm kiss to her mouth, caressing her lips with his.

It was as if floodgates had opened. She could feel her eyes fill, and she released a deep breath. Tears started to silently glide down her cheeks, and he leaned into her to kiss them away.

"Don't cry."

She shook her head. "I'm crying because I'm happy. Relieved. These are good tears." She felt weightless.

He smiled. "In that case, cry all you want."

She laughed, and they embraced for a long moment on the couch. Elizabeth realized it was getting late, and she suddenly felt drained. Tomorrow would be a long day at work, due to her absences the week before, and Will needed to get an early start to Boston.

They rose from the couch with the unspoken agreement of getting ready for bed. Elizabeth was under the sheets first, watching him as he puttered around her bedroom. He hung his suit jacket and dress shirt in her closet, and that simple act made her smile.

He climbed into bed next to her. "Now what are you smiling about?" he asked, pulling her close to him.

"Nothing. It's silly."

He tickled her waist, making her jump and laugh. "Tell me."

"Okay, okay. I just like that your suit is hanging in my closet, with my clothes." He rolled his eyes. "I told you it was silly."

He kissed her. "As usual, you're right."

He very quickly rolled her over so he was lightly pinning her to the bed with his body, his intentions obvious. She felt herself flush and pulled her eyes away from his.

"Umm…Will?"

"Mmm?" he murmured as he began kissing her neck.

Her body immediately responded, beginning with her galloping heart rate.

"Can we just...go to sleep?" His actions stopped at once, and he lifted his head to look at her.

"Okay...of course. Sorry." He looked contrite.

"Don't be sorry. I'm just a little achy...in places. My body isn't used to quite so much attention, I guess." She smiled softly up at him.

His brow furrowed. "Why didn't you tell me that earlier? I would have left you alone this afternoon."

"Maybe I didn't want you to leave me alone this afternoon."

"Were you uncomfortable?"

She shook her head. "No...far from it, actually." He looked away from her and sighed. She reached up and turned his face toward hers again so he would look at her. "I loved every minute of it. Any feelings of discomfort, which were _very_ minor, were very quickly replaced by other feelings. _Believe me_."

He looked like he didn't believe her.

"Stop pouting," she said, reaching around to pinch him. He jumped and his mouth turned up slightly.

"I just want you to be happy," he said quietly.

"I am. Very."

He stared at her for a few moments, and then lowered his head to kiss her slowly. There was such intensity in his eyes, she felt her breathing catch as she returned his gaze.

"I am too," he said. "Very."

* * *

><p>Will was the first one awake the next morning. The first thing he noticed was the rain pounding against the windows, which was probably what woke him to begin with. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was almost six. Elizabeth's alarm clock would be sounding off at six-thirty. Part of him was very interested in waking her up right now...she looked so appealing, curled up into his chest, lips slightly parted, breathing softly but deeply.<p>

He felt his body stirring to life, but before his impulses won over, he remembered what she had said the previous night about being sore, and he kept himself in check. As much as she had said she had enjoyed their afternoon interlude, he still felt slightly guilty.

He slowly pulled himself away from her warm body, and headed for the bathroom to shave and shower.

Thirty minutes later, he was dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed, watching her sleep. He reached over to shut off her alarm clock before it went off, so he could have the pleasure of waking her up himself.

He began singing softly as he leaned over her and began nuzzling her neck.

_I can hear her heartbeat from a thousand miles  
><em>_And the heavens open every time she smiles  
><em>_And when I come to her that's where I belong  
><em>_And I'm running to her like a river strong  
><em>_She give me love, love, love, love, crazy love  
><em>_She give me love, love, love, love, crazy love.* _

He stopped singing but kept kissing her neck lightly, working his way up to her ear, nibbling on her earlobe before pulling it into his mouth and sucking on it gently. He felt her entire body shudder, then felt her arms come up around his neck and hang there lazily.

"Mmmm...that was soooo much better than my alarm clock," Elizabeth said, smiling sleepily. She kept her eyes closed, enjoying the tingling sensations spreading through her body. She sighed as his lips moved back down her neck, to her collarbone, which he traced very lightly with his tongue, stopping to kiss the hollow at the base of her throat.

"I should've woken you up earlier," Will mumbled against her skin, almost imperceptibly and more to himself than to her.

She held his head with both hands and gently lifted it until his face was an inch or two from hers.

"Why didn't you?" she asked hoarsely.

He shrugged. "I didn't want to push it," he said quietly, trying to talk over the sound of the rain. "You were sore last night, I didn't want to bother you."

She tilted her head, reaching up to stroke his cheek. "Do you still feel badly about that?"

He shrugged again. "A little. It bothers me that you may have gone along with my little scheme yesterday afternoon just to please me."

Elizabeth's eyebrows arched and she pushed her head further back into the pillow. Her eyes lit up.

"Okay...first of all, I didn't do anything yesterday that I didn't _want_ to do. Second of all, you make it seem like I suffered a...a..._hardship_ or something, to make you happy."

"Well, it was my idea-"

She interrupted. "Yes, it was, but I was a very eager participant. To my embarrassment, I remember being quite vocal about how much I enjoyed it."

Will chuckled, a smug smile on his face. "Oh, yeah, you were vocal alright-"

She closed her eyes, smiling ruefully before interrupting again. "You don't need to remind me. I only hope the walls in that house are thick."

"They are," he said, still smiling, "extremely thick."

She looked at him, all traces of playfulness gone. "Seriously, will you please not worry about it? What do you think popped into my mind when I realized I was standing in your bedroom? Do you think I was really worried about getting to my parents?"

He chuckled again. "No, I suppose not."

"I wanted to jump your bones as much as you wanted to jump mine. I mean, how could I resist this incredibly tempting body?"

Her hands came down from around his neck to trail down his chest and stomach, over his crisp white dress shirt. She grabbed hold of his neck tie and gently pulled his face down to hers, so their lips were practically touching.

"You should've woken me up earlier," she whispered against his mouth. The tip of her tongue lightly traced along his lips, coaxing them open.

His lips were only too willing to comply, and he was soon locked in a deep, heated kiss with her. He leaned into her, resting his arms on either side of her head, lowering his chest until he could feel her breasts and the hardness of her nipples pressing into him. He broke the kiss and lowered his head to take one raised peak into his mouth, stroking it with his tongue through the tank top she wore, then sucking on it hungrily. He nipped it gently, then moved his mouth to the other breast, giving it the same loving attention.

"Willlll," she said softly on an exhalation of air, tangling her fingers in his curls.

"Lizzzzzy," he said teasingly, as he lifted his head and looked at her, smiling wickedly, eyes dark with passion.

She smiled back, green eyes glittering, before she pulled his mouth back down to hers for another searing kiss. He moaned softly, and completely abandoned the thought of leaving for Boston any time soon.

Her fingers moved to the knot of his tie, tugging at it impatiently. He reached up to move her hands away and take over the job himself. Deprived of the tie, her hands moved to the buttons on his shirt, working them open rapidly, pushing the shirt apart as she made more progress. Soon enough, she was able to pull it from his waistband and push it off his shoulders. The tie, in the meantime, was tossed aside.

Will stood up to finish removing his shirt with slow, deliberate movements, strictly for Elizabeth's viewing pleasure. She watched as he tossed the shirt to the chair in the corner of her room, then slowly began unbuckling his belt, opening it, then unbuttoning his pants and lowering the zipper.

Elizabeth's smile grew as she watched him, never taking her eyes off his body. She kicked the comforter off, waiting for him to join her again.

"My own personal striptease," she said as he dropped his pants and stood only in his boxer briefs, a very prominent bulge protruding from them. "I should start keeping a supply of dollar bills in here."

He picked up his pants and tossed them onto the chair with his shirt, then climbed onto the foot of the bed and slowly crawled his way up until he was straddling her on all fours.

"I don't want your dollar bills," he said quietly.

"Hmm...what do you want, then?" she asked, arching a brow at him.

That look in his eyes was back...that gleam, that hungry look that made her stomach flip. He lowered his head to her stomach and began planting kisses there, nuzzling her top up higher and higher with his nose and mouth. He used his teeth to tug the top up over her breasts until they were completely bared to his eyes.

"This is what I want."

Elizabeth's stomach quivered, and she could feel what felt like an electrical current zipping through her body, ending at her breasts and between her legs. He teased her, using his tongue and lips to kiss and lick every part of her breasts except for their centers. As much as she tried to angle her body and push herself into his mouth, he worked around her, teasing her relentlessly.

He began kissing his way down her stomach again, in no great hurry, to the waistband of her tiny pajama shorts, and began to tug them down, once again using his teeth. Because of this method, his progress was agonizingly slow, and as turned on as Elizabeth was, she was rapidly losing patience. She wanted to feel contact, skin on skin...something...before she completely went up in flames.

The rain continued to batter the windows, and to Will it was hypnotizing, almost sensual. He knew, as he tugged her shorts down, exactly what he wanted to do, but he wanted to make sure she trusted him and was comfortable enough. He raised his eyes to her face and saw that she was watching him, her beautiful green gaze locked onto his. He used his hands to assist his teeth in pulling down her shorts, sitting up to tug them completely over her ankles and tossing them onto the floor.

He stretched his body up over hers, kissing her deeply, his tongue engaging hers, one hand slowly drifting down to caress her breast, still avoiding the center, making her squirm. He positioned himself so that her body was cradling his, and he could feel the heat from her core pressing against his erection, even through the material of his briefs.

He was beginning to sense her impatience...she reached down and tugged at his briefs, clearly wanting them off, and he was happy to help. He tugged them down as far as he could, then pushed them the rest of the way off with his feet. Elizabeth immediately wrapped her legs around his waist, trying to pull him into her, but he resisted, and instead lowered his head once again to her breast, this time letting his tongue slowly drag across first one nipple, then the other, back and forth, over and over.

Elizabeth could hardly catch her breath. She tried to reach down to touch him, but he firmly moved her hand away. Clearly, he wanted to be in control. He gradually moved his mouth further down her stomach, taking his time, stopping to play with her naval, then kissing down to the top of one leg, slowly moving his lips over to her inner thigh. His mouth was so warm, and she knew that the slow, open mouthed kisses he was giving her were leading up to one thing and one thing only. She was so aroused that she didn't even think to be anxious about it, she just _wanted_ it.

She felt his hands slide onto her thighs, slowly and gently caressing them. Once again, he raised his eyes to hers. She felt no trepidation, only desire, and it was clear that he saw it too. She watched as he lowered his head to her center, then felt the warmth of his mouth on her, the gentle caress of his tongue stroking her, tasting her.

Will took his time, going slowly, savoring every moment. He pushed her legs slightly wider, lifting one to place it over his shoulder. He reached one hand up to her breasts and softly stroked them, alternately palming them and gently pinching their centers. Elizabeth's breathing became quicker, heavier, and she reached down to thread her fingers into his hair. He continued to kiss her and suckle her swollen center, applying slightly more pressure with his tongue as he felt her hips begin to move under him.

He lowered his other hand and began to work one finger, then two, into and out of her, slowly thrusting, applying more and more pressure with his tongue. Her hips began to move faster, and he responded by increasing the speed of his fingers, thrusting faster. He could hear her saying his name softly, over and over again, which only fueled him further.

Elizabeth felt a complete loss of control coming over her, and she was powerless to stop it. She gripped Will's curls, holding his head as pulsating waves of pleasure crashed through her body, causing her to cry out his name one final time before she was unable to speak at all. She felt her inner muscles clenching his fingers, and suddenly his fingers weren't enough, she needed more of him.

She lowered her leg from his shoulder and tugged at his hair, and after one last caress with his tongue, he lifted his head to give her a small, self-satisfied smile. She pulled him up to her, reaching down to stroke the length of him, making him groan. He batted her hand away and she twisted toward her nightstand to grab a condom. She unwrapped it and was ready to put it on him, but he took it from her and put it on himself.

"I'd like to last long enough to get inside of you," he said to her questioning look.

She felt him there, ready to enter her, but he seemed in no hurry. He slowly thrust in, just a little, then pulled back out. He did this a few times before she finally hooked her legs around his waist again, reaching down between them to fondle him and stroke him firmly.

"What are you...waiting for?" she asked breathlessly.

"I'm not waiting...for anything," he replied, almost as breathless. "I don't want this to end yet."

She guided him towards her again, and this time, used her legs on his hips to pull their bodies together. Will gave up the battle and pushed into her fully. They groaned simultaneously, and he instantly began moving, surging in and out of her, lowering his mouth to kiss her deeply and hungrily as they came together repeatedly.

He knew he wouldn't be able to hold out much longer, she just felt so _good_, so he lowered one hand between them to her center, using his fingers to stimulate her, wanting to make her climax again. Her response was immediate, and as he felt her body begin to clench around him, he applied more pressure with his fingers, pushing her over the edge. He followed right behind her, his body shuddering with release before collapsing completely on top of her.

For long moments, the only sounds were their mingled breaths and the rain on the windows. They were both breathing heavily when he lifted his head to look at her. He kissed her, letting his lips drift over her mouth, her cheeks, up to her eyes, and finally coming to rest in her hair. Little curls, damp with sweat, were framing her face, and he couldn't resist playing with them.

Will rolled onto his side, pulling her with him, and they lay that way for a little longer, still joined together. Neither of them was willing or able to speak, they were content just to lay tangled up for a bit. Their breathing slowly returned to normal, and Will kissed her forehead.

"We seem to have figured out our own way to say good morning to each other," he said hoarsely.

Elizabeth began to laugh, and pulled herself closer into his body. "It seems we have," she said, smiling into his chest and kissing him there. "Morning is quickly becoming my favorite time of the day."

He laid on his back and pulled her up so she was partially on top of him, lifting his head up to kiss her, letting his lips linger on hers while he cupped her cheek. He lowered his head back down to the pillow and smiled up at her.

"That was amazing..._you_ are amazing," he said quietly, his smile growing, "and beautiful...and sexy...and delicious."

He chuckled as she blushed, lowering her face into his chest.

He reached around her to lift her hair up and away from her, letting his hands run through it, enjoying the feel of her warm body laying over his.

"You're okay?" he asked, hoping that he hadn't moved things along too quickly for her.

She nodded as she rose up to look down at him. "Of course I am. How could I not be?" She kissed him softly. "Are you going to ask me that every time we have sex?" She hovered over him, staring down into his eyes.

He grinned up at her and laughed at her question. "No, but...you know, this time was...well, it was different."

She knew what he was eluding to. "Yes, it was different, but it was wonderful, and I loved it. You are obviously a man of many talents."

It was his turn to blush slightly. "I aim to please."

She giggled. "Well then...lets just say your aim is very good...right on target, so to speak."

They both laughed, and lay curled up together for a few more minutes. Reluctantly, Will glanced at the clock.

"You're going to be late, Miss Bennet," he said, a hint of humor in his voice.

Elizabeth looked at the clock too, which now read 7:20. She groaned. "No, I'll be fine. A quick shower, obviously inside, and I'll be driving in, no biking today." She raised her lips to kiss his chin. "You already took a shower, I know, but you're welcome to join me for another if you want."

He smiled up at her, kissing her again. "I am _so _glad I woke you up."

* * *

><p>Will felt like he had dozens of things to get done in Boston, yet he had neither the energy nor the inclination to do a shred of work. Thoughts of the weekend kept drifting through his mind as he sat at his desk, and he was completely unable to focus on anything. He sighed. Kissing Elizabeth goodbye this morning was difficult; he wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed with her, make love to her, sleep with her wrapped around him, and wake up with her to do it all over again.<p>

His mind began to replay the past two days events, and his body instantly responded. He couldn't help but let his mind wander there...it was all he wanted to think about. He sighed and dropped his head into his hands, feeling like a moony schoolboy. _This is going to be a hellishly long day_.

He looked at the clock and saw that it was only eleven. The day was passing by at an agonizingly slow rate. Glancing up at his computer screen, he clicked on the 'x' at the top right corner and closed the document he had been reading. He had already started it over at least a half a dozen times, and still didn't know what it said.

He picked up the phone, and within thirty seconds, Charles's secretary put him through to Charles.

"Mr. Darcy," Charles said, full of good humor, as usual.

"Hey Charles," Will said, "how's it going?"

"Fine. You?"

"Good, good. Just, um, going over some paperwork...Richard is working on some promising new property in L.A.."

"L.A., huh? New market for you."

"Yeah...we'll see what happens. I was going to go there when I left San Francisco, but I decided to let Richard handle things. He's capable."

"And you needed to come home," Charles said, knowing full well what happened when Will was in California.

"Yes, I needed to come home."

"Why do you sound so bummed out?" Charles asked, not hearing the usual spark in his friends voice.

"I'm not bummed out...far from it, actually...I just really don't want to be here right now."

Charles chuckled. "Ahhh, enough said."

"Yes, enough said, so now I'll change the subject. I was calling to find out if it's okay for me to call Jane at work. I have a couple of things I need to ask her."

"Of course you can call her." Charles gave Will Jane's work number, and they said their goodbyes.

Five minutes later, Will was on the phone with Jane. After exchanging pleasantries, Will got right to the reason he was calling.

"I was curious about the bed and breakfast that your aunt and uncle own on Martha's Vineyard. What's the name of it?"

"The Gardner Inn. It's in Edgartown."

"Is Gardner their last name?"

"Yes, Ed and Valerie Gardner. G-a-r-d-n-e-r. Do you mind me asking why you're asking?"

"Of course not. I was thinking of taking Elizabeth there for the weekend, for her birthday. We've talked about going over, sometime this summer...I thought it would be nice to surprise her."

"Ohh, she'd probably love that. So she told you about our little chunk of Vineyard history?"

"She did. Although, I have to say, she seemed a little sad when she was talking about it."

"I think she probably _is_ still a little sad about it, and part of her always will be. She really was devastated when our grandfather died. We were still little, but she was so attached to him...she followed him around all over the place. He used to take her to dig clams with him, and she loved it...stomping around in the muck, trying to fit into his giant hip waders."

Will grinned at the image. "Why doesn't that surprise me?"

Jane laughed. "It's definitely not surprising that she chose the career she did. When my mom and my Uncle Ed sold the house after my grandmother died, she was so upset. We all were, but Elizabeth was beside herself. To her, it was a part of our family's legacy, and it was being let go."

"She told me your grandfather built it for your grandmother as a wedding gift."

"He did. The house was beautiful; the detail that he put into it, into the littlest things, was exquisite. It was sad for all of us when it was sold."

"It's a boarding house now, I guess...at least that's what Elizabeth thinks."

"It is, as far as I know. The man that bought it owns two restaurants, one in Vineyard Haven, and one in Edgartown. His seasonal employees use the house. I'd hate to see what it looks like now..."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. It probably looks nothing like what it used to."

"No, I'm sure it doesn't. Anyway, if you're trying to go this weekend, you might get stuck. It's kind of last minute, the rooms are probably all booked. Do you want me to call my aunt and uncle for you?"

"No, no, I'll take care of it. If we can't go this weekend, we'll plan it for another one. Unless...do you think she would mind if we stayed somewhere else?"

"I don't think she'd mind at all. Whatever you do, I'm sure Lizzy will love it."

"Thanks Jane, I hope so. Hey, I forgot to ask Charles about the Arts Alive benefit on the seventeenth...are you two going?"

"We are, as far as I know. Are you and Lizzy going?"

"I hope we are...I guess I have to ask her, I haven't done that yet."

"Will! You have to give the girl time to find a dress! It's black tie, right?"

"Yes," Will said guiltily. "I wasn't thinking about the dress thing."

"You better ask her tonight, or tomorrow at least. She'll need to shop."

"Not as easy as pulling a tux out of the closet, huh?"

"Absolutely not. You men have it made."

Will smiled. "I guess we do. I'll let you go, thanks for the help, I really appreciate it."

Jane smiled. "Any time. Give me a call if you need anything else. Bye Will."

"Bye Jane."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth was in no better state then Will. As much as she knew she had a lot of work to do, her brain just wouldn't cooperate. Her mind kept playing the events of the weekend over and over again.<p>

It was incredible how much things had changed from when she first saw Will on Friday, to when she said goodbye to him this morning. Thinking back to the events of last week, she was glad that she took Jane's advice and talked to him. Not that she had a choice; him showing up at her house unexpectedly pretty much made conversation unavoidable. If she had to pick the exact moment when a ray of hope broke through the gloom, it was when she saw him walking down the beach toward her. The fact that he came all the way back from California to see her, to fix things, made her realize just what kind of man he really was.

She still felt mortified about the whole Caroline debacle. She knew she was beating herself up about it, but when she thought about Will's reaction to what Caroline had said, it made her feel horrible. He was angry, of course. Who wouldn't be? Caroline had completely maligned him and his character, and she had almost fallen for it completely. Yes, he was angry, that had been evident. But he was hurt too, Elizabeth could see it in his eyes when he asked her if she believed what Caroline had said, and she had hesitated in answering.

_Look at us now_, she thought. How far they had come in just a few short days. When she had made the decision to give herself to him, it was completely without reservation. There was no second guessing herself at all; she was following her heart. He was everything she had thought he would be and more. Patient, loving, and tender, but also passionate and intense.

She shivered as images of him and his body floated through her mind. _His gorgeous, sexy body_. She hadn't been intimate with a man in years, and in the space of twenty-four hours, she had been with Will four times. Not that she was counting or keeping track, but still...four times! Her face flushed and she felt the ridiculous need to fan herself. She grinned when she remembered what Jane had said about Will not doing anything by halves. _That's for sure._

She sighed, and glanced at the clock. _Noon? Really? _She hadn't gotten a bit of work done yet, and it was almost time for lunch. She pulled her cell phone out of her bag, hesitating only briefly before she called Will.

"Hello Miss Bennet," he answered quietly.

"Hello Mr. Darcy...am I interrupting anything?" she asked, afraid she had caught him in a meeting or something.

He laughed. "Funny you should ask. I have caught myself in the middle of numerous daydreams today, so I suppose you did interrupt something."

"You too?" she asked, smiling into the phone. "I thought it was probably just me. This morning has been a complete waste of time...I think I've managed to catch up on my work emails, and I've done about an hours worth of research. Calcified clams aren't doing it for me anymore."

He laughed again. "So, I guess it's not just me that's pathetic. Although, you sound like you've gotten a lot more done than I have." He sighed dramatically. "You've completely ruined me."

Elizabeth chuckled. "I beg to differ. I think we've ruined each other, for the day at least. I just can't get my thoughts in order, it's ridiculous."

"Well, at least I can distract you with something else."

"Please do," she said teasingly.

"The Arts Alive benefit is coming up, I wanted to know if you'd like to go with me."

"Oh...I would, yes...of course I would. When is it?"

"Umm, next Saturday night, the 17th. It's at the Long Wharf." He paused. "It's black tie, so it's kind of a fancy affair."

Elizabeth cringed, knowing she had nothing black-tie worthy in her closet. "Okay, that's fine." Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. "Does that mean I'll finally get to see you in a tux?"

He chuckled. "Yes, I will be wearing a tuxedo. The basic penguin suit."

Elizabeth smiled to herself. "Sounds great." She sighed into the phone, feeling a sense of longing. "So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow? Do you think you'll be back for the game?"

"I hope to be...I plan on leaving here by three, so that should put me in Woods Hole by 4:30 if the traffic isn't too bad. I'll leave earlier if I can."

"Oh, I almost forgot! We're not playing at the Bell Tower park tomorrow, we're playing at the field near the MBL." She quickly told him where it was. "It's a nice park, the only one in town with an ocean view."

"I'll be there for sure. I'll call you later tonight, okay? You'll be home?"

"Yes, I'll be home. The rain is completely gone, so I may go for a run, but I'll be home after that."

"Okay, I'll talk to you later then." He lowered his voice teasingly. "Try to get some work done, Miss Bennet."

"You as well, Mr. Darcy," she said quietly. "Bye Will."

"Bye love."

As Elizabeth hung up, she realized that he had never used that endearment with her before, and it made her smile. She was his love. Was she his love? Really? She shook her head, determined to put thoughts of Will...Will's body...Will's lips...Will's _everything_...out of her mind. _Clams! Think about clams! _

* * *

><p><em>So, looks like they've developed their own 'morning routine'. Hmm. All reviews are appreciated! Thanks!<em>

_*Song: "Crazy Love" by Van Morrison_


	19. Chapter 19

_**We're in a stretch of fluff and fun now...no real angst for a while, so it's all "light reading" until then. :) This is the first story I've written, so I do appreciate that people are reading and enjoying the story, and I love getting the reviews. Thanks so much!**_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 19<strong>

Tuesday morning found Georgiana back on her laptop, scanning the different websites of the school departments on the Cape, looking for any other jobs that may have been posted. She knew that this was the time of year when teachers were retiring, or being "let go," so she knew that checking the websites daily would be beneficial. Her first interview, in Falmouth, was tomorrow. Just the thought of it made her shake with nervous anticipation. Her interview with Mashpee wasn't until the following week.

After perusing the websites for a bit, she decided to check her email. She saw that there was a new message from Julie, her best friend from Boston. For a while, when Georgiana first came to the Cape, she wouldn't take Julie's calls or answer her email. It was too painful; it was Julie's uncle's party that she had been at on New Years Eve, and the thought of talking to her was too much. Eventually, though, Georgiana realized that she missed her best friend, and wanted to talk to her. They had been friends for so long; she missed their relationship, and the sense of normalcy she derived from it. No matter what was going on in her life, her friendship with Julie was something that always felt solid.

Now, the friends chatted on the phone a couple of times a week, or kept up through email. Julie was also a teacher, though she had opted to venture into the untamed world of high school math. It never failed to astonish Georgiana that her friend could quell a loud class of high school students with one look and a softly-spoken word. Her students genuinely liked her and respected her. That was half the battle with kids that age, Julie always said. If you could get them to like you and respect you, the rest fell into place.

Clicking on the email, Georgiana began to read.

_Hey G,_

_Just checking in...how are things with you? Everything is good here, I started at Dick's* last week. I swear, I'm getting too old to work there...and I know what you're going to say, I'm not old, but honestly! I don't have the patience for the antics anymore! The fun is wearing off._

_I was thinking about coming to visit you, maybe this weekend? Have you got anything planned? God knows you've pestered me enough, and now that school is out, I have the time. I work a lunch shift on Friday, then don't work again until Sunday night...I could come Friday evening and leave Sunday afternoon. Does that work for you? I'm dying to hit the beach, so let me know._

_Hey, something else I wanted to discuss with you. I guess it could wait until I see you, but I'll put it out there now...Matt has been asking about you a lot. He really wants to talk to you, or at least email you, but he wanted to make sure it was okay with you first. He's concerned about you, G, and even though I've told him that you're doing well, I think he wants to find out for himself. What do you think?_

_Call me or email me, let me know about the weekend and about Matt. _

_Love ya,_

_Jules_

Georgiana re-read the part about Julie's brother. _Matt has been asking about you a lot_. She felt her stomach flip at the thought. She had always had a crush on Matt, through most of her life it seemed. Looking back, he was _always_ around, hanging with his friends at Julie's parents house, and even after high school and college, he hadn't gone far; he lived in Cambridge and worked at Virtual Media, a computer software company.

She missed seeing Matt, and even thinking of him now made her heart flutter. He had always treated her like a sister, despite the fact that it was pretty obvious that Georgiana was mad about him. She always loved that about him; he could have played on that, teased her about it, but he never did. He was always sweet to her.

She fired off a quick email back to Julie.

_Hey Jules,_

_I have absolutely nothing going on this weekend...I'm pretty sure Will is making some plans to go away with his girlfriend, so I'll have the place to myself, and I would love for you to come down! Hopefully the weather will be good so we can hit the beach. _

_Sorry Dick's is losing its appeal...I can see that happening. Five years ago, it was different! That place was a blast, but I could see it getting old. You're not old, the atmosphere is._

_It's so nice of Matt to be thinking of me, and if he wants to email me, I would love to hear from him. _

_Text me or call me before you head down on Friday so I know when you'll be getting here. I can't wait! See you then._

_Love,_

_G_

* * *

><p>Tuesday night found Elizabeth having an early dinner, then working studiously in her darkroom, developing the roll of film that Will had started when he took pictures of her yesterday morning. They had used up most of the film when they went walking in the conservation area, and the rest she had used tonight, taking pictures of the double-crested cormorants standing at attention at the end of the jetty that was down the beach a ways from her house.<p>

Surprisingly, Will hadn't mentioned the pictures at all; she knew he'd remember about them eventually, and she wanted to have them ready when he thought of it.

Two hours later she was finished, and had the photos spread out on her bed. She smiled at one that they had taken down at the Mashpee River. She had propped her camera on a large rock after lining Will up in the shot, and had set the timer and run over to him to be in the picture. They were both laughing, arms around each other, and he was looking down at her, but she was looking at the camera. It was the kind of spontaneous picture that she loved...it told its own little story. They both looked happy, and he was looking at her with such tenderness in his eyes.

The photos that Will had taken of her yesterday morning were difficult for her to look at, if only for the reason that she was so...exposed in them. Not exposed physically; she was perfectly covered, and in fact the photos only included her head and the upper part of her chest, where the edge of the comforter could be seen along the bottom of the picture. The exposure that she felt was strictly emotional; the feelings of the moment, the longing and the desire, were plainly evident on her face. At least, to her they were; of course, she knew the circumstances under which the pictures had been taken, so maybe that was why it was so obvious to her.

She examined herself closely, albeit self-consciously. Her lips were red and a little swollen, her cheeks were pink, her hair a big, brown, tumbling mass around her, and her eyes...deep green, slightly closed...they told a story all by themselves. She had a small smile on her lips, one that almost looked as if she had a secret, or was having a naughty thought. _Bingo! Naughty thought it was._

As self-conscious as they made her feel, she liked them, and hoped Will would like them too. Feeling a bit mischievous, she took her cell phone and hovered over one of the pictures, ready to take a picture, getting close enough so that only her eyes would show. She snapped the photo, and immediately took another, this time only of her lips. She then texted both photos to Will, smiling to herself.

Not even a minute later, her cell phone rang, and she giggled when she saw his name on her caller ID.

"Hello Will," she said softly.

"Oh, sweetheart...what are you trying to do to me? I'm a mess," he groaned.

She chuckled. "I just wanted to send you a little preview of the pictures you took, without giving them completely away."

He sighed loudly. "You're driving me insane, that's what you're doing. I can't believe I don't get to see you – or them – until tomorrow afternoon."

"I'm sorry. If it's any consolation, I'm looking at some of the pictures I took when we were down near the river yesterday, and you look unbelievably hot in them. I may even sleep with one."

He laughed. "It's only fair, since I'll be sleeping with my phone."

She smiled. "What are you up to?"

"Not much at the moment. I had a good workout tonight and had some delicious lasagna, courtesy of the little Italian market down the street. I've got a lot of reading to do, just some contracts and the like. I think we'll be closing on the buildings in L.A. within a week or two."

"Oh, that's exciting."

"Yeah, it is. Richard is really fired up, it's the first big deal that he's done basically on his own, so he's been pretty meticulous about everything. I don't know why I didn't give him more responsibility earlier, he's proven that he can handle it. Oh, and it looks like our first choice of candidate to head up our design branch will be coming on board, we're working out details of her employment contract. We've already started renovating two of the floors in our office building in San Francisco that will be the space for FRD Design."

"So is that the name you've decided on? FRD Design?"

"It is, thanks to you. Once you mentioned it, it was a no brainer."

Elizabeth smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

"What are your plans tonight?"

"No plans. I wanted to get these pictures done, and now that they are, I have to go clean up the mess in the darkroom. I have a few things to look over for work as well, I just have to get motivated to do it."

"Hmm, I know what you mean. Those pictures you sent certainly have me motivated, but not to do work."

"What are you motivated to do?" she asked coyly, feeling a little flirty.

"All kinds of things. Instead of telling you, though, I'll just show you tomorrow night instead."

She laughed softly as goosebumps traveled around her body. "I can't wait. I guess I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"You will definitely talk to me tomorrow, I'll call you in the morning before you head into work."

"Okay. Goodnight Will, sweet dreams."

"Goodnight babe." _I love you._

After hanging up, Elizabeth wandered back into the darkroom, straightening up and disposing of the chemicals into their appropriate containers. She looked up at her wall, the giant collage of pictures being one of her favorite things to gaze at, as it never failed to make her smile.

As she studied it, she felt that something was not right. Something was missing. She pursed her lips and her brow furrowed as she stared at the pictures, her eyes scanning from left to right and back again. She stood there for a few minutes, staring, but she couldn't put her finger on it. There were dozens and dozens of pictures on the wall, and though nothing jumped out at her, they just looked...different. She shook her head, deciding she was getting a bit nuts, and walked out, turning the light off as she went.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth sat at work Wednesday morning, mentally ticking off the hours until she was free and could head out the door to her softball game; she was looking forward to being out in the fresh air and seeing Will. The MBL ball field was located a stone's throw from the bike path, and the weather had cleared after yesterday's pounding rainstorm, so she was able to ride her bike in and enjoy the warm, fragrant summer air.<p>

Her cell phone buzzed with a text, and she glanced up, surprised to see it was from Georgiana.

_Getting ready for an interview in Falmouth. Wish me luck._

Elizabeth immediately picked up her phone and called her.

"Hi Lizzy," Georgiana answered.

"Hey, I didn't know you had an interview today! That was quick. Are you on your way now?"

"Almost, I'll be leaving in a few minutes. God, I'm nervous! I haven't done the interview thing in a long, long time."

"You'll be fine, absolutely fine. You haven't told Will yet, have you?"

"No...not because I don't want him to know, but...I'd rather be able to go to him and tell him I've already got a job...I know he'll be happy that I'm looking for work here. I kind of want to surprise him. And honestly, if I don't get a job right away, at least I won't have to answer questions all the time, you know? He'll pester me nonstop."

Elizabeth laughed. "You're right, he will, but he'll be excited about it anyway."

Georgiana paused for a second. "Can I tell you something else?"

"Sure."

"You have to promise not to tell Will."

"Oh...um, okay...it's nothing horrible, is it?"

"No, of course not...at least to me, it isn't. I'm going to move out."

Elizabeth's eyebrows flew up in surprise. "Oh...move out? Where are you going?"

Georgiana laughed. "Not far. Just to the guest house."

"Why do you want to do that?"

"I just think it's time. Granted, it's not a huge show of independence, I know, but still...I think it will be good for me, and for Will too. I can't live with him forever. He needs more privacy, and so do I. I want to have my own space."

"Are you doing this because of me? I mean, because of us?"

"Partially, yes."

"Oh, Georgiana, please don't. Will and I...we have plenty of...privacy. You don't need to move out."

"But I do...it's not like it's a bad thing, I'm not blaming you for it...it's a good thing. Will is thirty-six years old, he needs his own place. This house was never intended to be lived in year-round, but that's all changed. I don't see him going back to Boston to live, and I think that if he does choose to live here permanently, he needs his own place."

"Georgiana-"

"Elizabeth," Georgie interrupted, "this is my decision, and it's a _good_ one. Please! I'm happy for Will, happy he has you, and I want this for both of us. For all three of us. Okay?"

Elizabeth sighed. "Okay. When are you going to tell him? Am I going to have to keep this a secret for a long time?"

"No, I think I'll talk to him about it soon...very soon, if that makes you feel better."

"It does. In the meantime, I'll keep my mouth shut."

"Thanks. I'll call you later, let you know how the interview goes."

"Okay. Good luck! Talk to you soon."

"Bye Lizzy."

* * *

><p>Will was flying down the highway, headed to the Cape. He was running late and wasn't happy about it. He had tried to reach Elizabeth to let her know, but she didn't answer, so he left a quick message. It was already almost four-thirty, and he still had about a forty-five minute ride ahead of him.<p>

His cell phone rang just as he was crossing the Sagamore Bridge over the Cape Cod Canal. Glancing at it briefly, he saw it was Charles.

"What's up Charles?"

"Hey Will...just thought I'd check in about the benefit next week. I wanted to make sure we were all set with our table."

"Of course we are, I took care of it. I reserved one of the larger ones, for ten people. Richard is coming, and he indicated that he may be bringing a few people, so I figured the bigger table would be best."

"Okay, great. Did you finally ask your girlfriend to be your date?"

Will laughed. "Yeah, Jane let me know that I was down to the wire with that one. Elizabeth knows about it now though. She's looking forward to it too."

"Speaking of Elizabeth...are you headed to the Cape?"

"I'm already here, heading to Woods Hole for her game. She only has a couple left, so I'd like to see them."

Charles chuckled. "I still can't believe it. Softball."

"Believe it, buddy. I'm the biggest fan of the game there is, now," Will said, laughing.

"What do you have planned for Lizzy's birthday?"

"Oh, a couple of things...I have a trunk full of supplies with me."

"Supplies? What the hell are you planning?"

"Nothing you need to know about. You'll blab to Jane, and nothing against your _angel_, but I don't believe she could keep a secret from Elizabeth if her life depended on it."

"You're probably right, so don't tell me anything. Whatever you're doing, I hope it...goes well?"

Will laughed again. "You and me both. I'll catch up with you soon, have a good week."

"You too. Bye Will."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth frowned, looking down toward the road from the softball field. <em>He must be running late. <em>Her phone was packed away in her backpack, which was hanging from the handlebars of her bike. Suddenly, she heard the purr of an engine, and looked up to see him pulling into the small parking lot of the ball field. Her heart lurched, and she smiled to herself, feeling slightly giddy.

She watched as he parked the car and got out. He was still in his suit, but was presently removing his jacket and tie, turning to toss them into the car. Spotting her across the field, he slowly walked toward her, smiling, and began to undo the top buttons of his dress shirt. When that task was complete, he unbuttoned the cuffs of his sleeves and slowly rolled each one up, exposing his forearms. All the while, his eyes never left hers, and she suddenly felt absolutely hot and bothered. Those small, commonplace movements had turned her into a pile of mush, and for a moment, she entertained the thought of just launching herself at him. Reality set in, though, especially when she realized that her teammates were trying to get her attention.

"Yoohoo, Lizzy...hellooo, Lizzy..."

Slowly, Mary's voice reached her, and she turned to the team bench...which was now empty. They were all staring at her from the field.

"Hey Bennet, you still pitching today or what?" another team mate yelled.

"Sorry, sorry...I'm coming, I'm coming." Slightly embarrassed, she grabbed her glove and made her way to the pitcher's mound.

Once there, she focused on making quick work of the batters she faced, if only to get to the sidelines again so she could talk to Will. He had stopped far off to the side of the field, but she could feel his gaze on her, and didn't dare turn to look in his direction, feeling she was already distracted enough as it was.

While Will watched Elizabeth pitch, he mentally went over the checklist of things he had to do for her birthday tomorrow. At some point he'd have to talk to Georgie, just to make sure she was all set to steal away with Elizabeth for a little while, so he could arrange everything.

For a moment, he felt a flash of insecurity. He hadn't actually _bought_ her a birthday gift; he was taking her to the Vineyard, though, and he did have something else planned...he thought that she would appreciate those things more. Now, however, he was doubting his instincts.

_I should have bought her something. Jewelry. _The idea had occurred to him at one point, but he hadn't thought on it too much...she didn't wear a lot of jewelry, so he dismissed it, thinking it not quite appropriate for her. _Although, that's not to say I can't get her to pick something out while we're on the Vineyard._ He smiled to himself. _Problem solved._

He hadn't been able to get a room at the Gardner Inn for the weekend, they were booked solid. Jane had been right when she said it was too last minute. Instead, he had managed to finagle a reservation at the Harbor View Hotel, snapping up one of their brand new suites. It overlooked the ocean, and had a spectacular view of the Edgartown Lighthouse. He hoped she would like it. Granted, she saw the ocean every day, but he knew she loved it, and would definitely prefer having a water view over a street view. He had to admit, his fondness for the ocean was increasing. _Why the hell have I been living in Boston all these years? _It was a question he had been asking himself a lot lately.

As preoccupied as he was at the moment, he was turned away from the field, looking toward Vineyard Sound. A pair of tanned arms came from behind him and snaked around his waist, and a kiss was pressed to his back. He felt the warmth of it through the material of his shirt and turned around instantly, happy to see Elizabeth smiling up at him.

She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his, forgoing a verbal greeting for the moment. Her hands instantly slipped inside his collar to feel the skin of his neck as she kissed him. He tasted like coffee, and his lips and tongue were so _warm_. Aware that they were quite in public, she still couldn't resist swaying against him, just a little, before she pulled away from him.

Her hands slid from his neck and traveled down the length of his arms, pausing as she got to his bare forearms, where his shirtsleeves were rolled up to his elbows. She looked at his hands, now holding hers, before she looked up at him.

Will watched with a mixture of amusement and puzzlement as Elizabeth studied his arms and hands before turning her face up to his. When she did, he was surprised to see that they had that beautiful deep green shade to them. He quirked an eyebrow.

"Hi there," he said, smiling down at her.

"Hi."

"What's up?" he asked, wrapping his arms loosely around her waist.

She turned to glance at the game, not wanting to relive the embarrassing scene from earlier. Her team was still at bat. Her attention zipped back to Will.

"Nothing...I'm just happy to see you."

He smiled again as he watched her cheeks pink up. He narrowed his gaze.

"What's going on with you?"

"Nothing! You were just...you were distracting me earlier, that's all."

"And how, exactly, was I distracting you? I certainly wasn't doing anything."

"Oh, you were doing _something_...taking off your jacket and tie, rolling up your sleeves..." She paused to caress his forearms and play with the hair there for a moment. "It was _very_ distracting. I didn't even notice that my team had gone out to the field, and I stood there like an idiot."

Will started laughing. She tried to bite back a smile, but wasn't successful.

"You've created a monster, I think," she said quietly, grinning up at him.

He leaned down to kiss her again. "Mmm, pretty little monster though."

She was about to respond when they were interrupted by a loud voice from her team bench.

"Hey Bennet, are you pitching or kissing? Let's go!"

She rolled her eyes and flashed him an impish smile. "Two innings left."

* * *

><p>At the end of the game, everyone began the usual ritual of pulling out blankets and coolers. Elizabeth headed over to Will, a picnic the last thing on her mind. She kissed him lightly on the lips.<p>

"Are we eating with everyone?" he asked.

"Mmm, no, I didn't even think to pack anything. We could always grab something after."

He looked at her curiously. "After what?"

Elizabeth blushed. "Later...after."

Will grinned, realizing what she was thinking. He leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"After I take you home...take your clothes off...kiss you everywhere...and make love to you? After that?"

Elizabeth could feel his warm breath on her neck, and felt his hands creep beneath her t-shirt to stroke the skin below her rib cage. Every nerve ending tingled and her entire body flushed.

She swallowed loudly. "Yes," she whispered, "after that."

He kissed her neck just under her ear, making her shiver, before lifting his head. "Let's go."

She looked up at his face, at his beautiful brown eyes, and sighed. "I have my bike." It had totally slipped her mind.

He smiled. "Then I guess it's a race."

* * *

><p>His car was already there when she rode up to her house, and she quickly hopped off her bike and chained it up. She took the stairs two at a time, and saw him waiting for her, stretched out in a lounge chair on the deck, hands laced behind his head.<p>

"Slowpoke," he said, grinning.

She walked over to him, saying nothing, and plopped herself down on his lap, straddling his legs and facing him. She leaned in to kiss him, and reached up to join her hands with his, lacing their fingers together. He moaned into her mouth and kissed her deeply. Elizabeth felt that gnawing feeling in her stomach and lower, that aching need, building up.

Lowering her hands, she went to work on his dress shirt, rapidly undoing the buttons, never taking her lips from his. As she got lower, she impatiently yanked it out of the waistband of his pants, finishing the last few buttons. She pushed it aside and ran her hands over every inch of his stomach and chest, up his neck, to his hair, tangling her hands in his curls as she kissed him hungrily.

Will reached down to grasp her bottom and pull her firmly against him, seating her against his growing erection. He pushed his hips up slightly against her, and she groaned into his mouth.

He pulled his lips from hers, breathing heavily. "Do you want to go inside?"

"No," she breathed, kissing him again. "Here. Now." She lowered her lips to his chest, letting her teeth graze his nipples before gently sucking on them and licking them, then worked her way back up to his neck.

_Here and now works for me_. He grabbed the bottom of her t-shirt, pulling it up and over her head, tossing it to the deck, her bra following quickly behind. He sat up straight and pulled her up against him, needing to feel her skin on his, before reclining back again. Reaching up to cup her breasts, he teased and stroked them, then leaned down to take each into his mouth, laving his tongue over the taut tips. He heard her intake of breath, felt her hips gyrate and push down on him, and he felt as if he was going to burst as he pushed himself up against her.

His lips left her breasts and began to wander up toward her neck, and he kissed and nipped his way up to her ear.

"Stand up next to me," he whispered, his hands returning to her breasts and teasing her relentlessly.

_Stand up? _Her mind was glazed with passion, she felt drunk, and he wanted her to _stand up?_ She managed to lift herself off of him, but not without first trailing her hands down his chest and stomach. As she started to rise, she reached between them and stroked his arousal through his pants, watching as he momentarily closed his eyes and exhaled loudly. He opened his eyes again and smiled at her.

"You really need to stand up," he said, his voice husky.

She did as she was told, and he immediately began to lower her shorts. She stepped rather clumsily out of her sneakers, then her shorts, before climbing back onto him. She immediately felt one of his hands at her center, stroking her. He slipped his fingers inside of her, and all of a sudden it was hard to breathe. His other hand was at her breast, and his mouth was...everywhere else. On her lips, her neck, lowering to her other breast, then back up to her lips.

The feeling of being completely unclothed while he was still completely dressed was an incredible turn on for her, but she had decided that at least _one_ part of him needed to be undressed. Reaching down, she pulled his hand away from her center, then unbuttoned his pants and lowered his zipper, reaching in to release his throbbing, warm erection. He was kissing her again, and she felt his smile against her lips as a deep groan came from within his chest. She stroked him up and down, her impatience once again taking over.

He immediately lifted her up and pulled her slightly toward him, positioning himself at her entrance, before firmly grasping her hips and thrusting up into her as she simultaneously lowered herself onto him. Their lips game together again as he held her hips, guiding her into his rhythm. He reached behind her to support her as he leaned her back slightly, lowering his head to her breasts, alternating between each, before again working his way back up to her lips.

With one hand still on one of her hips, he reached between them with the other, stroking her again, reveling in the feel of her body wrapped around his. He heard her breathing quicken, felt her muscles begin to quiver and clutch him.

"Lizzy, look at me," he whispered, his voice barely audible.

She slowly opened her eyes, locking them on his. He slid his body down slightly in order to thrust up into her harder and deeper, and she matched every movement with her body. She never broke eye contact, but her breathing was coming harder and faster and he knew she was going to climax. He increased the pressure with his fingers, encouraging her, bringing her to the edge, and as soon as he heard her cries and felt her body begin that delicious pulsing, he let himself go, releasing into her with a loud groan. He held both of her hips with his hands again, joining them together as tightly as he could, before sliding his hands up her back to her shoulders, pulling her down to kiss her over and over again, still pushing into her with long, deep thrusts.

Elizabeth collapsed down onto Will's chest, her breathing erratic and her body covered with a thin sheen of sweat. She wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his chest, listening to the rhythmic pumping of his heart, knowing hers pumped just as hard.

She heard Will take a deep breath, then another, and felt his hands stroke along her back, down to caress over her bottom, then return up to her neck again. "Wow," he said quietly, "that was some welcome home."

She laughed into his chest. "I debated jumping on you at the ball field, but it didn't seem prudent."

"Yes, that would have been a little too public for me. Although, I do have to say, I like this deck."

She lifted her head. "Oh, you do, huh?"

He pulled her face to his to kiss her. "Mmm. I love seeing the ocean behind you when I'm inside of you. What a gorgeous view."

He laughed as she blushed and lowered her face to his chest again.

"What are you hiding for? You were the one that was demanding _here_ and _now, _Miss Bennet. I was perfectly willing to go in the house."

She shook her head against his chest. "There was no time for that."

He chuckled. "I'm glad."

"We should probably go in now though. I think I've exposed myself enough for one day."

"I don't know...I have _three_ decks at my house. We should go try them out."

She lifted her head up again, kissing him softly. "I don't think Georgiana would care for that."

"Mmm, you're probably right."

She slowly lifted herself off of him, and quickly dug her keys out of her backpack and let them into the house. Feeling slightly self-conscious of walking around completely naked while he was still...well, partially clothed, she grabbed her robe and threw it on, tying it loosely around her waist.

"Hey, I just remembered...you owe me some pictures. Where are they?" he asked.

She smiled, knowing it was just a matter of time before he asked for them. "They're on my bed."

He abruptly turned and walked into her bedroom and stood over her bed, looking at the images she had spread out there, before she left for work.

"Wow."

She stood next to him and leaned against him. "Wow? Is that all you can say."

"Wow...I am a damn good photographer."

She laughed outright at his tease and elbowed him in the ribs. "You had a damn good subject to shoot," she said, still laughing.

"I did, you're right. I did." He stood smiling, looking at the photos, before he turned to look at her. "Seriously, they're beautiful, they really are...even though they don't do you justice." He leaned down to kiss her. "Can I take them home with me?"

"They're all yours. They're not exactly something I'd hang up in my darkroom...they're a little too personal. Although, I'm keeping the ones of you, and the one of the two of us together. _Those_ are mine."

He wrapped his arm around her and kissed her temple. "Deal." He stacked all the pictures together and they walked back into the living room.

"What are we doing tonight?" she asked, watching as he fixed his pants, loving the fact that he left his shirt open, hanging loose from his shoulders. _Yum._

He shrugged. "What do you feel like doing? Want to go out, get a bite? We could see a movie, we haven't done that in a while."

"I'd like that, actually. A movie sounds good."

He looked at her for a moment, biting his lip. "Will you come stay with me tonight?" he asked softly.

She smiled. "I would love to stay with you tonight."

His face lit up. "Great. Why don't you throw some things together. I'll call Georgie, let her know we'll be home soon."

"Okay. I'll just take a quick shower, then we can go. I'm a little sweaty...from softball."

He smiled. "I know."

She cringed and blushed at the same time.

He walked over to her, untying her robe, pushing it back to completely expose her body to his eyes. "I could taste the salt on your skin. It was very sexy," he whispered, as he held her hips and pulled her against him, moving his lips to her neck, licking at her skin, his tongue burning a trail down to her chest. He slowly dragged his tongue over one nipple before pulling it into his mouth, then releasing it to do the same to the other.

Elizabeth's breath caught, and all embarrassment at being slightly sweaty quickly dissipated as other feelings took over. She reached up to hold his head, before he lifted it again to look at her. She leaned in to kiss him deeply, slowly, and felt his hands pulling her robe closed. She pulled away from him and arched an eyebrow at him, questioning what exactly he was up to.

He smiled at her. "Did I mention that my bedroom has its own, very private deck?"

* * *

><p>While Elizabeth was showering, it suddenly dawned on Will that they had not used a condom, and his stomach lurched.<em> A little too late to be thinking about that.<em>

Truthfully, he wasn't worried about disease of any sort; he knew he was healthy, and he also knew that Elizabeth hadn't been with anyone in a long time. Still, it needed to be discussed, especially with her history; the last thing either of them needed was a surprise pregnancy.

She hadn't bothered to use the outdoor shower, preferring to just take a quick one inside. When she came out wrapped once again in her robe, he was sitting on the bed, shirt now buttoned and tucked back in. He held up a condom, retrieved from her night stand.

"Look what I found," he said quietly, half-smiling at her, hoping she wouldn't be horrified.

"Oh. Yeah," she said calmly. "Oops."

"Just oops?" He wasn't sure if she was upset or not.

She shrugged. "It's a big oops, I know." She walked over to her closet, opening it and looking through her tops. She turned to look at him. "Um, is there anything I need to...worry about? With you?"

"No...no, of course not."

"That's what I thought."

"When did you come to that conclusion?"

"When it was too late to do anything about it," she said, smiling slightly. "I trust you."

"I trust you too. So we know that about each other, which is good." He cleared his throat. "What about pregnancy though?"

Her face tightened briefly before she turned back to her closet. "I'm on the pill. I never forget to take it, ever. So we should be okay there too."

He walked over to her and turned her to face him. "Just so you know...if anything like that ever _did_ happen-"

"I know," she whispered, interrupting him. "You don't have to say it. I already know."

* * *

><p>As the time had gotten away from them, Will and Elizabeth had decided to forgo the movie and just go out for dinner. After telling Georgiana about their plans and inviting her to come along, Will had left the women alone while he went up to take a shower. Elizabeth took the opportunity to give Georgiana the third degree about her interview.<p>

"I think it went well," Georgie said. "Once I was there, I wasn't so nervous."

"That's good," Elizabeth replied. "When do you think you'll find out if you're hired or not?"

"It will be a while, they said they'd call during the first week of August to let me know." She looked down at her hands as they fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.

"Is that all?" Elizabeth asked, sensing that something wasn't right

Georgiana shrugged lightly. "They asked if I wouldn't mind explaining to them why I had taken a leave of absence, and why I was choosing to terminate my employment with the City of Boston. I guess it just caught me off guard. It shouldn't have, it's a logical question."

"What did you say?"

She sighed. "I told them the truth. I said that I had been the victim of a crime, and needed the time off to regroup. I told them that I have a family summer home in New Seabury, and now that I'm here on the Cape, I don't really want to go back to Boston, but I do want to get back to teaching. I told them how much I love my work, and how much I've missed it."

"That must have been difficult for you."

Georgiana shook her head. "It wasn't, really. Once I said it, once it was out there, I felt relieved. For the past six months, I've felt like what happened to me has defined me. I don't feel like that anymore...I don't know how to explain it. I think it's because I feel like I have a purpose again. I can't wait to get back to teaching...to be in a classroom, surrounded by inquisitive little minds. It really does bring me happiness."

Elizabeth smiled. "You've come a long way."

"I have, haven't I?" She thought for a moment. "I'm going to tell Will that I'm moving out, and about my job interviews tonight. He'll be happy for me, don't you think?"

"I think he'll be ecstatic about you looking for a job here. The moving out thing...not so much. He likes having you around."

"Because he wants to keep an eye on me."

Elizabeth said nothing, only smiled.

"Well, I'm only going across the back lawn, for Pete's sake. I think Fitzwilliam can handle it."

Will walked into the great room. "Fitzwilliam can handle what?" he said, shaking his damp hair slightly as he walked over to Elizabeth.

Georgie turned to look at Elizabeth. "Umm...I'll tell you at dinner. Where are we going, anyway?"

"Ladies choice," Will said, leaning down to kiss Elizabeth. She pressed her nose against his neck and inhaled deeply, making him smile.

"How about Bleu?" Georgie suggested. Will wrinkled his nose.

"You said it was ladies choice!" she said, laughing. "Where do _you_ want to go?"

He grinned. "I'll make it easy for you. Anywhere but Bleu. I'm not crazy about that place."

"Ok...why don't we just go to the 99?" Elizabeth offered. "It won't be too busy tonight, and they have good food."

Georgiana nodded. "Sounds good. Let's go, I'm starved."

* * *

><p>Halfway through their dinner, Georgiana cleared her throat.<p>

"So Will, I wanted to tell you about something."

Will looked at Georgiana, then at Elizabeth, then back at Georgiana. He finished chewing.

"Does it have something to do with what I overheard earlier?"

"Yes, it does. I decided to terminate my employment with the Boston school system. I'm going to look for work here, on the Cape."

He smiled, feeling inexplicably relieved. "I think that's great. A great idea. Have you started looking yet?"

She smiled. "I have. I had an interview today, actually, in Falmouth. They have a position open at one of their elementary schools, for a third grade teacher. I have another interview next week in Mashpee, they're looking for a permanent substitute. I'm still checking online every day, to see if anything else comes up."

"How did your interview go today?" Will asked.

"I think it went well. We'll see, I guess." She felt Elizabeth nudge her under the table as she stalled. "So, there's something else as well. I'd like to move out of the main house, and into the guest house."

Will's brows furrowed. "What? What are you talking about?"

"I want to move. Out of the main house. And into the guest house." Georgiana repeated, stating each word plainly.

"Why do you want to do that? That's crazy, you're not doing that."

Georgiana and Elizabeth looked at each other, eyebrows raised.

"What do you mean, _I'm not doing that?_"

He shrugged. "Why would you want to? There's no reason for it."

"There _is_ a reason for it," Georgiana said firmly. "I want and need my own space. I know it's not a huge thing, I'm only moving across the backyard, but still...it'll be my little space. And, you'll have the house to yourself," she said pointedly, smiling at Elizabeth.

Will turned to glare at his girlfriend. "Are you in on this?"

"What?" Elizabeth said, trying to contain a laugh. "No, I'm not _in_ on this. This was all her idea."

"What do you think about it?"

"It doesn't matter what I think about it. I'm neutral."

"Oh please. You? Neutral? You must have an opinion." Will said, smirking at her. "You _always_ have an opinion on _everything_."

She elbowed him. "Watch yourself, Mr. Darcy."

He continued to stare at her, waiting.

Elizabeth threw up her hands. "Okay, fine, I do have an opinion. I happen to think it's a great idea."

Georgie interrupted. "I want my own space. You need your own space. Why is that so difficult?"

Will chewed silently for a minute, thinking about what she said. It was actually a big leap for her, a big step in getting back to herself, back to who she was. Still, he had some reservations, mostly about security and her safety.

"You'll have to agree to a few things first," he said.

Georgiana looked puzzled. "Like what?"

He thought for a moment. "A security system, with a code, would need to be installed. I'll have it hooked into the main house's system as well. Motion sensor lights. New locks. Maybe even an intercom system between the two houses."

"Hold on," Georgie said. "An intercom system? Really?"

Will just stared at her.

"Okay, okay," she grumbled.

"I'm also going to have the guys that take care of the yard lay in some flagstone to make a real walking path from the main house to the guest house. I'll have them run solar lights alongside it."

Georgie sighed. "Fine."

When Will didn't say anything else, Georgie looked at Elizabeth, then back at him. "So it's all set, then? As soon as all that stuff is done, I can move out there?"

"Not until all that _stuff_ is done," he said seriously. "If you're going to be out there alone, I want to know you're safe."

Her face softened. "I know...and I will be."

"I'll make some calls tomorrow morning, we'll get the ball rolling."

She smiled. "Okay. Thanks Will."

He smiled back softly. "You're welcome."

* * *

><p>"I need to check the appliances."<p>

Elizabeth heard Will talking softly just as she was drifting off to sleep, curled up against him in his big bed, her mind somewhere in between reality and a dream state. She listened carefully, wondering if he was talking in his sleep. She felt the cool breeze coming in through the open windows against her back and shoulders, and she could hear the waves in the distance, crashing against the beach.

Upon their return home from the restaurant, Will had suggested to Elizabeth that they go upstairs, and she had agreed. They said goodnight to Georgiana and made their way up to his room.

Without speaking much, he had slowly undressed her, kissing every inch of her skin as it was exposed. She did the same to him, and they made love slowly and sweetly, the urgency of the afternoon gone, replaced by the desire to thoroughly explore and learn each other's bodies.

Now, still feeling the hum of satisfaction circulating through her, Elizabeth stretched her bare body out and pressed against him, burying her face in his neck. "What did you say?"

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. "Nothing, sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." He stroked his fingers lazily up and down her back, and she threw one leg and one arm over him.

"Mmm. I wasn't really asleep yet. Did you say something about appliances?"

"Yes...I was just thinking about the guest house. Sorry."

"It's okay. Georgie kind of sprung that on you, I know." She felt him shrug.

"I know why she's doing it, and I'm fine with it. I just didn't expect it I guess."

"She wants you to have some privacy, and she wants a place of her own. At least she'll be nearby."

"I know. That's the only reason why I'm taking it as well as I am. I mean, she's a grown woman, she can go anywhere she wants, I can't stop her. I'm just glad she'll still be here, where I can keep an eye on her."

"She knows that."

He kissed the top of her head. "I'm trying not to be the smothering, protective older brother. After everything she's been through...it's hard not to be that way."

She kissed his neck, nuzzling him, before laying her head in that perfect spot between his neck and his shoulder.

"I know it's hard, but you handled yourself very well."

They lay together quietly for a bit, but before too long, she felt his arms pulling her over to lay on top of him, and she found herself gazing down into his lovely brown eyes as she straddled his hips.

He reached up to cup her face, pulling her down to him for a lengthy, sensuous kiss.

Just like before, there wasn't really much need for conversation.

* * *

><p><strong><em>So, Georgiana is moving out...and does she have an admirer? You'll get to meet Matt later in the story. I know I said I'd be posting Wed. and Sat., but I will probably post on Tues. of this coming week, it works a little better with my semi-crazy schedule. Thanks again for reading, please leave a review!<em>**

_***Dick's Last Resort – a very crazy place located in Faneuil Hall in Boston.** _


	20. Chapter 20

_Time to celebrate Elizabeth's birthday. This chapter is ALL mush and fluff and love, no angst to be seen anywhere. It's also fairly long...hope you enjoy it! Thanks again for reading and reviewing!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 20<strong>

Elizabeth woke slowly out of a deep sleep, her mind gradually becoming aware of the soft lips that were placing lingering kisses to the small of her bare back. Those lips gradually worked their way up, along her spine, to the column of her neck. She sighed blissfully, refusing to open her eyes just in case this was some type of spectacular dream. She burrowed her face further into the pillow and stretched out, feeling content.

She shivered slightly as a pair of warm hands pushed her hair to the side and started to gently massage her shoulders, before leaving them to trail along the curves of her arms as they disappeared underneath her pillow. Seconds later, she felt a warm, muscular chest press lightly against her back, and she felt the caress of those soft lips once again, this time on the back of her neck.

When a teasing nibble was given to an earlobe, she jumped lightly, and heard a deep, throaty chuckle.

A smile spread across her face, she couldn't stop it. Moments later, she felt the warmth of Will's entire body as he lay completely stretched out next to her, the hard lines of his body following the soft curves of hers. She rolled onto her side so that he could curl behind her, and he immediately did, locking her into a tight spoon, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close.

He was humming softly, and she instantly recognized the familiar strains of "Happy Birthday." She felt his hands begin to move over her body as he began to slowly and quietly sing in her ear.

_"Happy Birthday to you..."_ ...his hands came up to cup her breasts, teasing and stroking them, while he kissed her neck... _"Happy Birthday to you..."_ ...one hand traveled away from her breasts and moved slowly down her stomach to caress her hip... _"Happy Birthday dear...Lizzy..."_ ...his hand left her hip and lifted her leg, gently pulling it back on top of his... _"Happy Birthday...to you..."_...his hand stroked along her leg, up to the juncture of her thighs, and when he found the wet heat there, his fingers slowly caressed her, making her feel body feel completely weightless.

She felt his breath in her ear and the warmth of his erection pressed against her, and she moved one arm to reach behind her, grasping him and stroking him up and down. His breathing became slightly more erratic, and the hand between her thighs stopped caressing her, only to remove her hand from his body. Placing her arm back in front of her, his hand trailed to her breast again, matching the strokes and caresses of the other.

Elizabeth felt heat skimming along her skin wherever his hand traveled. They hadn't spoken to each other yet, and she still hadn't opened her eyes, but her senses were completely overwhelmed by him. She reached up to grasp one of his hands, lifting it from her breast to her lips, kissing his palm before guiding it back to her core, showing him what she wanted him to do, what she _needed_him to do.

As soon as he slipped his fingers inside of her, they both groaned, and she immediately began to move her hips in response to the gliding thrusts of his fingers. His thumb continued to circle and caress her swollen flesh, and all the while his other hand was busy at her breasts, massaging her, taking turns with each peak, as his mouth licked and bit along the curve of her neck to her shoulder, causing sensations that were indescribable.

She was unable to breathe correctly, was so far beyond ready to feel him inside of her that she began to squirm, trying to turn her body around to face him. After much tussling about, she finally managed to roll over and press her lips to his in a hungry kiss, letting her hands wander all over his chest and stomach, around to his back, soaking in the feel of him through her fingertips. One hand followed the trail of soft hair from his chest down, down to his erection. She lifted one leg up to wrap around his hips, but before she could do anything further, his mouth left hers and worked it's way down her neck with warm, wet kisses. She shivered as she felt the new growth of stubble on his cheeks and chin scratch her skin as his body slid down hers. Reaching her breasts, he drew one nipple into his mouth, suckling it, then lightly grazing it with his teeth, before releasing it to attack the other.

Elizabeth's hips pushed against him, and she lifted his head to bring it back to hers for a long, searing kiss. Finally, she opened her eyes, and he was _right there_, staring at her, smiling at her, his hair mussed and his eyes now darkened to that beautiful shade of deep chocolate brown that she loved.

_It's not just his eyes that I love. It's him. I love him._

She closed her eyes briefly as the sudden revelation went whirling through her mind, completely overwhelming and blindsiding her. Tears stung her eyes, and she buried her face into the crook of his neck, trying to regain her senses.

They lay on their sides facing each other, and he reached down to grasp her bottom and pull her even closer into him, as close as he could.

"It's your birthday," he whispered hoarsely into her ear, trying to breathe evenly.

She nodded into his neck, momentarily unable to speak. After a moment, she finally felt like she could look at him again, and as she did, she nibbled her bottom lip, grinning slightly. "Can I have my present now?" She reached down once again to lightly grasp him, stroking up and down.

He half groaned, half chuckled as he felt her hand wrap around him, massaging him, driving him crazy. He moved her hand away and unable to stop himself, he thrust up into her, and felt the automatic response of her muscles tightening around him.

Elizabeth sighed, drowning in the sensation of his body filling hers. _A perfect fit_. She closed her eyes briefly, then opened them to lock her gaze onto his once again.

A smile blossomed on her face. "Happy Birthday to me."

* * *

><p>Will hummed softly as he padded around the kitchen in a pair of shorts and an old Harvard t-shirt, getting coffee ready and checking to make sure the blueberries and strawberries he bought hadn't been eaten by his sister. He'd let Elizabeth sleep in so that he could make a few phone calls and get business out of the way so they could have the rest of the day to themselves.<p>

Hearing footsteps coming toward the kitchen, he turned to see Georgiana walk in.

"You're up early," Georgiana said, yawning.

Will shrugged. "Not really. It's past nine."

"Elizabeth still sleeping?"

Will cleared his throat. "Um, yes, as far as I know. Hopefully. Umm, do we have a tray around here?"

"A tray? Like, a serving tray?"

"Yes, like a serving tray. You know, to serve. To carry things."

"Oh, like...breakfast in bed things? That kind of tray?"

Will sighed. "Yes, that kind of tray."

Georgiana squinted her eyes at him. "Not to change the subject or anything, but now do you see why I should move across the lawn? You need your privacy."

"No, I don't see why you need to move across the lawn...I just need you to tell me where the tray is."

Georgiana laughed. "If you could see your face right now...it's like you snuck a girl into your room or something. You're all...self-conscious. And jittery."

"Oh please, I'm not self-conscious _or_jittery."

She arched her eyebrows and smirked. "Yes you are."

"Look, I'm not crazy about you moving out, even if you are only going a stone's throw from the house. But I realize that this is a necessary thing, for you. If you were only doing it because you thought I needed more privacy, I wouldn't agree to it. This house is large enough for me to have all the privacy I need and want." He paused for a moment. "You need this, though. It's important to you, I know that. It's a big part of you returning to normalcy. I get it, I really do. So, of course I'm going to support you."

Georgiana looked at him closely, tilting her head. "It's a big part of _both_ of us returning to normalcy. I loved living on my own in Boston." She shrugged. "Like I said, it's not a huge step, moving across the backyard, but it's still _something_."

"I know." He smiled at her. "Just so you know, I already called the alarm company, they'll be out first thing Monday morning. They'll install the alarm system, the intercom, and the motion sensor lights. The landscaping guys are due on Tuesday, I'll let them know about the flagstone then. Oh, and at some point, we have to check the appliances out there, make sure they're okay."

"Oh, I didn't think of that. Good idea." She paused for a second. "I haven't had a chance to tell you. Julie wants to come visit this weekend...I thought it would be nice to have her here, since you'll be gone."

Will smiled. "I think that's great...it's about time." He was pleased to see Georgie reconnecting with her best friend. What happened back in January had nothing to do with Julie; it was just unfortunate circumstances that it had all happened at her uncle's place. "You two will have a good time, I'm sure. Oh, which reminds me, about tonight...can you still take Elizabeth somewhere, maybe for an hour or so?"

Georgie nodded. "I told you I could. What are you guys doing today?"

"I think we're just hanging around here...she said she just wanted to lounge on the beach, maybe go for a walk later. So, maybe you can take her somewhere, and then drop her at her house. I'll already be there."

"What are you planning?"

Will shrugged, smiling. "Nothing big. Just..." He caught himself. "Nothing big."

He rubbed his hands together. "So, about that tray...?"

Georgiana rolled her eyes, and got up to walk into the pantry. She walked out with a pretty floral tray.  
>"This should do."<p>

"Perfect," Will said. "Thanks Georgie."

* * *

><p>When Elizabeth woke she was alone, and immediately decided that she was okay with that. It gave her some much needed time, time to examine her newly discovered emotions about Will. She knew this was it; this was real. It was sudden, it was too soon, it was irrational, but it was love. She felt it with every fiber of her body, with every beat of her heart.<p>

The very thought of it made her stomach flip, partly in excitement, but partly in apprehension. She still had those fears, lurking in her mind, determined to work their way out, but she forcefully quelled them. Jane was right; falling in love was a game of chance. There were no guarantees that her relationship with Will would last forever, but for right now...she'd take what she could get, whatever he was willing to give her. There was no way in hell she could pull back at this point; it was far too late.

Sighing, she rolled over onto his pillow, burying her face in it, inhaling the trace of his scent that lingered there. Just doing that made her stomach flutter, and she laughed to herself. She had told him once before that he underestimated how good he smelled, and it was true...he smelled good enough to eat. Or at least lick.

She rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. _Where is he anyway? _She looked around and saw their clothes, thrown haphazardly onto the wingback chair. His suit from the day before was also there, and she spied his dress shirt buried under the jacket. Hopping out of bed, she went into the bathroom to freshen up and brush out the tangles in her hair, and when she came out, she reached for the shirt and pulled it on, buttoning it loosely. It fell almost to her knees, and as the sleeves extended well beyond her fingertips, she rolled them up to her wrists.

Confident that he would be back soon, and not really ready to leave the little cocoon that was his room, she walked over to the French doors and unlocked them, opening them and stepping out onto the deck. It was small but still very spacious, and despite the height, it felt cozy. Instead of typical railings, the entire space was enclosed by a low wall. There were two nice rattan chairs and a small table. If one was to sit, the wall would block the view a little, but it provided a buffer against the breeze that was constantly coming in off of the ocean.

She leaned on the wall and looked out over the view, to the beach and the ocean, the beautiful backyard, the guest house, soon to be Georgiana's place...and the adirondack chairs. She smiled as she remembered their first 'real' date, listening to him sing, kissing him for the first time...she closed her eyes and turned her face up into the sun, smiling, letting her mind wander wherever it wanted to go. It always went to him.

* * *

><p>Will had entered the room quietly, and at the sight of Elizabeth standing outside on the deck, he nearly dropped the tray. She was a vision to him, standing there with the sun beaming down on her, looking like a ray of light herself. <em>And she's wearing my shirt<em>.

He set the tray down on the bed and walked to the doorway, leaning against it for a moment, letting his eyes wander slowly over her, taking the extra time to burn the image of her into his mind permanently. Her hair tumbled down around her shoulders, and she had her face tilted up into the sun. After a minute, he spoke.

"The birthday girl has risen."

She startled at the sound of his voice and spun around to look at him. Her face glowed, her eyes sparkled, and her smile stretched from ear to ear.

"Good morning," she said, holding out her hands to him. She felt completely overcome with emotion again at the sight of him, and those two words were all she could manage at the moment.

He walked over to grasp her outstretched hands and bent to kiss her softly, reaching a hand up to run through her curls.

"Good morning to you." He took a deep breath as he looked at her. "You are truly stunning..." he whispered, as he fingered the collar of his shirt, letting his hand trail down the  
>v-shaped opening of it, to where it was buttoned between her breasts. "...especially in my shirt. I think I like this look for you."<p>

Elizabeth smiled flirtatiously. "Oh, this old thing?"

"Mmm...that old thing. Looks much better on you than it does on me."

She shook her head, smiling as she thought back to watching him unbutton his sleeves and collar yesterday at the ball field. "You do wonders for this shirt, trust me." She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tight, reveling in the feel of his arms holding her close.

She looked up at him. "Did you bring me food?"

He bent to kiss her quickly. "How did you know?"

"I can smell the coffee."

He led her by the hand back into the bedroom, leaving the French doors open, and pointed to the tray. "I wanted to serve you breakfast in bed."

"You still can," she said, smiling as she climbed back in and fluffed the pillows up behind her. "Are you going to join me?"

"Of course." He climbed onto the bed and sat cross-legged, facing her, the tray between them.

He had brought up a bowl piled high with fresh strawberries and blueberries, a carafe full of coffee, a couple of warm white chocolate scones, and some fresh whipped cream for the fruit.

"You're spoiling me," Elizabeth said, watching as he dipped a strawberry into the cream and lifted it to her lips.

"It's your birthday. Everyone should get spoiled on their birthday." He smiled, raising an eyebrow. "Open up."

She opened her mouth and bit into the strawberry, enjoying the sweetness of it, closing her eyes briefly. "Mmm, that's fantastic." She opened her eyes again to see Will staring at her. "Aren't you having any?"

"Hmm?" Eating suddenly became the last thing on his mind. Everything caught up to him at once...Elizabeth was here, in his bed, _really_ here. His eyes traveled over her hungrily. _Her hair...her eyes...her lips...her legs...and my shirt. God, she looks good in my shirt_. He watched as she popped a couple of plump blueberries into her mouth, her eyes growing wide with pleasure as she chewed and swallowed.

"You should try them, they're sooo good."

He leaned over the tray, reaching to hold the back of her head, pulling her face to his, locking her in a deep kiss, his tongue playing with hers, tasting the sweetness of the fruit that she had just eaten. After kissing her thoroughly, he slowly broke away from her, tugging on her lower lip with his teeth.

"You're right...they are good," he said, smiling wickedly at her before kissing her again. "Very sweet."

She looked down at the tray, her eyes zeroing in on the whipped cream, then looked back up at him with a devilish glint in her eye. He was preoccupied with pouring them each a cup of coffee, so she quickly stuck her finger in the bowl, lifting a huge dollop of the cream and dropping it on his thigh, just below the edge of his shorts.

He stopped what he was doing and looked down at his leg, then up at her.

She smiled coyly. "Oops."

He saw the sparkle in her eyes, that mischievous glint, and knew instantly that he was in trouble. "Are you going to clean that off?" he asked her quietly.

She said nothing, but lifted the tray to move it to his dresser. When she turned to move back to the bed, he wasn't surprised to see she held the bowl of whipped cream. She sat on the bed, and slowly bent down to lick the whipped cream off of his leg, using her lips and tongue to get every...last...drop. When she looked back up at him, his face held that look that made her heart pound...she was about to be topped with whipped cream and devoured.

He took the bowl from her hands and placed it on the nightstand. Sitting next to her on the edge of the bed, he pushed her back against the pillows, then brought his hands to the buttons on her shirt, slowly opening them. Once that task was accomplished, he opened it completely. When she sat up to remove it, he stopped her.

"Leave it on. I like it," he said quietly, giving her a sexy half smile. He leaned forward to kiss her thoroughly, while his fingers crept up to her breasts and toyed with her nipples, sending arcs of sensation straight to the center of her body.

Unable to speak, she just nodded, but reached down to tug at his t-shirt. He was glad to comply, helping her pull it off, his shorts following quickly behind. He reached for her hand, dragged two of her fingers through the whipped cream, and lifted them to his lips. She watched in fascination as he drew them into his mouth, sucking on them, swirling his tongue around them, before removing them and planting a kiss on her palm.

She scooped a small amount of whipped cream with her fingers, and feeling bold, reached forward to place it on the tip of his erection, swirling it around with the fingers of one hand while the other fondled and caressed him. She heard his breathing change, and brought her eyes up to his, to see him watching her hands intently, his cheeks flushed. She slid her self down the mattress slightly and lowered her head, slowly drawing him into her mouth. As her tongue swirled around his tip, licking the whipped cream off in steady strokes, she heard him inhale sharply.

Her hands were still on him, delivering maddening caresses while her tongue and her mouth..._oh, God, her mouth is so warm_...her mouth was wrapped around him, and suddenly, it was all too much. As if by instinct, his hips began to slowly thrust, and he had to stop her.

"Elizabeth," was all he could manage, and it came out sounding more like a gasp. She didn't stop. "Elizabeth, please..."

She slowly raised her head and looked at him, her face pink and her eyes shining. He leaned in to kiss her, deeply and lovingly, while pushing her back once again to the pillows. His body felt as though there was an electrical current traveling through it, and the slightest touch of her hands or her lips sent a shock spiraling through him.

Every nerve in Elizabeth's body was tingling, and once again, she watched as he scooped up more cream onto the fingers of both hands, reaching forward to place a small dollop on the peak of each of her breasts. The coolness of it briefly shocked her skin and instantly made the peaks harden.

Will leaned forward and lowered his mouth to her breast, tasting the whipped cream but tasting _her _as well, that intoxicating flavor of her skin that he was already addicted to. He switched from one breast to the other, licking the trail that the cream left as it started to slide down her breast, before taking the peak into his mouth.

Elizabeth thought she had died and gone to heaven when she felt his very warm mouth envelop her. The sensation of that warmth, after the coldness of the cream, sent jolts of pleasure straight to her core. She tugged at his head, trying to pull him up to her lips, but it was no use. His mouth increased the pressure on her nipples, going back and forth between each. She already felt like she was so close to the edge, and he hadn't touched any part of her but her breasts.

"Will," she whispered. He lifted his head, locking his lips onto hers, silencing her with a deep kiss. When he finally broke away, he immediately went back to the bowl, picking up another glob with his fingers. This time, he traced a line from between her breasts, down past her naval.

"Will," she repeated, gasping as his mouth began following the trail of cream his fingers had just left.

He lifted his head to look at her, and her appearance temporarily stole his breath away. She was completely flushed, her eyes glittered, and her shirt..._his_shirt...was open, and rumpled, and she looked absolutely unbelievable.

"Lizzy," he said back to her, one eyebrow raised in question...and then he smiled.

_This is going to get messy_.

* * *

><p>Two hours later, after a very long but very needed hot shower together, the now less-sticky couple finally ventured downstairs. Georgiana had left a note that she was out at the guesthouse poking around, and Elizabeth was slightly relieved. She was a little embarrassed that they were just now emerging from Will's room, as it was already almost noon.<p>

_Oh well. It's my birthday, and that was the best damn start to a birthday that I've ever had!_

Will had carried the tray down, and was cleaning up the coffee cups and bowls in the sink. "Are you hungry at all?" he asked, looking down at the fruit and the scones, which had hardly been touched.

She raised her eyebrows. "Umm...no. We did eat breakfast, you know."

"Well, we ate a lot of whipped cream. I don't think that qualifies as breakfast."

She grinned, walking up behind him to wrap her arms around his waist as he stood at the sink, planting a kiss between his shoulder blades. "Still...it was a very satisfying meal."

Turning in her arms, he smiled and planted a quick kiss on her lips as he dried his hands with a towel. "Mmm, I agree. Very satisfying." He kissed her again. "So, what's the plan now? What would you like to do?"

He held her loosely in his arms and smiled into her hair as she reached behind him for a scone.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I hadn't really thought about it much. I'd like to go for a walk down the beach, if that's okay."

"Anything you want to do today is okay with me. It's your day."

_Great, then lets go back to bed_, she thought, raising her eyebrows at him as she nibbled the scone.

He easily read the look in her eyes. "I'll say it again..._anything _you want to do is okay with me." He chuckled as he watched her face turn pink, and hugged her to him. "You know, you created a monster too. I just can't seem to get enough of you."

She smiled against his chest. "Me too."

* * *

><p>Before they headed to the beach, they stopped at the guest house to check in on Georgie.<p>

Elizabeth was pleasantly surprised as she looked around. "This is so nice! It's so sunny and bright. I love it!"

"Thanks Lizzy," Georgie answered. Her hair was up in a ponytail, and she had an old pair of shorts and a t-shirt on. "I've been cleaning a bit, scrubbing things down. No one has been out here in ages to really clean, so everything is covered with a film of dust. It's not as bad as I thought it would be though."

"It looks great," Elizabeth agreed. She turned to Will. "Do you want to look at the appliances while we're out here?"

"No, it can wait. I don't need to do it now."

"Nonsense, we're here already. Take a peek."

He shrugged. "Alright. It'll only take a minute."

He ambled off toward the kitchen, and Georgiana looked at Elizabeth. Suddenly, her eyes opened wide. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry, I haven't even said happy birthday!" She gave Elizabeth a quick hug. "Happy birthday Lizzy."

"Thanks Georgie," Elizabeth said, hugging her back.

"Soo, what did you get for your birthday?"

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Pardon?"

"Your birthday present...what did Will give you?"

Elizabeth bit her bottom lip and felt herself blush.

Georgiana rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, forget I asked, I _don't _want to know."

Will walked back into the living room. "All the appliances look fine. The refrigerator needs to be wiped down and aired out a bit, but nothing needs to be replaced. You should be all set."

Georgie smiled. "Great. I'm just going to clean a bit more, then I was thinking I'd head to Home Goods and get some bedding, towels, all that fun stuff."

"Do you mind if I look around at the rest of the house?" Elizabeth asked.

"No, go ahead, knock yourself out," Georgie answered.

As soon as Elizabeth was out of earshot, Georgie turned to Will. "Did you get her a present?"

Will looked surprised. "Well...kind of. Why?"

"What do you mean 'kind of'?"

Will furrowed his brows at his sister. "I'm taking her away for the weekend. She doesn't know it yet, she'll find out tonight."

"I know you're going away...where are you going again?"

"Martha's Vineyard. She spent a lot of time there when she was growing up, so I thought it would nice to take her back. She hasn't been in a couple of years."

"Did you get her anything else?" Georgiana asked pointedly.

"Oh, yeah, I bought her the Hope Diamond," he said flatly, shaking his head. "Satisfied?"

"Fitzwilliam..."

"_Georgiana_...give me a little credit, would you? I have a nice night planned. I thought she would like that, rather than some..._thing_."

Georgiana smiled. "Good instincts. What time am I dropping her off at her place?"

"Around six-thirty would be good. I'll need about an hour to get ready, so I need you to have her out of here sometime around five."

"I'll take her to Bleu for a fancy birthday cocktail."

Elizabeth walked back in, noticing the abrupt end to the conversation. She squinted her eyes at the siblings. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," they replied in unison.

"Ready to walk, birthday girl?" Will asked, smiling widely and reaching out to take her hand.

_Oh, the dimples_. She sighed and nodded. "Yup. Ready to walk." She turned to Georgiana. "This place is great! I can't wait to see it when you're all moved in. I'd be happy to help if you need it."

"Thanks Lizzy, I might take you up on that. Now go! Take your birthday stroll, enjoy the day."

"We're going, we're going," Elizabeth laughed.

* * *

><p>"Why am I going with Georgiana and leaving you behind again? You have to remind me."<p>

It was just after four o'clock, and they were curled up on Will's bed, snuggled together. After spending the afternoon in the sun, both were feeling like a power nap was in order, although neither actually ended up sleeping. Instead, they kissed and caressed each other, letting that luscious tension build between them, savoring it and feeding it, letting it grow, but not acting on it.

"She wants to take you for a celebratory birthday drink, that's why. You've become a good friend to her." He kissed her nose. "I'll meet you back at your place."

Elizabeth sighed. "Alright. I'm going to take another quick shower, if that's okay...it'll help me wake up a bit." She was feeling languid and relaxed, and truth be told, she would have been content to while away the rest of her birthday right where she was.

"Go right ahead."

She smiled. "Join me?"

He sighed. "I better not...we'll never get out of here if I do." He kissed her, lightly at first, but as soon as he felt her hands sliding under his shirt and roaming across his chest, he deepened the kiss, pushing her back slightly. His hand came up to stroke her breast through her top, and he felt her nipple harden under the pad of his thumb. He groaned and pulled his mouth from hers.

"Now _you_ have to remind _me _why you're leaving with Georgiana."

She sighed. "I'm spending quality time with your sister."

He chuckled. "Oh, that's right. I guess you'll spend quality time with me later."

She smiled. "Count on it."

Her cell phone began to ring, and she sat up, looking around for it. Spying it on his dresser, she got up to answer it. It was Jane, calling to wish her a happy birthday. After talking for a few minutes, they hung up, and her phone immediately rang again. This time it was Lydia, calling for the same reason.  
>She had already received calls from her parents and Charlotte, they had left messages for her in the morning, while Elizabeth was too...preoccupied to answer her phone.<p>

After showering and getting dressed in a very pretty blue sundress, Elizabeth walked downstairs to find Georgie and Will deep in conversation, which immediately stopped when she walked in the room. Will turned to her and gave a low whistle.

He walked over to her. "You are gorgeous, birthday girl," he whispered in her ear, bending to kiss her neck.

Chills spread over her body. "Thank you."

"Okay, you'll have plenty of time for that later," Georgiana said teasingly. "C'mon Lizzy, I'll return you to him in a little while, you'll survive."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes at Georgiana, and turned to give Will a kiss. "I'll see you in a bit."

He smiled. "You will. Have fun at Bleu." He wrinkled his nose after he said it, making her laugh.

She paused for a second. "I just want to tell you that this has been a wonderful birthday so far," she said, almost whispering. "Thank you."

Her eyes were sparkling, and for a moment, he couldn't look away. "You're welcome. Thank you for sharing it with me." He kissed her lightly.

"Ahem."

"Okay, okay...bye Will," Elizabeth said, smiling at him.

"Bye sweetheart. Have fun." He stroked her cheek. "Oh, I almost forgot. Can I have your house key?"

She shrugged. "Sure...you might get there before me."

He smiled. "I might."

* * *

><p>At precisely six-thirty, Will was standing on the deck at Elizabeth's house, waiting for her to show up. He had been on the move like a man possessed from the minute Georgie had taken her out, until about ten minutes ago, when he finally had the chance to take a quick outside shower.<p>

Everything was ready.

One of her favorite meals, the wild mushroom ravioli from a local restaurant, was keeping warm in the oven, along with a crusty loaf of Italian bread. He had made a garden salad, currently chilling alongside two bottles of wine in the refrigerator. For a starter, he had bought some shrimp, another favorite, and had them on ice, with some cocktail sauce on the side. Dessert was tiramisu from a local bakery, another favorite of hers. _Although I'd be happy with whipped cream again_.

After getting the food squared away, he had dug a small pit for a fire on the beach, lining it with rocks and placing several good-sized logs of wood into it, with smaller kindling underneath to help get the fire started when the time came. He placed a lighter on one of the rocks so he wouldn't forget where it was. Thankfully, it wasn't too windy tonight, so it wouldn't be too hard to get the fire going.

Next to the fire pit was a large, thick blanket, and at different places around the blanket, he had placed miniature hurricane lamps in the sand, each with a small candle inside. He hoped the candles would burn long enough...three or four hours, at least. He had already placed his guitar, in its case, on the blanket, knowing she'd eventually ask him to play something for her.

More hurricane lamps were placed on the side of each step that led up to the deck, and still more were lined up atop the railing of the deck, but only along the back of the house. Although the sun was getting lower in the sky, it was still too bright out for Will to decide if the effect was what he wanted. He thought it would do, though, and once the sun set, he was convinced it would look okay.

On the deck, a small table was covered in a white tablecloth, another hurricane lamp in its center, alongside a vase with a single red rose in it.

He ran a hand down his face. Nervous flutters were starting to invade his stomach, something he was definitely not used to. He hadn't felt this nervous since their first date. Doing all this...the candles, the fire, the dinner, all of it...it was all new to him, something he had never, ever done before. He was beginning to worry that maybe it wasn't enough, that he should have done more. Ultimately, he had gone with his gut; it told him that this was something Elizabeth would appreciate. It was something from his heart.

He remembered the envelope tied with a green ribbon, currently sitting in his guitar case, and he started to feel better. She would love the idea of going to the Vineyard, that he was sure of. He looked up, glancing beyond the fire pit, to the last part of his gift for her.

Three beach buckets, your typical, run-of-the-mill plastic buckets, were in the sand, open side down, as if they were waiting to be used for sand castles. Each one had a hurricane lamp in front of it, the candles inside glimmering lightly. It wasn't the actual buckets that were important, it was what they contained inside.

The nervous flutterings kicked into high gear, and just then, he heard the sound of Georgiana's car idling in front of the house. With one more quick look around, to make sure all of the candles were cooperating, he walked down the stairs to meet Elizabeth.

* * *

><p>On the way to her house, Elizabeth tried unsuccessfully to pry any information out of Georgiana that she could.<p>

"Even if I knew anything, I certainly wouldn't tell you!" Georgie stated emphatically. "He told me nothing, absolutely nothing, about tonight. I was only to get you out of his way for a little while."

"Out of his way?" Elizabeth asked, laughing.

"Oh, you know what I mean."

They were slowly approaching Elizabeth's house, and she could see what she thought were small lights on the stairs. Upon getting closer, however, she realized they were small glass lamps, lit from within by candles.

Her mouth dropped open slightly. "Oh my...God."

Georgiana pulled up in front of the house. "Wow, it looks so pretty."

Will came down the stairs, a soft smile gracing his lips. He walked over to the passenger door, opened it, and waited for Elizabeth to climb out.

Georgie nudged her. "Helloooo...get out of my car now!"

Elizabeth turned to look at her. "Oh..sorry...bye Georgie." She reached over to give her a quick hug. "Thank you so much for taking me out, it was fun. Have fun with Julie this weekend, I hope I get to meet her."

"Oh, yeah, you'll meet her. Happy Birthday...enjoy your night."

"Thanks...I'm pretty sure I will." She climbed out of the car, and Will leaned in the open door.

"Bye sis. Thanks...I owe you."

"No, you don't." She winked at him. "Have fun."

"Thanks. Goodnight." He closed the door, and they watched as Georgiana drove away.

Slowly, Elizabeth turned back toward her house, and looked again at the candles lining the stairway. "This is unbelievable." She turned to look at Will, reaching up to place a soft, slow kiss on his lips. "I know this is ridiculous, but I couldn't wait to get here. That hour and a half felt like ten."

He smiled, thinking how quickly his hour and a half had flown by. "Well, birthday girl, the rest of the night is ours." He held out his arm for her to take. "Shall we?"

* * *

><p>Elizabeth sat back after eating the delicious dinner, still astounded by the sight surrounding her. Now that the sun had just about set, the soft glow from the candles all around them was truly beautiful. She sipped her wine and looked out toward the beach, watching as Will fussed with the logs in the fire pit, arranging them so that they would ignite quicker. She could see the small flames at the bottom of the pit, licking at the logs, and grinned to herself as she watched him glare at them impatiently, obviously trying to intimidate them into building faster.<p>

He looked so handsome, in his khaki shorts and deep blue henley. It was long-sleeved, but he had pushed the sleeves up to his elbows, and once again, she found herself staring at his forearms and his hands. _What is it about his arms?_ She laughed to herself. _I certainly know what it is about his hands_. Her eyes wandered over his hair, which was long overdue for a cut. She liked it long, though; more to play with. She enjoyed toying with his curls and waves as much as he liked playing with hers.

Once Will was satisfied that the fire was growing to his liking, he headed up the beach toward the house again. He glanced back once, to make sure everything was the way he wanted it. Blanket, guitar, fire, candles, and buckets. _Check_. Turning back toward the house, he saw Elizabeth watching him from the deck and smiled at her.

"Should I come back up there, or do you want to come down here?"

"I'll come down there, just give me a minute."

She walked into the house, and noticed now that several other candles were burning in different places there as well. After making a quick stop in the bathroom, she walked back outside and down to the sand, where he was waiting patiently for her.

They walked together over to the blanket, and Will sat down, motioning for Elizabeth to sit between his legs, which she gladly did. He wrapped his arms around her, kissing her on the cheek and nuzzling her neck, making her shiver. She looked out beyond the fire to the ocean, to the lights twinkling at them from Martha's Vineyard.

"You have completely amazed me, Mr. Darcy. This is wonderful."

"_You_are wonderful. I'm glad you're enjoying it."

"How could I not?" She turned her head to give him a light kiss on the lips. "I can't believe you did all this for me. This has been the best birthday...this is the best present. I love it."

He leaned toward his guitar case, opening it to pull out the envelope. "Well, it's not your only present."

She laughed. "Oh, that's right! How could I forget my present this morning? That was like my birthday _and _Christmas, all rolled into one."

He chuckled and squeezed her. "Mmm, for a little while there, it was like it was my birthday too." He laughed when she pinched his thigh. "Anyway, that's _not_ what I was talking about...although I have to say, if you ever have trouble thinking of a gift for me for me when it _is _my birthday, whipped cream will do in a pinch."

She turned and smiled at him, leaning to kiss his neck. "I'll keep that in mind."

As she turned back to the fire, snuggling deeper into his embrace, his hands came around to the front of her, holding an envelope tied with a green ribbon.

"Happy Birthday," he said quietly into her ear.

"What's this?"

"It's another part of your present. C'mon, take it and open it."

She reached forward, taking the envelope but not opening it right away. She ran her fingertips over the ribbon and the bow, smiling at their imperfection. Feeling him nudge her forward with his chest, she laughed a little. "Alright, I'm opening it."

Inside was a brochure of the Harbor View Hotel and Resort, located in Edgartown, on Martha's Vineyard. Her mouth opened slightly, as she realized what the gift was. "Are we going to the Vineyard?" she asked quietly, turning her head back to look at him.

He smiled down at her. "We are. This weekend...tomorrow, in fact...if that's okay."

She got up onto her knees and turned to face him, cupping his face with her hands. "Of course it's okay!" She leaned in to kiss him, still smiling. "The Harbor View is gorgeous...I've never stayed there, but I know exactly where it is. The views are beautiful."

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to him. "_You _are beautiful." He loved the way her eyes were lit with excitement, reflecting the light from the fire and the candles. He leaned in to kiss her, holding her face with his hands, then running them through her hair. She sighed softly, letting her hands move over his shoulders and chest, sliding down his arms and coming to rest on his forearms.

She broke the kiss slowly and opened her eyes, looking into his only inches away. "I can't wait to go, I can't wait to show you everything. It's so...it's such a special place to me, I want to share it with you."

He smiled lightly at her, reaching up to stroke her face. "We can leave whenever you want tomorrow, and we'll come back Sunday afternoon." He paused. "You know, I did try to get a room at your uncle's inn, but it was booked. I thought it would be nice to stay there."

She shook her head. "I love that we're staying at the Harbor View. We'll stop in and see Uncle Ed and Aunt Vee...we could even have lunch with them or something, if they have the time...and if you want to, that is. I'd love for you to meet them."

"Of course I'd like to meet them."

She smiled. "I'll call them tomorrow morning to let them know we'll be stopping in at some point. They'll be thrilled." She leaned in to kiss him again, wrapping her arms around his neck. She pulled away slowly, and touched her nose to his. "Thank you so much."

He smiled and stroked her cheek. "You're welcome."

She turned back around and sat down again between his legs, her back against his chest. Her eyes scanned the sand in front of them, looking at the buckets lined up between the fire pit and the ocean. There was a candle in front of each one. She had noticed them already, of course, but now her curiosity about them was starting to gnaw at her.

"What are those buckets all about?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

He laughed softly, wondering just how long it was going to be before she gave in to her curiosity and asked him about them. "They're for building castles."

She pursed her lips. "We're building sand castles by candlelight?"

He raised his eyebrows. "No...not exactly." His stomach flipped. "Why don't you go see what's under them?"

She smiled sweetly up at him. "Please tell me you didn't get me anything else. I don't need anything else."

"I didn't _get _you anything else...but I do have something to give you."

"And it's under the buckets."

"Yes...it is." He cleared his throat. "It's under the buckets."

He watched her, again waiting to see how long it would take before her curiosity won her over. His heart was thrumming in his chest.

"Are you coming with me?" she asked as she stood up, holding her hand out to him.

He held her hand and kissed her palm. "No, I'll wait here."

She raised an eyebrow at him, but walked slowly away, toward the buckets. He watched as she lowered herself in front of the first one. Before she flipped it, she turned and looked back at him, a small, puzzled grin on her face. He motioned to her with his hands to _lift_ the bucket _up_, off of the sand.

Elizabeth turned back to the bucket, and did as she was told. For a moment, she didn't understand what she was looking at, but then it made sense to her. Several small black periwinkle shells were in some sort of formation. _Ahh_, she thought. _The letter I_. She pursed her lips, and for some inexplicable reason, her pulse jumped. She could feel his eyes on her as she lay the bucket down in the sand, and moved to kneel in front of the next one.

As she placed her hand on it, ready to lift it, she realized she was shaking. She raised the second bucket and under it, she saw, were more periwinkles. This time, their formation was unmistakable; they were in the shape of a small heart. At this point, her heart was pounding so hard, she was finding it difficult to breathe. She didn't dare turn around to look at him. Laying the bucket in the sand, she moved to kneel in front of the third, her hands now shaking so badly she had to squelch the urge to sit on them.

Will stood up from the blanket, unable to sit any longer, as he watched her flip over the first two buckets. She was taking an awfully long time to flip over the third one, even though at this point, she must have figured out what was coming next. Immediately, his stomach dropped. _It's too soon. I should have waited_. Just as he was having those thoughts, he watched as she slowly lifted her hand, placing it on the third bucket. He began to slowly walk toward her, standing a few feet behind her as she lifted it from the sand.

Elizabeth's breath caught. The word

_You_

was spelled out in periwinkle shells. Three buckets, three words. _I love you_. She slowly turned, expecting to see him on the blanket watching her, and was surprised to see he was only a few steps behind her. He dropped down onto his knees in the sand next to her, taking her hands. He realized his were shaking just as much. She didn't say anything, so he decided to say what he had to say.

"I told you I was giving you something, and I am," he said quietly, looking into her eyes. "I'm giving you me. I love you, Elizabeth. I know this is happening fast, but I know how I feel. I love you."

Her face betrayed nothing, and although he was feeling elated that he had told her, that he finally _said _it, he couldn't read her expression at all, other than a look of...shock. He leaned down to kiss her, and was relieved to feel her instant response. She reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, pressing her body against his, deepening the kiss. His heart felt ready to leap from his chest.

Finally, he broke away from her, slowly, reaching up to push the curls from her face that the light breeze insisted on blowing right back. "I know what you're thinking, it's too soon, and I know you probably don't feel-"

She reached up to cover his lips with her fingertips, stopping him mid-sentence. "It's not too soon. It is happening fast, you're right, but it's not too soon." She took a deep breath, staring into his eyes, at the intensity there. "You were going to say that...that you know I probably don't feel the same way." He nodded quietly. Her heart beat madly in her chest. "I do, though...I do feel the same way." She paused, taking another deep breath. "I love you too."

He felt an unexpected sting in his eyes, and before any tears could form, he pulled her to him in a tight hug, wrapping his arms around her, holding her to him. A loud sigh came from deep in his chest, and he realized that he had been holding his breath. He felt her laugh lightly into his neck, and pulled back to look at her, once again pushing his hands up into her hair, then tenderly cupping her face.

He smiled widely at her, and Elizabeth watched the dimples appear on his face. She smiled back, fighting the tears that threatened to spring from her as well.

"This is working out much better than I had hoped," he said, still smiling, and they both began to laugh.

Elizabeth felt a tear slide down her cheek, and relished the feel of his thumb as he wiped it away.

"Happy tears?" he asked quietly.

She nodded. "Happy tears."

He leaned in to kiss her again, and while it started out softly and sweetly, it quickly changed. So many different feelings were flowing through his body...relief, love, passion, and need...insatiable need. His kiss became hungry, and he pulled her up against him, wanting her to feel as engulfed in emotion as he did at that moment.

Elizabeth felt the urgency in his kiss as it deepened, and she matched it, not wanting to think anymore, only wanting to _feel_. Her hands found their way under his shirt as he began to stroke her thighs under her sundress, making them quiver, making her whole body quiver in anticipation.

He began kissing her neck, and as he did his hands traveled up higher under her dress, coming to rest on her panties, stroking her through the material. She sighed into his hair and without even realizing it, she opened her legs wider, urging him to continue his caresses. He sat back slightly, letting his lips travel down her neck to her collarbone. With his free hand, he reached up to cup a breast, and at the same time, let his lips wander down to its peak, working his tongue and lips over it until he felt her begin to squirm, her breathing coming slightly harder. He felt her hand stroke his growing erection through his shorts and he groaned.

He lifted his head to her ear. "We really should go inside this time."

Elizabeth said nothing, only nodded. She couldn't speak, especially as she felt his hand slide inside the elastic of her panties, his fingers deftly finding and stroking her most sensitive spot. His lips returned to her breast, suckling her through her dress, before moving to torture the other in the same way.

She sighed loudly, finally managing to speak. " You're right...we should go inside." He lifted his head to smile at her, the smile that always made her knees weak. That sexy, hungry smile.

He helped her to stand on very shaky legs, but before she could take a step, he picked her up and carried her, across the sand, up the stairs, and across the deck. She bit her lip to stifle a giggle, imagining what they must look like as he traipsed across the sand. Those thoughts quickly disappeared as he leaned down to kiss her, his lips attacking hers greedily. He set her on her feet at the door and they almost fell inside together, trying to undress each other but not wanting to stop kissing, slowly making their way into the bedroom.

He had placed candles here as well, and they still burned dimly, casting a soft glow over the room. The fire outside still burned brightly as well, and it reflected off the glass of the windows.

Elizabeth fell back onto the bed, and instead of falling on top of her, Will came down next to her and immediately tugged at her to pull her over him. She lowered her face to his, kissing him sensuously, engaging his tongue in a slow dance. His hands glided down her neck to her breasts, where he fondled and caressed them. She felt the sensations everywhere in her body, from the tingling pulse in her breasts straight to the throbbing heat at the center of her body. She gyrated against his erection, and felt his hands momentarily tighten on her breasts, squeezing them lightly.

Breaking the kiss, he moved his hands to her bottom, cupping her, but pulling her up until she was kneeling over him, her thighs even with his shoulders. She watched as he slid down slightly, positioning his mouth under her, and then she closed her eyes as she felt his tongue glide over her. She gasped and reached forward to hold the headboard, not knowing how else to keep her balance.

She felt his hands slide up her thighs, reaching her center and parting her slightly, and again his tongue was there, his whole _mouth_was there, licking, teasing, biting, suckling on her until she couldn't bear it. His mouth stayed, but his hands left to travel up her stomach until they reached her breasts, and they began the exquisite torture of stroking and caressing her until she was unable to keep still.

Still kneeling, she reached behind her to grasp his erection, feeling the warmth of it pulsing in her hand as she stroked him slowly up and down, running her thumb around the tip, feeling the moisture there. She heard his breathing change, felt the way the strokes of his tongue changed, and knew he was just as close to losing control as she was. One of his hands left her breast and traveled around to her bottom, holding her against his mouth as his rhythm increased.

She gasped as she felt her climax coming, knew it was so close. She moved her body down his and decided to take control, immediately grasping him and lowering herself completely down onto him, seating herself in one long motion. She heard and felt his moan of pleasure as it left his body.

His eyes were like magnets, drawing hers in, and as they moved together, he reached up with one hand to cup her face, the other moving to her center to stroke her and inflame her further. He increased the pressure of his fingers and thrust himself further up into her, as far as he could, forcing her hips to grind into his as she moved against him. He dragged his thumb across her bottom lip, and smiled as she kissed it.

"I love you, Elizabeth," he said, barely managing to get the words out. "I love you so much. So much."

As he said the words, Elizabeth felt the coil in her body tighten and suddenly release as her orgasm rocked her body, making her cry out. Seconds later, she felt him grasp her with both hands as he held tightly to her hips, thrusting into her once more, releasing into her with a loud groan.

She let herself collapse down onto him, both of them breathing heavy and covered with a light sheen of sweat. She turned her head to nuzzle her face into his neck as she felt his hands caressing every inch of her back. She licked his neck, tasting the salt there, tasting him. He squeezed her tightly.

"I love you too, Will. So much."

* * *

><p><em>One hour later ~<em>

They stood at the water's edge, wearing towels – and nothing else.

"Oh, come on," she whispered loudly. "Who's the chicken now?"

"But it's freezing!"

"Only when you first get in. Once you get used to it, you'll be fine."

"You _have _heard what cold water does to a man, haven't you?"

She smiled. "I have. Lucky for you, I've seen you in your...warm state." She reached up to plant a kiss on his lips.

He smiled down at her, then looked back toward the fire, assuring himself that it was burning brightly. "I supposed we can always generate some body heat by the fire after," he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

"We can generate body heat in the water, too...if you _stop being a chicken_."

He smiled and dropped his towel. "Last one in is a rotten egg."

* * *

><p><em>We get to visit Martha's Vineyard with them in the next chapter, which I hope to post sometime Saturday. Please review if you can, I'd love to hear what you thought of the start of Elizabeth's birthday weekend. Thank you!<em>


	21. Chapter 21

_I'm posting a chapter today, because I know I won't have time tomorrow. Martha's Vineyard, here they come! Someone had mentioned that while all the love and fluff is well and good, they were waiting for George and the nastiness to enter back into the picture. He'll be back soon enough...and there will be some angst coming eventually. So take the love and fluff while you can! Thanks again to everyone reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it. :)_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 21<strong>

Elizabeth sat back, enjoying the warm sun on her face and the wind blowing through her hair. She smiled, thinking about the conversation that had brought her and Will here, to the top deck of the Island Queen.

He had been insistent on chartering a boat down at the harbor to take them to the Vineyard. Elizabeth had been just as insistent about taking the Island Queen.

"It's only a forty minute trip, and it's a part of the charm of the Vineyard, it's part of the fun. You're being a little bit of a snob again," she said, quirking an eyebrow teasingly.

He had stood there in her bedroom as she packed, arms folded over his chest, shaking his head.

Her hands went to her hips. "Is this my birthday present?"

He sighed. "Yes."

"Then I should be able to choose how we get there, shouldn't I?"

He shifted his legs and shrugged. "I suppose."

She had to bite her lip to stop from laughing at his expression. He looked like a little boy who had just had his favorite toy taken away. She almost felt sorry for him...almost.

She walked over to him and looped her arms around his neck, kissing him softly. He kept his arms folded over his chest, staring down at her and looking petulant.

She smiled. "Listen, I love the fact that you want to spoil me, and charter a boat, just for me...for us. I love that you want to do that. But I really, really want to go on the Island Queen. I can't explain it...it's what I've always done. In the winter, we took the Steamship boats from Woods Hole. In the summer, we always took the Island Queen."

He was staring at her as she talked, and he sighed again. "How can I deny you anything when you look at me like that?" He finally lowered his arms, wrapping them around her and pulling her close to him, kissing her softly but deeply. "I am putty in your hands. What time does the boat leave?"

Elizabeth giggled as she came back to the present, remembering the look on his face as she had made her point with him.

"What are you laughing about?" Will said as he raised his head off the back of his seat. He was enjoying the trip over as well, and had been sitting back with his face tilted up into the sun, enjoying the warmth. He had his arm draped loosely around the back of Elizabeth's seat.

"I was thinking about our discussion this morning regarding our trip here."

He chuckled. "That was a discussion? I call it a set-down."

She pinched his thigh. "It was no such thing." She laughed again. "The look on your face was priceless. A full-blown pout if I ever saw one."

He chuckled. "I like to get my way." He closed his eyes and laid his head back against the seat again, smiling softly.

She turned to look at him, smirking. "Surprise surprise."

She leaned against him and became lost in her thoughts again, thinking about the previous night and the words they had shared, and smiled to herself when she thought about his way of telling her he loved her. He had such a romantic soul...so much love to give, and not at all shy about expressing it. She felt lucky, blessed, that she was the recipient of it, that she got to see this side of him, a side no one else had ever seen; he wanted to share himself, his life, with her.

They hadn't gotten much sleep...they had rushed to the house in a frenzy of passion, made love, skinny dipped, made love again on the blanket ("we need to reverse the shrinkage," Will had said, quite seriously), and after wrapping themselves up_ in_ the blanket, they had sat by the fire until almost 1am. She had asked him to play for her, and he did, choosing a beautiful song.

_There's something in the way she moves  
><em>_Or looks my way or calls my name  
><em>_That seems to leave this troubled world behind.  
><em>_And if I'm feeling down and blue  
><em>_Or troubled by some foolish game  
><em>_She always seems to make me change my mind._

_And I feel fine any time she's around me now  
><em>_She's around me now  
><em>_Almost all the time.  
><em>_And if I'm well you can tell  
><em>_She's been with me now  
><em>_And she's been with me now  
><em>_Quite a long, long time  
><em>_And I feel fine.*_

She had cried after that...she couldn't help it, the tears just quietly poured out of her. At first, Will was slightly alarmed, but she reassured him that it was just her emotions overwhelming her, and he had no cause for concern; once again, they were happy tears.

They had taken a quick rinse in the outside shower to remove the salt and sand from their bodies, and later, when they were snuggled under her comforter, she hugged him tightly.

"This has been, by far, the best day...I just...I can't do it justice with words. You made this birthday so incredibly special for me."

He reached up to stroke her face lovingly. "I want to make every day special for you," he whispered, wrapping her tighter in his arms. "I love you."

She smiled into his neck. "I love hearing you say that."

"Good, because I plan on saying it a lot."

"I love you too."

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes later, the boat was docking in Oak Bluffs, and the crowd of passengers lined up to disembark. As soon as they were on land again, Will began looking around, and finally spotted what he was searching for. He grabbed Elizabeth's hand and began walking on the boardwalk that wound alongside the harbor.<p>

"Our car should be ready for us."

"You got us a car?"

"Of course I did...how else would we get around?"

They walked to the rental agency, and Will took care of the paperwork and was given the keys. They hopped into the car – a convertible BMW – and Elizabeth began directing him toward Edgartown. They drove along Sylvia State Beach, Elizabeth pointing out some landmarks along the way.

Fifteen minutes later, they were winding their way down the narrow one-way streets of Edgartown, until they pulled up in front of the Harbor View. A valet immediately walked over to open the door, and Will got out, taking their bags from the trunk. They walked into the lobby, checked in, and headed up to their room, a suite that looked out to the harbor, the ocean beyond, and Edgartown Lighthouse.

Upon entering, Elizabeth stopped and looked around. "Oh, Will, this is so beautiful. What a room!" She turned around slowly to look at everything, and noticed a bouquet of red roses next to a bottle of champagne that was chilling...in a beach bucket.

"What's this?" she asked, her eyes instantly tearing up at the sight of the bucket. Smiling at Will, she immediately walked over to it, and noticed a small card next to it on the table. Opening it, she read the two sentences written there.

_Happy Birthday to my beautiful Cape Cod beach girl.  
><em>_I love you,  
><em>_Will_

She turned to him, smiling, her eyes glassy with tears, and wrapped her arms around him.

"I love you too."

It was still so new to her, saying those words out loud to him. Her heart pounded when she said them, and she felt a rush of adrenaline.

He kissed her lovingly, tenderly. "You should be proud of me," he said, smiling brightly.

"For what?"

"I managed to keep it to one dozen this time."

She laughed. "Oh, of course. How did I overlook that?" She reached up to kiss him again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

They spent a few minutes in the room, unpacking bags and such, and though they were very tempted to linger there and wile away the afternoon, they decided to get themselves outdoors to enjoy the fresh air.

"Would you like to see the lighthouse?" she asked.

"Sure...it looks like there's a walking path that leads right out to it."

"There is, and there's a small beach as well. It's kind of rocky, but it's okay."

As they walked, Elizabeth told Will the story of how the lighthouse, while still active, was also a memorial site for Vineyard children that had passed away. Parents could have a brick engraved with their child's name and any other message they chose. She showed him the large engraved granite stone that stood as the centerpiece of the memorial.

"_Let the celebration of all our children and their endless youth,  
><em>_when the world was to them still without problem,  
><em>_always be that unforgotten Vineyard summer – an everlasting day."_

She showed him the stone of a young girl, Jessie, who had died at the age of ten.

"I used to play with her; she lived two houses down from my grandparents. She had leukemia. It's odd, because I don't remember her being sick, really...but then I didn't see her all the time, only when I was visiting, obviously. She was always just Jessie, always smiling."

Will wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. "I guess it's kind of nice that kids can be oblivious to things like that, in a way...when my mother died, Georgie wasn't quite old enough to understand. I mean, she knew she had died, she was sad, but it didn't take her long to get past it. I was old enough to grasp how my life had changed, and how my father's life had been completely altered. I remember wishing I was little, like Georgie, so I could just go back to playing and having fun."

"But then, if you were little, you wouldn't have the memories of her that you do."

He nodded. "I know...I know that now. Back then, though, I would have gladly traded some of those memories for a little slice of oblivion."

She wrapped her arms around him, and they stood silently looking out at the water, until Will asked about the large island that was directly across the harbor from them.

Elizabeth laughed, glad for the change of subject. "_That_ island? You want to hear about _that_ island?"

He nodded. "Yes, _that_ island...what about it?"

She laughed again. "Let me tell you a story about a little family called the Kennedys, and _that_ island...otherwise known as Chappaquiddick."

Will's eyebrows flew up. "Ohhhh...that island. Enough said."

* * *

><p>They took their time strolling through Edgartown, stopping into some shops, but mostly just window shopping. It was early afternoon, and they decided to grab a bite to eat at The Seafood Shanty, which had a nice rooftop deck overlooking the harbor. They sat at a table with an umbrella, getting a break from the sun, and shared a lobster roll and some french fries. They each ordered a cold beer to wash it down.<p>

"I have a confession," Will said. He had just finished eating and was sitting back with his fingers laced behind his head and his legs stretched out, chewing a toothpick, looking completely relaxed.

"You do?" She took advantage of being behind sunglasses, and let her gaze travel up his legs to his torso, along his sexy arms, coming to rest on his gorgeous face. _Sigh._

"Mmhm. I had a little internal struggle over that bottle of champagne."

Her brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

He smiled. "I almost ordered a bottle of Tequila instead. You know, to celebrate the ten year anniversary of your table dance."

Her mouth dropped open. "You wouldn't have dared."

His eyebrows flew up, and even though he still wore his aviator sunglasses and she couldn't see his eyes, she knew without a doubt that they had a gleam in them.

"You don't think so?"

"No, I don't think so...you got the champagne, so obviously you thought twice about it."

"Oh, Lizzy, I thought about it more than twice, believe me," he said quietly.

She laughed, and felt her face pinking up. "You made a good choice."

He shook his head slightly. "I don't know...I'm not so sure."

"I am."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth had spoken to her aunt before they had left Falmouth, and had told her that she and Will would stop to visit in the afternoon. She was excited to see them, as she was close to both her aunt and her uncle and enjoyed spending time with them when she could. Lately, that had been almost impossible; her work at the Reserve had greatly limited her ability to get over to the Vineyard to visit.<p>

She led Will through the streets of Edgartown, and finally to the side street that the Gardner Inn was situated on. It was a small inn, having only six guest rooms, but it was beautifully decorated, with none of the gaudiness of some of the other inns nearby. It was Colonial style, with a beautiful farmer's porch in the front, complete with wicker rockers.

They made their way up the steps, and as soon as they entered, she heard the sound of her uncle's voice calling out to her across the cozy lobby.

"Lizzy!" Edwin Gardner made his way over to his favorite niece and wrapped her in a tight bear hug.

"Hi Uncle Ed!" She returned the hug just as fiercely.

"How are you, dear? Let me have a look at you." He held her at arms length. "Ah, beautiful as ever. Now, who do we have here?" he asked, looking at Will.

"Uncle Ed, this is William Darcy," she said, looping her arm through Will's. "Will, this is my uncle, Edwin Gardner."

Will extended his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Gardner." He took in the older man's appearance, noticing the features similar to Mrs. Bennet's, mainly the bright blue eyes.

"Likewise William," he smiled. "Please call me Ed. Lizzy, why don't you go sneak up on your aunt in the kitchen, she's been baking all day, watching the clock, wondering when you'd be getting here."

Elizabeth laughed. "I'll go surprise her." She squeezed Will's arm. "Be right back."

Ed Gardner didn't miss the warmth in the glance that his niece exchanged with the young man standing in front of him.

"So, William, Elizabeth told her aunt that you have summered on the Cape for just about all of your life, and yet you've managed to miss out on visiting our little island."

Will chuckled. "It's true, I've never been. I know Elizabeth loves it here, so I thought a weekend away for her birthday would kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. She gets to visit again, and I get to see it for the first time."

"Well, she'll be an excellent tour guide, I'm sure. She knows the ins and outs of the place."

Will smiled. "So I've been told." He looked around at the interior of the inn, liking the clean lines and soft colors. "This is a very nice place you have here. How long have you owned it?"

"Thank you…we haven't owned it too long, actually. We bought it about five years ago, after my parent's house sold. It was always a little dream of Vee's, to run a place like this. When the opportunity arose, we grabbed it. What do you do, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I don't mind at all. I work in corporate real estate."

"Ah, real estate," he said, smiling. "Very good. Who do you work for?"

"I work for myself, actually."

Mr. Gardner's eyebrows rose. "A self-made man."

"Well, not self-made, exactly," Will explained. "I took over my father's company when he passed away ten years ago."

"You couldn't have been too old then."

"I was twenty-six."

"And where do you work out of, mainly?"

"Our headquarters are located in Boston, but we have holdings in San Francisco, New York, and Washington D.C.. We should be expanding our market to Los Angeles within a month or so as well."

Will was beginning to get the distinct impression that he was being grilled, but he wasn't uncomfortable, as none of the questions were very personal. He knew that Elizabeth had a soft spot for her aunt and uncle, and it was obvious they felt the same way about her.

"And how long have you and Lizzy been dating?"

Will smiled. _Now we're getting personal_. "Not long...about a month or so." _Five weeks and four days_.

At that moment, he was saved from further inquisition by the entrance of Elizabeth and her aunt into the lobby.

Will noticed that Mrs. Gardner was a petite woman, with eyes the same color as her husband's. She looked fairly young, but Will could have been wrong…he was never any good at guessing a person's age.

Elizabeth was carrying a plate of cookies. "Aunt Vee's famous chocolate chip cookies made from scratch," she said, wiggling her eyebrows and slowly waving the plate past Will's nose. "You'll never want another packaged cookie after you eat these."

"Kind of like your brownies?" Will asked her quietly, amused to see her blush.

She set the plate down on a table and turned to her aunt. "Aunt Vee, this is William Darcy," she said, taking his hand. "Will, this is my Aunt Valerie, more commonly known as Aunt Vee."

"It's nice to meet you Mrs. Gardner," Will said, extending his other hand to shake hers lightly.

"It's nice to meet you too William. I'm so glad the two of you could stop by and visit."

"We've been looking forward to it," Will replied.

"What do you two have planned for the rest of the weekend?" Mrs. Gardner asked.

Elizabeth shrugged. "I'd like to take Will to the cliffs tomorrow, and maybe out to Felix Neck, and into Oak Bluffs. Other than that, I just wanted take some nice long drives, show him the sights."

"The cliffs, hmm? Will you show him the beach _below_ the cliffs?" Mrs. Gardner asked, raising her eyebrows.

Elizabeth laughed. "Maybe…we'll see."

Will looked puzzled, but didn't say anything.

"We'd like to have you for dinner, but we don't want to intrude on any plans the two of you may have made already," Mrs. Gardner said.

Elizabeth looked at Will, who smiled softly and nodded. She smiled back at him.

"That sounds fine…we'd like that," Elizabeth replied, obviously happy to spend a little time with her relatives.

"Well, you pick the night…either one works for us."

"Tonight would be fine…I don't think we'll venture out of Edgartown much today, we'll do our sightseeing tomorrow. I'm definitely taking Will for a ride on the Flying Horses."

Mr. Gardner laughed. "I don't think he'll _fit_ on the Flying Horses."

Elizabeth smiled. "He'll fit."

Once again, Will looked puzzled, but decided to save his questions for later.

"Why don't you come back around six…I have Katie working in the kitchen tonight, she'll be happy to make us a nice dinner. We're booked up, but I don't anticipate anybody hanging around here on a Friday night. We'll eat in our private dining room."

"That sounds great," Elizabeth replied. "Would you like us to bring anything? A bottle of wine?"

"Now you know that's not necessary, just bring yourselves."

Mr. Gardner reached out to shake Will's hand again. "Pleasure to meet you William. We'll see you tonight." His grasp was firm as he looked Will in the eye. "Have fun today, and take good care of our Lizzy."

_Well, __that__ wasn't a very subtle message_, Will thought. "Pleasure to meet you too, Ed…and no worries, she's in good hands." He smiled at Elizabeth, who was watching the exchange curiously.

"Alright then, I guess we'll see you two tonight."

Elizabeth hugged both her aunt and uncle and after they said their goodbyes, she led Will back outside.

As they walked along holding hands, Will was silent.

"What are you thinking about?" Elizabeth asked him, noticing the pensive look on his face.

Although he was replaying his conversation with her uncle in his mind, he didn't want to tell her. He liked the man right away, and could tell that both Ed and his wife adored Elizabeth.

"I want to know about the beach at the cliffs…and what the heck are the Flying Horses?"

Elizabeth chuckled. "The beach below the cliffs is called Maushop Beach. It's a nude beach."

Will's eyebrows rose. "Really?"

"Yes, really. Well, not the whole beach...part of it is a nude beach. I mean, it's a regular beach, it's just that…well, clothing is optional."

"Have you ever been?"

"Mmhm, I have…a long, long time ago."

He looked at her, eyebrows raised, the question on his mind obvious.

"I've only gone topless," she said, giving him a flirtatious smile. "I never had the courage to go completely nude."

"Is that in your plans for us this weekend?"

"Honestly, it wasn't…but I'd go if you were game."

Will shook his head, smiling. "No…I mean, it sounds interesting, but I don't completely trust myself around you yet."

Elizabeth looked up at him curiously. "You don't trust yourself? What do you mean?"

He stopped walking and pulled her close to him, as other people walked around them on the busy sidewalk. He backed up against the wall of a shop, getting them out of the way of foot traffic. "I mean, I couldn't just…sit there, or lay there on the beach, with you naked, or even topless, next to me. I think…no, I _know_, that certain physical reactions would occur, and I would be absolutely unable to stop them from happening."

Elizabeth chuckled. "So you'd be scaring people away with more than just the Darcy glare?"

He smiled. "Something like that. You have no idea what you do to me…actually, you _do_ know what you do to me, and it's not something I care to share with an entire beach full of people."

She reached up to kiss him, lightly teasing him with her tongue. "That's fine…as much as I think I'd be the envy of every girl on the beach, I'm quite content keeping you under wraps. In public, that is."

* * *

><p>They spent the remainder of the afternoon wandering the streets of Edgartown, visiting shops and a couple of galleries, and Will made a mental note of the location of a jewelry shop that they had walked past. They headed back to the hotel to freshen up and change, and once again they were tempted to dawdle. Both knew, though, that they couldn't be late for dinner.<p>

They left the hotel and stopped at a small liquor store on their way to the inn, where Will purchased some wine. They walked slowly, holding hands, and Will observed the  
>goings-on around him. It certainly was a busy place; the sidewalks were mobbed, and every store they glanced into seemed crowded with people. They passed a few restaurants and pubs, and those, too, were brimming with customers.<p>

"Is it always like this here?" he asked Elizabeth as they meandered along.

"In the summer, yes. Things slow down a bit after Columbus Day. If you were to come here in February, you'd be shocked at how deserted the streets are."

"I'd like to come back in the winter, when it's quiet. Maybe when there's some snow on the ground…it must be peaceful."

She smiled up at him. "It is peaceful…_too_ peaceful! I don't know if I could live here year round. I'd go a little stir crazy I think."

They climbed the steps to the inn, and were greeted by both Mr. and Mrs. Gardner.

"Let me just check with Katie to make sure she has things in hand," Mrs. Gardner said before disappearing back into the kitchen.

When she came back out, the four proceeded to the back of the inn, where the Gardners had their own small but comfortable dining area. They didn't actually live on the premises, but used this room when they happened to be at the inn during meal hours, preferring not to dine with their guests. There was a small patio off the dining room with a beautiful wrought iron furniture set, and the patio itself was surrounded by beds full of colorful flowers.

"We could dine outside, if you'd like," Mrs. Gardner suggested.

"That would be great," Elizabeth replied. "What's Katie cooking up tonight?"

"Why don't you come into the kitchen with me to find out? I'm sure she'd like to see you," replied Mrs. Gardner, looping her arm through Elizabeth's and guiding her out of the room.

_Uh oh, here we go_, Elizabeth thought. She knew exactly what was coming.

"Now, Elizabeth, I want to hear everything about William Darcy. Start at the beginning."

Elizabeth laughed. "Oh, Aunt Vee…how long do we have? There's too much to tell! We met through Jane… Jane's boyfriend, Charles, is Will's best friend." She laughed. "We met, and we couldn't stand each other…but then that changed, obviously, and now we…like each other. A lot."

"He certainly likes _you_ a lot. I can see it in the way he looks at you. That gaze could melt the polar ice caps."

"Aunt Vee!"

"Oh, come now Lizzy…you must notice the way he stares. He's in love with you."

Elizabeth nodded, smiling shyly. "He'd be mortified if he knew he was such an open book."

Mrs. Gardner shook her head slightly, pursing her lips. "Something tells me he wouldn't mind, at least not where you're concerned. The question is, how do you feel about him? Do you love him?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I do. I mean, it's all so new, for both of us...but I do. He's wonderful."

"And gorgeous to boot."

"Oh, yes, that too!" Elizabeth chuckled.

They paused outside the kitchen door, and Mrs. Gardner's expression softened as she squeezed Elizabeth's arm. "It's so nice to see you happy, Lizzy. Your uncle and I want the best for you, and we were confident that it would only be a matter of time before you found someone to make you smile again."

"Thanks Aunt Vee. He certainly makes me smile."

As Elizabeth was off in the kitchen with her aunt, Will was sitting outside, enjoying conversation with her uncle. Once again, he had the distinct impression that Mr. Gardner was trying to feel him out a bit.

Although most of his questions were harmless _(have you met my sister yet?)_, one in particular was very pointed.

"Tell me, do you plan on staying on the Cape for good? Or does your business take you traipsing all over the country?" Mr. Gardner was looking at him intently, and Will knew what he was asking.

Will cleared his throat. "If you don't mind, Ed...may I be blunt with you?"

"You may."

"If you're worried that I'm going to repeat the mistakes that were made by someone else, then you can stop worrying. I'm not going anywhere."

"So you know about him?"

"I do."

Mr. Gardner exhaled. "I'm sorry for prying, it's not really any of my business, is it?" He almost looked embarrassed. "Vee and I only have Lizzy's best interests at heart. We know what she went through, and neither of us wants to see her go through it again. Vee talked to her a lot back then, trying to support her, trying to help her out. Lord knows my sister was no help."

"You're not prying," Will said, feeling better now that Mr. Gardner's main concern wasn't being skirted around anymore. He took a second to consider what Ed had said. "What do you mean, your sister was no help?"

Mr. Gardner waved his hand, as if brushing off the question. "You said you've met Fran. You must have some inkling of what she's like."

Will nodded shortly. "No offense, I know she's your sister, but...she's pretty harsh. I didn't care for the way she spoke about Elizabeth to me." He tried to think of a way to explain it, but words failed him.

Mr. Gardner shook his head, understanding Will's feelings. "Don't try to rationalize her behavior, it's impossible." He paused. "When that man...that _boy_...waltzed out of Lizzy's life…Fran just couldn't understand what _Lizzy_ had done to make him leave, and just about accused her of driving him off. She was absolutely livid with Lizzy. Needless to say, Lizzy had to cut off communication with her mother. They didn't talk for a long time."

Will was dumbfounded. "Elizabeth told me that her mother blamed the whole...situation...on her. I had no idea it was so bad, though. She only touched on it with me."

"She blamed Lizzy for the whole mess," Mr. Gardner continued. "That boy...he came from money, you see, and unfortunately, that was Fran's first concern. It always has been. We grew up not having a lot...having very little, truthfully...and she's terrified that she or her kids will end up in the hedgerows, homeless and starving. Again, it's irrational, but...that's Fran. I think she's gotten worse over the years." Mr. Gardner shrugged. "When that boy left...to Fran, there went Lizzy's meal ticket."

Will's brows furrowed. "What? Meal ticket? That makes no sense. Elizabeth is successful in her own right, she doesn't need anyone to pay her way. Believe me, I know. I mean, we've never had a discussion about money. She knows I have it, it's there, but it's never been talked about. It's a non-issue."

"Of course it is, because it doesn't matter to her. It didn't matter to her that Jason had it, and it won't matter to her that you have it." He sighed. "In all honesty, David wasn't much in the way of support either. He loves Lizzy, no question about that, she's always been his favorite. He chalked the whole mess up to the 'fickleness of young love.' He gave no credibility to Lizzy's feelings at all."

"So, she had one parent blaming her, and the other one treating her as if her feelings were insignificant." Will shook his head. "I can't believe it. I had no idea."

At that moment, Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardner walked back into the dining area.

"What have you two been doing in here?" Mrs. Gardner asked them, hands on her hips. "Why isn't that wine open yet?"

"I'll get right to it, dear," Mr. Gardner replied, winking at Elizabeth.

While Mrs. Gardner was pulling out glasses and Mr. Gardner was busy opening the wine, Will walked over to Elizabeth and wrapped his arms around her waist, gently pulling her close before kissing her softly. When Elizabeth looked up at him, he was looking down at her with such tenderness in his eyes, it momentarily knocked her off balance.

"What was that for?" she whispered.

He shrugged slightly, laying his cheek on her hair. "I just love you...that's all."

* * *

><p>Dinner was festive, with conversation – and wine – flowing quite freely. To Elizabeth's chagrin, the Gardners were quite happy to tell Will tales of her youth, which he thoroughly enjoyed.<p>

"Even then, you couldn't keep her out of the muck and the mud," Ed said, laughing as he talked. "Jane and Lydia would be hovering back on the shore, and Lizzy would be tramping around the tidal flats, following my father as if he were the Pied Piper, digging for clams, trying to catch minnows and spider crabs...it was all about the ocean, even back then."

Will smiled. "Not much has changed."

"Not much at all," Ed replied. "Tell me what's going on at work, Lizzy."

Elizabeth filled her aunt and uncle in on the grant, and her unexpected temporary transfer away from it, over to another research project. Will watched her as she talked, impressed, as always, by her knowledge and enthusiasm. He never got bored listening to her...even if he wasn't able to hear her, just watching the different expressions play across her face would be entertainment enough, especially when she laughed.

As Elizabeth talked, Mrs. Gardner nudged her husband's knee under the table, subtly drawing his attention to Will. Mr. Gardner had to bite back a laugh as he watched the young man, who was intently watching Elizabeth, almost hanging on her every word. _Oh boy, he's got it bad_. Mr. Gardner reached over and patted his wife's knee under the table and grinned slightly.

By the time dinner was over and they were all talked out, it was nearly ten o'clock. Will and Elizabeth said their goodbyes, promising to stop in again before they left on Sunday.

As they walked down the still-crowded sidewalks, slightly buzzed from the wine consumed at dinner, they came upon the jewelry store that they had passed earlier in the day. Will tugged on Elizabeth's hand.

"Let's go in here," he said, pulling her toward the doorway.

Elizabeth looked up at the sign, then into the front windows. Her eyes widened.

"No, we don't want to go in there."

"Yes, we do. Come on...maybe we'll find something nice for you."

Elizabeth stopped firmly in her tracks. "No, Will, really...I don't need anything from in there. It's a ridiculously expensive shop."

He raised one eyebrow at her. "You're going to have to come up with a better excuse than that."

She sighed. "I don't want anything else for my birthday. How could anything top what you've already given me?"

"I don't want to top it, I just want to add to it. Let's just go look, come on...if you don't see anything you like, we'll leave." He tugged her hand and led her into the otherwise empty store.

As they browsed the cases, Elizabeth's attention was caught by a beautiful starfish earring and pendant set. They were set in what she thought was sterling silver, and were filled with what she was pretty sure were small diamonds. _This place certainly wouldn't be selling cubic zirconias. _The price tag was quite clear; the set fetched over  
>two-thousand dollars.<p>

Will was watching her as she looked at everything, waiting for a sign that something had caught her attention. He noticed her prolonged look at the starfish.

"Do you like that set?"

She shrugged. "It's nice," she said, trying to be blasé.

He sighed. "Elizabeth..._do you like that set_? You need to get a closer look." He waved the sales clerk over.

The sales clerk lifted the small velvet stand out of the case, and placed it in front of Elizabeth.

"This is a Pave set," the clerk explained. "The total weight of the small diamonds in the earrings is about three-quarters of a carat. The diamonds in the pendant weigh slightly less, about one-third of a carat. The diamonds are set in white gold."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. _Not silver – white gold!_ _Of course_. "It's very...they're very pretty," she said quietly.

"Great. We'll take the set," Will said, beaming at the clerk.

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "Will..."

The clerk stepped away, smiling, and headed over to the cash register.

"I wish you wouldn't do this."

"Why?" he asked, incredulous that she was giving him a hard time. His brows furrowed. "Why can't I buy you something? You didn't drag me in here...can't you just smile and say, 'thanks Will, it's lovely', and be done with it?"

She had to control the laughter that suddenly threatened to bubble its way to the surface. There was that look on his face again...the stubborn little boy trying to get his way. She planted a soft kiss on his lips.

"Thanks Will. It's lovely," she said, smiling up at him.

"That's better."

"Just because I let you win this one, doesn't mean you're going to win them all."

"We'll see."

* * *

><p>"I have a great idea," Will announced as they made their way into their suite.<p>

"What might that be?"

"Let's pop that champagne...do you think it's still cold?...let's pop the champagne and take a bath. Did you see that tub? You saw the tub, right?"

She grinned at his semi-inebriated rambling. "Of course I saw the tub, how could I miss it? It takes up half of the bathroom. There's room for six people in that tub."

"Mmmm, as long as there's room for two, that's all I care about." He came up behind Elizabeth, wrapping his arms around her waist, bending to kiss her neck, pulling her close to him.

She smiled as she felt a little frisson of excitement travel down her spine. His hands traveled up under her blouse, pushing up her bra to cup her breasts, and she felt the response in her body instantly. She indulged in the sensations of his hands and his lips for a few moments before turning in his arms to face him. About to speak, she was cut off by his mouth covering hers. The kiss was passionate and hungry, and by the time he released her, she was practically panting.

"What has...gotten into you?" she asked, breathless, as his hands began to travel all over her body. He had already unbuttoned her blouse and was sliding it off of her shoulders.

"You," he replied, his response muffled, as he was currently kissing his way from one shoulder to the other, via her neck and collarbone.

"Me? I have...gotten into you?"

He lifted his head, reaching up to cup her face, kissing her again, stopping any rational thought from flowing through her mind. His entire presence, his passion, was on the verge of overwhelming and engulfing her.

Will wanted to do just that; overwhelm and engulf her. He wanted to physically express his need for her, his desire for her; he wanted her to know, in no uncertain terms, that _he_ was there for her, _he _wasn't an immature boy who was going to walk out on her and leave her floundering.

Earlier, he had thought about coming back to the hotel after dinner and making love to her slowly and sweetly, savoring her, worshiping her. As soon as he kissed her, though, that idea went right out the window.

Elizabeth's hands weren't exactly still. She had already yanked his shirt over his head, and was now impatiently fumbling with his belt as he slowly moved them toward the bathroom. As they entered, they both stopped and looked at the tub, then simultaneously turned back to each other.

"That's a big tub," Will said hoarsely.

Elizabeth nodded, trying to catch her breath. "Big tub. It's gonna take a long time to fill."

Will gave her a lopsided grin. "I think...let me get it started now." He turned to the tub and started the faucets, waiting to get the temperature just right, before returning to her.

"There," he said, smiling. "I'm sure we can keep busy til it's full."

She leaned in to kiss his neck, biting him gently, her hands lowering back to his belt again. "I'm sure we can keep busy too...but can we _wait_ til it's full?" she whispered against his skin. "It's an awfully big tub."

He groaned, reaching down to run his hands up the front of her thighs, pushing her skirt up while urging her back against the high marble vanity. His fingers hooked inside the elastic waistband of her panties, dragging them down her legs, letting them drop so she could step out of them. He impatiently unbuttoned her skirt and pushed it down to join her panties on the floor, then lifted her to sit up on the vanity.

She gasped at the feeling of the cool stone against her skin, but her gasp was silenced by his mouth descending on hers again as he stepped in between her legs. One hand held her head firmly, and with the other he reached around behind her and undid her bra, sliding it off of her arms and dropping it to the floor. Pulling her up against his chest, he let his lips drift down to her neck, biting and sucking hungrily on her skin, leaving little marks everywhere his mouth traveled.

Elizabeth's mind was swimming with pleasure, and she leaned back slightly to give him more access to her neck and breasts. He didn't waste a moment, moving his lips to her breast and immediately releasing her head to move his hand down between her thighs, forcing them to open wider. She heard the sound of his satisfaction as he felt the warm moisture that awaited him there, and his mouth moved to her neck, kissing and suckling her pulse point as he pleasured her with his fingers. She loved that he knew her body so well already, knew just where to touch her, _how_ to touch her, to make her ache for him.

She lifted her hands and ran her fingers through his hair before lifting his mouth to hers to kiss him again. Her hands traveled to his belt, _still_ buckled, and finally managed to get it undone. She made swift work of the button and zipper on his pants, and shoved them and his boxer briefs down far enough to release his erection. The heat coming from his body, the hardness of him, made her moan into his mouth. His fingers began stroking her more insistently, and she took the cue, using both hands to cup him and caress him up and down, squeezing lightly, just as she knew he wanted her to do. She knew his body too, now; knew how he liked to be touched.

He opened his eyes and looked at her, and for a second her gaze went beyond him to the tub. Her eyes opened wide. "Tub!" she said, although it came out in squeak.

He looked at her blankly for a second, then realized what she was referring to. He turned and saw that the water level was about four inches from the top. Quickly, he spun around, shut off the faucets, and was right back in front of her again. The room was now completely silent, aside from the sound of their mingled breaths.

They stared at each other for a moment, both still breathing erratically. He tenderly reached up to cup her face, kissing her slowly, seductively, endlessly. Elizabeth was completely lost, totally under his spell. His hands moved into her hair, then down her back to her bottom. He scooted her forward to the edge of the vanity and moved closer to her, lifting her slightly, keeping his movements slow and deliberate, staring at her the entire time.

When he finally did move into her, he did it so lovingly and so tenderly that Elizabeth felt as though she was made of glass, and he was afraid to break her. She wrapped her legs around his hips and watched as he looked down to where they were now completely joined. He looked back up at her with a soft smile on his face, and reached up to run one hand through her hair again, the other holding her firmly to him, bracing her against him.

Will's eyes traveled to the mirror behind Elizabeth, and he took in the image of her...her beautiful bare back, the curve of her spine, the way her hair fell in long, sweeping curls. He surged into her further, and hearing her sharp intake of breath, his eyes went back to hers. He slowly pulled almost completely out of her, then thrust back in, and felt her legs tighten around his hips as she gasped again and stared at him.

"You...you are so beautiful...just like this," he whispered, as he pulled out and surged into her again.

He let go of her hair, pulling some of it down in front of her, and let his hand travel over her breasts, moving back and forth between each peak, before he stroked down her stomach. His fingers sought and found her center, stroking and caressing her as he thrust in and out, his body urging him to move faster. He felt her tensing, felt her muscles gripping his entire length, and knew that she was close.

Her face was only inches from his, her arms wrapped snugly around his shoulders. He leaned to kiss her, his lips devouring hers, and pulled her up as tight as he could against him. He heard her muffled cry into his mouth and felt the moment that her body reached its release, causing his body to do the same.

They stayed that way, wrapped around each other, kissing, until their breathing slowed. Eventually he slipped out of her and set her down gently to stand on the floor. She immediately leaned against him and wrapped her arms around his waist, unable to keep her balance just yet. Pushing her face into his chest, she kissed her away up to his neck.

"I knew we wouldn't be able to wait for the tub to fill," she said softly, before gently nipping him.

He chuckled. "Did you know that if I drink a lot of wine, it makes me...amorous?"

She pulled back to look up at him, a look of surprise on her face. "Did you just say 'amorous?'"

He smiled at her with sleepy eyes but remained silent.

"Horn dog."

He laughed and pulled her to him again, kissing her neck as he embraced her. "Time for some champagne?"

"Definitely." She dipped her hand into the tub. "It's still pretty hot, but I think we'll have to let some water go down before we get in, or we'll make it overflow."

"You take care of the tub, I'll get the champagne and the glasses."

Elizabeth sat on the edge of the tub, letting her fingertips glide over the surface of the bathwater as she watched it lower slowly. _I can't even think straight. _She smiled to herself and once again, felt that little zip of excitement travel up and down her spine.

Will walked into the bathroom, carrying two glasses and the bottle of champagne. He placed the glasses on the vanity and aimed the bottle out the bathroom door as he popped it open. Pouring them each a glass, he set them down on the edge of the tub, then disappeared back into the other room. When he walked back in, he was carrying one of the hurricane lamps and a candle that had somehow magically appeared.

At her questioning look, he shrugged. "I packed them...just in case." He placed it on the vanity and lit the candle, then turned off the bathroom light. The room was immediately cast in a soft glow. Climbing into the tub first, he grabbed his glass and gestured for her to join him. She did so, without hesitation, settling herself back between his legs, releasing a huge sigh of contentment. The warm water felt wonderful.

Reaching around in front of her, he held his glass near hers. "So what should we toast?"

She leaned back against his shoulder and looked up at him. "We should toast us."

He looked down at her, then lightly touched his glass to hers. "To us," he said quietly.

She smiled. "To us."

* * *

><p><em>The birthday weekend is off to a nice start, don't you think? What do you think of Aunt Vee and Uncle Ed? Please leave a review, I'd love to hear from you! Thanks!<em>

_*"Something in the Way She Moves" by James Taylor_


	22. Chapter 22

_A bonus chapter for the week...hope you enjoy it. More celebrating on Martha's Vineyard! Yes, the angst is coming. A small bit around chapter 27, but the heavy stuff doesn't start until later. Wickham is lurking! Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing._

_For those celebrating Memorial Day, I hope you're enjoying it._** ~"For love of country they accepted death."~**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 22<strong>

Elizabeth woke Saturday morning with a little more energy than Will was prepared for. She wanted to get _up_, get _going_, get _moving_...he, on the other hand, wanted to go _slow_, get _naked_ (okay, stay naked), and yes, get _moving_, but not in quite the same way that _she_ wanted to get moving.

"It's already ten o'clock, we've wasted half the morning! Come on, lazy, drag that sexy tush out of bed," she said, pulling the sheets off of him. She had already showered and was dressed and raring to go.

"You'll have to drag me out yourself. Come and get me," he replied, his voice muffled due to the fact that he was laying face down with his head under a pillow.

Never one to back down from a challenge, she climbed on top of him and straddled his bare hips, reaching down to tickle his ribs. He reacted by jumping about six inches off of the bed, which nearly knocked her to the floor. Laughing, he managed to flip himself over but kept her straddling his waist.

"This isn't very fair," he said, smiling at her with that gleam in his eye. "I'm naked, you're not."

His eyes became distracted by the sight of the starfish pendant peeking out from the v-neck of the light purple sleeveless top she wore. He reached up, lifting her hair with his hands, and sure enough, she wore the earrings as well.

His face lit up. "I knew they would look beautiful on you."

She smiled as her eyes shined down at him. "They are beautiful...thank you again."

She leaned down to kiss him, softly at first but then deeper, and he immediately wrapped her up in his arms, holding her tightly. His hands began to drift down her back to her shorts-clad bottom, and he held her there, massaging her.

Elizabeth managed to pull her lips from his a fraction of an inch. "I can feel that thing behind me, poking me."

"He wants to say good morning." He wiggled his hips. "See? He's saying, 'good morning Lizzy.' Don't you want to say good morning?"

She giggled, she couldn't help it. One of her favorite things about him was his ability to be silly and playful, especially when they were like this.

"As I recall, I said goodnight to...him...three times last night. Actually, I stand corrected. We said goodnight twice...once in the bathroom, and once here. You...he!...poked me awake at four-thirty, if I recall, so _that_ was my good morning...to both of you."

"But that was an accident."

"Accident or not, you definitely woke me, and you kept me awake for quite a while. So now, it's time for you...and him...to get up...or should I say, get out of bed?"

"Okay, okay." He smiled, wiggling his hips again.

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"He's just saying goodbye."

* * *

><p>After coffee and fresh baked muffins out on the wide porch of the hotel, they made their way to the car. Will handed Elizabeth the keys, knowing it would be easier for her to drive, rather than give him directions constantly. They made their way down the one way streets of Edgartown until they got to the main road that led out of town.<p>

"This road will take us into Vineyard Haven, then from there we'll take State Road, and drive all the way up to Aquinnah. It'll take about forty-five minutes or so."

"What's in Aquinnah?" Will asked, staring at Elizabeth. As usual, she had put her hair up, and he watched as some determined curls escaped the ponytail and whipped around her face.

"The cliffs. I figured we'd start there, and slowly work our way back toward Oak Bluffs and Edgartown."

"You're the tour guide. Lead the way."

About ten minutes later, he noticed that Elizabeth was slowing down and was looking to the left as they passed a row of houses lined up neatly along the busy street. They were nice houses, with large front yards and huge trees that shaded them. Abruptly, she turned her attention back to the road, and the car began to pick up speed again.

"What were you looking at?" he asked, pretty sure he knew the answer already.

"Nothing."

"Did we just pass your grandparent's house?"

She hesitated, then nodded. "I wasn't going to look at it, but I had to. It looked okay. I mean, it didn't look like it did when my grandparents owned it...but it looked okay. Not horrible."

"I wish you had pointed it out to me so I could see it."

She glanced at him. "I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. It still makes me sad, you know? I don't want to put a damper on the morning."

"You're not putting a damper on the morning. It's part of your history, isn't it? I loved listening to your aunt and uncle talk about you last night, about all your adventures here."

She rolled her eyes. "My adventures usually got me into trouble. Although, my gramps always bailed me out. You know, when I see him now, in my mind, it's as if I'm still a little girl. He'll always be a giant to me, an invincible being. Even after he had his stroke, he still had an incredible presence." She paused. "I remember, so vividly, sitting with him. After his stroke, he couldn't speak well, but we didn't need to talk. I'd just sit and hold his hand, or play cards with him, or watch tv...Jane and Lydia didn't want to be around him, and I could never understand why...he was still just gramps."

Will watched her as she talked, her voice washing over him, and he realized that he would never get tired of learning about her, or listening to her talk about those things, good or bad, that made her into who she was. He had told her as much the day that she had talked to him about Jason..._was that just a week ago?_ He wanted to know everything about her, everything she wished for, everything she dreamed about...then he'd make sure he made all those wishes and dreams come true.

She had already been holding his hand, and squeezed it tighter. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be...there's a lot of your history on this little island."

She nodded. "There is." They came to a stop sign, and she turned left onto another busy road. "What kind of stories did my uncle tell you when I was out of the room? I can only imagine."

He shrugged. "No stories. He asked me a lot of questions-"

Elizabeth groaned. "Oh God, no. Tell me he didn't."

He smiled. "He did. Nothing intrusive though. I didn't mind, really. He and your aunt are both very nice, and it's obvious they care about you. They're just looking out for you." _Unlike your parents_, he thought.

"They do mean well...they can be a bit protective of me I think."

He squeezed her hand. "I told you it's okay, don't worry about it."

She turned to smile at him, and lifted his hand to place a soft kiss on the back of it, knowing that he was gallantly trying to avoid answering her question. "Thank you."

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes later they arrived in Aquinnah, and after finally finding a parking space in the small public lot, they made their way slowly up the large hill that led to a handful of shops, and also led to the lookout area for the cliffs. They browsed the shops, but Will was impatient to see the cliffs, so he dragged Elizabeth back out into the sunshine. The weather couldn't have been more perfect, with blue sky as far as the eyes could see.<p>

"Wow," Elizabeth heard Will say quietly as they approached the fence around the edge of the lookout perch. "This is absolutely beautiful. I don't even feel like we're in Massachusetts. Look at the colors in the cliffs! What is that?"

"It's all clay. It used to be that you could climb the cliffs from the beach and take some clay as a souvenir. Not anymore, though...you can still go to the beach, but climbing the cliffs and taking the clay is against the law."

"I suppose it would make them...erode faster, or something," Will said, still staring at them in disbelief.

"Mmm, exactly." Elizabeth smiled. "People on the nude beach could get quite creative with the clay. They'd use it to cover their bodies...when it's wet, it makes a fairly good body paint."

He turned to look at her. "You're kidding."

Elizabeth shook her head, smiling at the look of surprise on his face.

"People would actually _color_ their bodies with the clay?"

"A _lot_ of people. I did, when I came here...it almost makes you feel like you're not completely nude, like you're covered up a bit."

"How'd you paint yourself?" he asked, eyebrows raised.

She blushed a little. "Just...circles around...certain areas." She shook her head, making him laugh.

He leaned in to kiss a warm cheek. "Maybe you can demonstrate with some whipped cream some time. You can show me your painting technique."

She gave him a playful nudge against his chest as he laughed at her. They stayed there a little while longer, taking in the view. Elizabeth had brought her camera, of course, and she snapped several pictures of Will with the cliffs behind him. She also managed to find someone to snap a picture of the two of them together. After one last long look at the view, they walked slowly back to the parking lot, holding hands as they went.

As they climbed into the car, Will turned to Elizabeth and smiled. "Thank you for taking me there."

"You're welcome."

"Where to next?"

"Umm...why don't we go into Oak Bluffs? There's a lot to see, and if we get hungry for some lunch, there's plenty of places to eat. Sound good?"

"You're the boss." He looked at her. "Will we go past your grandparents house again?"

She shrugged. "We can, if you'd really like to see it."

"I would."

Half an hour later, they were pulled up on the side of the road in front of the old house, and Elizabeth was pointing out things to Will.

"See the door next to the big garage door? That was my grandfather's workshop. I used to love to go in there when he was working, I loved the smell of the fresh sawdust. The garage was so small...it barely fit my grandparents old station wagon. Over the garage is an apartment. My aunt and uncle lived there when they were first married, until my aunt was pregnant for the third time...then they had to move out, there wasn't enough room for their expanding family."

"What's the little building in the front here?" Will asked.

"Oh...that's...it's like a farm stand. My grandmother used to make all her own jellies and jams, and she'd sell them out front. Pies, breads, cakes, vegetables from their garden...you name it, they sold it. They had two huge chicken coops in the backyard, and sold fresh eggs too. Jane and Lydia and I would always set up a little lemonade stand right next to it, and we'd split the day's profits."

She stopped, and Will watched as a smile spread across her face. "My grandmother told me that during Prohibition, my grandfather had an illegal still in the backyard, way out behind the larger coop. He used to make his own moonshine, and he'd run it all over the island on his Indian motorcycle, bottles wrapped and packed in his saddlebags. The pictures of them from back then, sitting on that bike..." Her voice trailed off as she smiled softy. "Did I ever tell you the story of how their marriage came to be?"

Will shook his head.

"They lived in New York when they were growing up, and met when my grandmother was eighteen and my grandfather was nineteen. They were both engaged to other people; my grandmother's fiance – Harry – was a Vaudeville performer. According to my grandmother, when she met my grandfather, there were instant sparks...it was love at first sight. They packed up and left, in the middle of the night. This was in 1921, remember, so I'm sure it caused quite a scandal. They didn't stop running until they got to the Vineyard. As soon as they got here, they got married." She turned to him and smiled again, brighter this time. "Of course, they lived happily ever after."

Once again, Will was completely caught up in listening to her. "That's quite a story."

She grasped his hand. "Sorry...being here induces babbling, I guess." She sighed, and looked down at their entwined fingers. "It's still so hard for me to believe that this house isn't a part of my life. I mean, it sounds silly, it's just a...a building, really, but God...there are so many memories here, all wrapped up in that house."

Will lifted her hand to his lips, then pulled her close for a kiss. "Don't apologize, I love hearing about all of this. I'm glad you brought me, but I'm sorry if it makes you sad."

"I'm not sad. How can I be sad with you here?" she smiled up at him and kissed him again. She glanced at the driver's side mirror as she started to pull them back out into traffic. "Plus...we're on our way to The Flying Horses."*

"I never asked you about that...what is it? Or what are they?"

She laughed. "You'll see when we get there."

* * *

><p>Forty-five minutes later, after driving around in circles several times looking for a parking space, Will found himself atop the smallest, skinniest carousel horse he had ever been on. Of course, that wasn't a difficult thing to accomplish, since he hadn't been on many carousels in his lifetime.<p>

"I can't believe I'm doing this."

Elizabeth laughed as she turned around and looked at him from her perch atop the steed in front of his. She lifted her camera from the strap around her neck and snapped a quick photo of him. Everywhere around them were children, the oldest of which was probably twelve. The only other adults riding the carousel were those that were holding their smaller children in place atop the horses.

"Just relax and grab the rings," she called back to him, as the carousel slowly began to move and the most horrible sounding music began to blare out of the speakers in the center.

"Grab the what?" Will asked loudly.

"The rings...you'll see, just watch."

The carousel made several rotations, and suddenly Will saw a man sitting up on some stairs swing a long wooden arm toward the carousel. At the end of the wooden arm was a large silver ring. As the riders passed the arm, they would hook their finger through the ring and pull it out, allowing another ring to slide down in it's place.

Will watched in amazement as Elizabeth deftly grabbed three or four rings at a time, her fingers flying, each one hooking a ring. Every time he passed he could only grab one, sometimes two if he was quick enough.

"What's the point of this?" he called up to her.

She turned back and looked at him, laughing. "At some point, there will be a brass ring in there...if you get it, you get a free ride."

"I don't want the brass ring. I don't want a free ride," he said, making her laugh even harder.

Neither one of them got the brass ring, but Will did pocket one of the silver ones as a token. Elizabeth's eyes were shining brightly as they walked back out into the sunshine.

"I can't believe I actually got you to do that," she said, grinning up at him.

He shook his head. "I can't believe you did either."

* * *

><p>They browsed Circuit Avenue, the 'main street' of Oak Bluffs, and eventually stopped for lunch at a restaurant on the harbor with outside seating. They each had a cold beer and relaxed, enjoying the balmy weather and each others company.<p>

"Are you up for some walking?" Elizabeth asked as she took her last sip of beer.

"Sure. Where are we walking?"

"I thought I'd show you the gingerbread houses before we left Oak Bluffs."

"Gingerbread houses? What is this place, a giant fantasy land? Nude beaches and flying horses, and now gingerbread houses."

She laughed. "It's a neighborhood...the houses are all done in Gothic style-architecture. They're all in perfect condition, and they're all painted different colors. They're just called gingerbread houses...well, because they _do_ look a little like gingerbread houses. For one night in August, all the homeowners hang Chinese lanterns and colorful flags from their porches, and people walk through the neighborhood looking at all the decorations. It's called 'Illumination Night.' I haven't been to it in ages."

"We should try to come back for it this year."

She smiled up at him. "I'd like that."

They walked through the neighborhood and Will was amazed at how tightly packed in the houses were. Elizabeth took several pictures of some of her favorites, and they slowly headed back to the car.

"Are you up for more walking?" Elizabeth asked, easing them out into traffic.

"That seems to be the way to see everything, so that's fine."

"Are you sure you're not bored?"

"Bored? Are you serious? I'm waiting to see what's next. I'm sure that Santa's workshop is actually hidden here on this little island somewhere."

Laughing, she reached over and squeezed his thigh. "I _am_ serious. I want you to enjoy yourself. I know we came to relax, but I didn't really want to just be lazy on the beach, we can do that at home. I wanted to show you things."

"I am _not_ bored. Far from it. And, I'm very relaxed," he said, reaching over to grab a loose flying curl so he could twirl it around his finger. "I really am enjoying this, you don't have to worry about that."

She glanced over at him with a smile. "Okay."

* * *

><p>After a short drive, they pulled into the parking lot of the Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary.<p>

"What is this place?" Will asked as they got out of the car.

"This is Felix Neck, it belongs to the Massachusetts Audubon Society. It has a four-mile long trail that goes through woods, a salt marsh, and along the shoreline for a bit. We don't have to do the whole four miles," she said, glancing at her watch, "but we can do some of it. It's really pretty and peaceful. There are so many different species of birds out here, especially by the pond."

They hadn't gone too far before Elizabeth stopped and held her camera to her eye. Will watched with amusement as her lips made that little pout as she concentrated on the shot. He couldn't see what she was aiming the camera at, but he stood still in case it was an animal.

"What are you taking a picture of?" he asked quietly.

"A bird."

"What kind of bird?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea, but it was pretty." She turned to him and smiled as she let the camera come to rest against her chest again.

He leaned down to kiss her, wrapping his arms around her waist, and she was happy for the distraction. The sunny trail wasn't crowded, as it was a very warm day, so they took advantage of the moment of privacy. After a few minutes, they slowly broke apart.

Elizabeth fanned her face. "Well, if I wasn't hot before, I certainly am now."

He wiggled his brows. "You're always hot."

She laughed. "Thanks."

"Is there anywhere we can sit for a bit, in the shade?"

"There is, when we get closer to the pond. It's not too far ahead."

They continued walking, and eventually came to the pond, which was loaded with ducks and waterbirds of all types. Once again, Elizabeth pulled out her camera and began snapping picture after picture. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Will walk over to a large tree that was providing a good amount of shade. He sat down on the ground and rested against the trunk, leaning his head back, and she instantly turned the camera on him, snapping several pictures.

She walked over to join him, and he patted the ground next to him. She sat and leaned her head on his shoulder, enjoying the comfort of the shade. The only noise to be heard was the sound of the birds calling from around the pond.

"It's nice here," he said. "You were right, it's very peaceful."

"Mmm, I love it. They used to rehabilitate injured birds and small animals, but they don't do it anymore. I loved coming out to see what little critters were being taken care of."

"I get the impression you didn't sit still much."

She smiled. "No, I didn't." She sat forward so she could turn and look at his face. "What were you like when you were little? Always in trouble like me? Getting into everything?"

He laughed. "No, I was _never_ in trouble."

"Hmm. Somehow I doubt that."

"Actually, it's true. I didn't have a lot of friends, I mostly hung out with Charles, and he was a good kid. We didn't really get into trouble. Even in high school, I kept mostly to myself. I was pretty shy, so I didn't go to parties and all that. The only thing I did do was play music, but even then, I got to hide behind the guitar and the microphone. It made it a little easier."

"Ohhh, the girls must have loved you, up there on that stage, playing and singing."

"If they did, I didn't know it. I was kind of blind to that stuff for a while, especially after my mother died."

They were quiet for a few moments, until Elizabeth spoke. "What was she like?"

"My mother? She was great. She was absolutely beautiful...I see her in Georgiana more and more. The older Georgie gets, the more I see my mother in certain expressions she makes, or the way she moves. It's funny that those little things were passed on to her, even though she really didn't get a chance to observe them herself in our mother."

"Is she the one that you got your musical talent from?"

He shrugged. "I suppose it would have to be her. She never played an instrument that I remember, but she was always singing...in the kitchen, in the car...there was always music on in the house." He laughed. "She always made me sing with her, and she had the most eclectic musical tastes. One minute we'd be listening to the Grateful Dead, the next we'd be listening to Etta James."

He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "When I think about my parents together, it strikes me now just how opposite they were. Whenever I picture my father in my head, he's always wearing a suit. I mean, I saw him in shorts and jeans and all that a lot, but for some reason, if he jumps into my head out of the blue, he's in a suit. My mother, on the other hand...whenever I picture her, it's always how she was when we were on the Cape. Barefoot, shorts and t-shirts, her hair down...and I remember how my father used to look at her when he came home from a long day in Boston. He'd be bone tired, but he would light up as soon as he saw her."

Elizabeth turned to look up at him, staring at him as he gazed out over the pond, absorbed in his memories. She snuggled her head into his neck a little more. "They sound like they were happy together."

He nodded. "I think they were. I mean, I remember them being affectionate with each other, and I remember them laughing a lot together. My father was only like that with us...not as much with me, I was a _boy_, after all." He smiled. "He always had time for me though, and even the music thing...he encouraged me to stick with it, even though he had made it clear that he expected me to follow in his footsteps. I think he liked the fact that I had that part of my mother in me, and Georgiana too...my mother always said that she wanted her little girl to play the piano, so my father made sure she learned. Georgie took to it right away. For my father, that was a way to keep part of my mother alive, I think."

Elizabeth reached up to caress his cheek lightly. "Her influence on you is obvious. From what you've said about them, it sounds like you're a perfect combination of both your parents."

"I'd like to think so. Although, I'll never have the ease among people that my mother did. In that respect, I'm much more like my father." He turned and lowered his head to kiss her upturned lips briefly.

"Well, it's not like you're a complete introvert," she said.

"True. The last couple of years of high school were kind of a blur, but I started to...spread my wings a bit in college."

"Spread your wings?" she said, smiling at him.

"Yes. I had to...Charles was at Yale, so I figured I had to make some friends. I didn't want to be a complete loner that everyone would label as the weird guy. The guitar is a good ice breaker."

"I bet. Especially with the girls."

"Yeah, by then I had started to notice them more. A _lot_ more." He looked down at her, and felt himself blushing. "Why do you want to know about that?"

She tilted her head. "I don't want to know about _that_, specifically, I just...I want to know what you were like back then." She smiled, almost wistfully. "I'm trying to form that picture of you in my mind, that's all."

He reached over to pull her onto his lap, facing him. "You don't have to picture me back then, because you, my lucky lady, have me right now."

Her mouth dropped open slightly and her eyebrows flew up. "_Lucky lady_? My, aren't we a little full of ourselves today."

She leaned forward to kiss him, cupping his face and stroking his cheeks with her thumbs, and she felt his smile against her lips. He did the same, raising his hands to stroke her cheeks, then reaching behind her to pull out her ponytail, making her hair tumble around her shoulders. He threaded his fingers through her curls as they continued to kiss. Eventually they parted, and Elizabeth leaned down to rest her head on his shoulder.

"Okay…maybe I am a little lucky."

* * *

><p>They finished their walk through the wildlife sanctuary, and as they made their way back to the car hand in hand, Will stopped, forcing Elizabeth to stop as well.<p>

"Do you know what I'd like to do tonight?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes playfully. "I could probably guess."

"No, not that…well, besides that," he said, grinning at her.

"I have no idea."

"We should go somewhere that we can dance."

Her eyebrows rose up high into her forehead. "_You_ want to go dancing?"

He tugged her to get her walking again. "Well, not dancing like you and Jane dance. I mean _dancing_ dancing…hold-each-other-close, slow dancing."

"Hmm. I don't know of any places that do 'hold-each-other-close slow dancing.' I only know the 'bump-grind-and-shake-your-booty' places. Although, they do occasionally throw a slow number in," Elizabeth said, as she put her hair back in it's ponytail.

They climbed into the car, and she began maneuvering it down the long driveway of the wildlife sanctuary, back out to the main road.

"There is a dance club in Oak Bluffs, but it's a club in every sense of the word…you can hear the bass pounding before you get anywhere near the place."

Will grimaced. "Not what I had in mind."

"I could ask Uncle Ed and Aunt Vee, they would know all the good dance spots, I'm sure."

"Sounds good."

* * *

><p>"How did I let you talk me into coming here?" Will shouted over the pounding music.<p>

"I didn't talk you into anything! It was your idea, and we had a deal," Elizabeth shouted back. "Don't weasel out on me now."

"Oh, I won't weasel, don't worry."

"You're okay to drive, right?"

"I'm fine," he said, smiling at her. "I intend to hold up my end of the bargain, don't you worry about that."

"Oh, what did I get myself into?" Elizabeth asked herself aloud.

He only smiled at her. Over dinner, she had mentioned the club in Oak Bluffs twice, which he took as a subtle hint that she wanted to go. When he suggested it, her eyes lit up, although she _said_ it was fine if they didn't. "I know you'd be uncomfortable, and plus, you wouldn't dance, so what fun would it be anyway?"

He was staring at her with a gleam in his eye.

"What are you thinking?" she had asked him.

"I'm thinking that we could probably work something out."

And work something out they did.

Now, standing in the club, Elizabeth wondered what she had gotten herself into. _Bargaining with __tequila. Not a good idea__._

At dinner, she had asked him the obvious question. "Why do you want to get me drunk on tequila? I won't be good for anything, and I mean _anything_."

"I don't want to get you drunk, believe me," he had replied, "I'm just curious to see what it does to you, that's all. I figure you're good for a shot or two…or three."

"Well, getting you in the door to that club isn't good enough. You have to dance with me. Ladies choice."

He shook his head. "I don't know…that could be a deal breaker."

Her eyebrows rose. "A deal breaker? Just like that?"

He was looking at her carefully, a small grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Alright, deal. Should we shake on it?"

She shook her head and leaned across the table toward him. "Kiss on it."

Now, as he stood looking at the throng of people pressed together on the dance floor, he cringed. _How the hell are we supposed to dance in the middle of that mess?_As he studied the crowd, he realized they all looked to be at least ten to fifteen years younger than him, and they seemed to be moving the same way to the beat...like some giant mass of arms and legs, pulsing under dozens of flickering colored lights. He couldn't tell who was dancing with who. _I am way too old to be in here._

Elizabeth, with two shots of tequila already under her belt, was raring to go. She was a lightweight as far as any type of alcohol went, which is why she usually stuck to beer or wine. Even then, she just wasn't a big drinker.

They walked to the back corner of the club, Elizabeth leading Will by the hand, and up a set of stairs to a u-shaped balcony that overlooked the large dance floor. Little round bar tables were scattered along the railing, and there was another smaller bar up here as well. The lighting was dim, and the crowd was more subdued, as most of the patrons were sitting and trying to hold conversations over the music. The tables were all full, so they found a small space to squeeze into by the railing.

"I thought we were dancing?" Will asked, nearly shouting to be heard.

"Not yet. I'm waiting for a good song."

"By the sounds of things, you might be waiting a long time."

She elbowed him. "I'll know it when I hear it."

Thankfully, the club was playing some pop, and not just pounding rap music. He wouldn't have been able to tolerate that for long. Standing behind Elizabeth, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against him. She smiled up to him and reached up to plant a kiss on his chin, covering his arms with hers.

Will leaned down to kiss her cheek. "I'll be right back," he said into her ear.

They had both dressed casually tonight, she in jean capris and a simple but sexy black blouse. Of course, she had worn her new jewelry set, and the pendant sparkled against her tanned skin. Will had worn faded jeans and a white t-shirt. Over the t-shirt, he wore a deep green short-sleeved button down shirt, which he left unbuttoned.

She watched as he walked toward the bar, and observed with some amusement that several pairs of female eyes turned to follow his progress. She smiled to herself. _I can't really blame them, can I?_ Everything about him was sexy and appealing, including the way he walked. It was the way he carried himself…he exuded a quiet masculine confidence, even though she knew he was well out of his comfort zone here.

After a few minutes at the bar, he turned to walk back to her, a shot glass in one hand and what looked like a glass of water in the other. Suddenly, a tall blonde woman stepped out in front of him, causing him to stop short and almost spill both drinks.

Elizabeth couldn't see her face, only his, but she watched as his mask appeared and dropped into place. He shook his head once, then again, more emphatically this time. The blonde, apparently not deterred, lifted her hands to put them on his waist. His hands, currently occupied, were of no help to him, and she was effectively blocking his path.

Elizabeth could hardly believe what she was seeing. His eyes raised and found hers, and he looked at her with an expression on his face that would have been comical, had some tramp not been clinging to his hips. She walked over to them, and tapped the blonde on the shoulder.

"Excuse me," Elizabeth said loudly.

The woman…who was actually a girl, really…turned around and looked at Elizabeth, immediately dismissed her, and turned back to Will.

This time, Elizabeth tapped her much harder. "_Excuse me__,_" she said again, much more forcefully.

"Can I help you?" the blonde said, turning around again and looking Elizabeth up and down.

"You can, actually. You can remove your grubby little hands from his body before I do it for you." She smiled angelically at the girl, but the look in her eyes was far from sweet.

The girl looked her over one more time, turned to look at Will, then looked back at Elizabeth. "He's too old anyway," she said sarcastically.

Elizabeth kept smiling. "I'm sure he is…Justin Bieber is probably more your age, isn't he?" She waggled her fingers at the girl. "Move along, sweetheart, move along."

With one last look, the girl walked away and headed back to her friends, leaving a wide-eyed Will standing with his irritated girlfriend. Elizabeth turned on her heel and headed back over to the railing, Will right behind her.

"What was _that_ all about? Can you believe the nerve of that girl? She just walks right up to you and puts her _hands_ on you? Like she's checking cantaloupe at the market?"

Will said nothing, only smiled and handed Elizabeth her shot. She downed it in one gulp.

"You know," he said, leaning towards her, "the quicker you pick out a couple of songs for us to dance to, the quicker we can get out of here."

She stared into his eyes, mere inches from hers. Her face felt flushed from the tequila, and she could feel the effects of it slowly warming the rest of her body. She closed the rest of the distance between their lips and kissed him, letting her mouth move slowly over his, teasing his lips open with her tongue.

His response was immediate, and they kissed deeply. As Elizabeth slowly pulled away from him, she caught his bottom lip between her teeth and tugged on it gently.

He reached up to tuck a stray curl behind her ear, loving that she had left her hair down tonight. His heart was pounding in his chest, as it always did when she kissed him like that. "I didn't know you were the jealous type."

She sighed. "I'm not, really, but…God, that pissed me off!" She stopped when she saw that he was starting to chuckle. "It's not funny!"

"I know, I know, it's not. Well, it is a little." He stopped as she pinched his waist. "Okay, I know, it's not." He smiled down at her and watched as she first tried to suppress the grin forming on her lips, then gave in and laughed with him.

He bent to whisper in her ear. "My own little green-eyed monster."

Before Elizabeth could come back with a clever reply, she heard the beginning notes of a song that she loved, and she grabbed Will's hand. "Come on, this is a good one." She moved quickly toward the stairs, pulling him along as she went.

They joined the crowd on the dance floor. Will was feeling a little self-conscious, but as he looked around and saw the way some of the other people were dancing, he realized he really had nothing to worry about. Some of the people looked like they were having violent body spasms, as opposed to dancing.

_Strummin' my pain with his fingers  
><em>_Singing my life with his words  
><em>_Killing me softly with his song  
><em>_Killing me softly  
><em>_With his song, telling my whole life  
><em>_With his words, killing me softly  
><em>_With his song._

He let Elizabeth guide him as she placed her hands on his hips and encouraged him to sway with her, moving her body against his to the beat of the song, as he held her waist. _I could get used to this_, Will thought. She lifted her arms as she moved her whole body in time with the music. He was absolutely transfixed by the rhythmic movements of her shoulders and hips, and watched as she sang along. He pulled her close and leaned down to kiss her lightly, feeling her smile against his lips.

_I heard he sang a good song  
><em>_I heard he had a style  
><em>_And so I came to see him  
><em>_And listen for a while...**_

She turned in front of him and he came up closely behind her. He felt his body moving on its own, responding to the rhythm of hers. His hands drifted from her waist, down the sides of her hips, stroking back up along the tops of her thighs to her stomach, then back to her waist again. He leaned down to nibble on her neck as they moved, and felt her body shiver. The feel of her body moving against his was wreaking havoc on him, but he was loving every minute of it. Fortunately..._unfortunately?_...the song ended, and was followed up by another with a slightly faster beat.

Elizabeth, presumably unaware of the feelings coursing through his body, spun back around, her eyes glowing. "See, that wasn't so bad, was it?" she shouted over the beat of the new song. "Let's dance to this, and then we can go."

This time, Will mostly watched Elizabeth as she danced, although he did manage to move his body at least a little. She was definitely performing for him, singing to him, sidling up to him and once again shaking her hips against him.

_You think I'm pretty without any makeup on  
><em>_You think I'm funny when I tell the punchline wrong  
><em>_I know you get me so I let my walls come down, down  
><em>_Before you met me, I was alright  
><em>_But things were kinda heavy  
><em>_You brought me to life  
><em>_Now every February, you'll be my valentine, valentine***_

Her playfulness was infectious, and he found himself laughing and smiling with her as she danced around him. She danced in front of him, slowly lowering herself down the front of his body and back up again, letting her breasts move against his body. He took it all in, enjoying every moment of it. Every teasing look she threw at him as she sang was absolute torture, and he was beyond thankful when the song ended and she took his hand to lead him toward the door.

Once outside, they both took deep breaths of the warm summer air, and immediately, Will pulled Elizabeth into his arms for a very thorough kiss, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist as he crushed her to him. He began to pull away from her when he felt the smile forming on her lips, and when he looked down into her eyes, she started to giggle.

"That was fun, don't you think?" she said, staring up at him. Her eyes sparkled and he could see that she was a little buzzed.

He laughed with her. "Oh, yeah, that was a blast," he said, totally exaggerating his voice.

"Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad...except for little Miss I-can't-keep-my-hands-to-myself. Ugh! What a bitch. But you danced! I knew you could dance. I mean, you play music, so obviously, you have to be able to keep the beat. You have good rhythm." She started to giggle again.

"Are you still talking about dancing?" he asked, smiling down at her as she babbled.

"Of course I'm still talking about dancing...what else would I be talking about?" she said, laughing again. She looked up and saw that it was a perfectly clear night. "Come on, I know where we can go."

"Lead the way."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and they began walking down the street, past the busy bars and shops. Even though it was after eleven, everything was still open, and people were everywhere. She led him through an alley and down a street lined with stately homes.

Ten minutes later, they were both laying flat on their backs in the grass at Ocean Park, staring up at the stars. They weren't in complete solitude, as the large, open expanse of land that faced the ocean was surrounded by the busy streets of Oak Bluffs, but at least here, they weren't engulfed by crowds of people. The large band shell in the middle of the park was lit up with small fairy lights, and people were strolling about, but Will and Elizabeth were pretty far away from the sidewalks that cut through the park, so they were as alone as they could be in a place like this.

"Thank you for taking me dancing."

Will laughed. "You're welcome...although, that was _not_ dancing. Some day, I'll _really_ take you dancing, and you'll see what I mean."

"Oh, I know what you mean...still, I had fun. Didn't you have a little fun?"

He rolled to his side, leaning on one elbow and hovering over her. "I did...especially watching you gyrate around out there. _That_ was fun." He trailed one hand up from her thigh all the way to her jaw, then turned her head to him so he could kiss her. He broke away slowly, smiling down at her. "I love you."

She reached up to kiss him again, cupping his face with her hands. "I love you too."

He settled onto his back again, and she curled against him, resting her head on his chest. She loved the sound of his heartbeat under her ear, and found the steady thump-thump-thump to be a comforting noise. They laid there in silence for a while, until Elizabeth sat up. She turned and faced him, sitting cross-legged.

"Will?"

"Mmhm." He was laying with his arms crossed under his head, eyes closed.

"I want to know what my mother said to you when we were there on Monday."

_Where did that come from? _His eyes opened slowly. "I told you, it doesn't matter."

"But it _does_ matter...it matters to me."

He sat up, leaning back on his arms, keeping his legs stretched out. Exhaling loudly, he looked down at the grass, then up at her. The playful mood that she had been in earlier had completely vanished; she looked thoughtful and sad. He shook his head. "It shouldn't matter to you. Like I said, in one ear and out the other."

"Why won't you just tell me?" she whispered.

He tried to hide his annoyance, speaking softly. "Because I _refuse_ to repeat what she said, that's why." He took a deep breath. "Why can't you leave it alone? You, of all people, know what your mother is like. That short conversation I had with her enabled me to see her for exactly who she is, and I'll be honest with you...to put it nicely, that woman did not impress me." He was tempted to say something so much worse, but he didn't want to cross the line.

"She's not just _that woman_...and she wasn't always like that, you know...when I was younger, she wasn't like that."

"Why are you defending her?"

"I'm not defending her...she's my mother-"

Will interrupted her, his voice raising slightly. "That's right, she's your mother, and she should be ashamed of herself! She should know better. It doesn't matter what she was like then...this is how she is _now_. Your uncle told me that she's gotten worse over the years, and that's a shame, it really is. She's completely consumed by the need to make sure you and Jane, and I'm assuming Lydia, are paired off to Fortune 500 men. The thing is, she thinks Jane and Lydia are worth it, but for some reason, she doesn't think you are."

Elizabeth looked at him, speechless.

He shook his head and reached up to rub his face with both hands. "Look, I've had to deal with a few society mothers in the past, the ones looking to marry their daughters off to a rich man. That part, I can deal with. I'll throw my money in your mother's face if that's what she wants. What I won't tolerate is the way she talks about you, the insults she throws out as easily as if she was discussing the weather. If it happens again, I can't say that I'll be able to bite my tongue."

Elizabeth was quiet for a long time, looking out at the dark ocean. Will watched her, waiting for her to process everything he had just said. Eventually she spoke.

"She still thinks that if I had been different, if I had been..._better_...all that stuff, back then...it wouldn't have happened the way it did. As far as she's concerned, I'm doomed to repeat what were obviously _my_ mistakes." She shook her head. "I just don't understand her...I don't understand why she thinks of me like that..." Her voice trailed off as she stared, unblinking, at the ocean.

"Elizabeth, please," he said quietly, a note of desperation in his voice. She turned to face him. "_Please_ don't do this to yourself. If you ever feel like you need reassurance about the type of woman you are, about what you've accomplished, and about what you deserve in this life, the last person you should look to is your mother. Look to me, or Jane, or your aunt and uncle, but please, do _not _look to your mother."

Elizabeth realized that he still really hadn't told her what her mother's exact words were, but she also realized that he was right; it didn't matter. He loved her, and the fact that he wasn't telling her what was said during that conversation was _because_ he loved her, and was trying to protect her from further pain.

"I'm sorry," Elizabeth said quietly. She held his gaze, and although she felt tears stinging her eyes, she held them back. "I'm sorry I brought it all up, and I'm sorry you had to deal with her and be exposed to her."

He reached forward to pull her gently to him, wrapping her up in his arms and planting kisses in her hair.

"It's okay. You need to believe me, though, when I tell you that nothing she says or does will ever matter to me. I love _you_, the woman you are, not the woman your mother thinks you are. That other woman doesn't exist."

"I love you too...and I do believe you." She turned to place a kiss on his chin. "You're right, I don't need to know what she said."

He tugged her back down to the grass with him, wrapping his arms and legs around her and hugging her to his chest.

Trying to lighten the moment, he squeezed her tightly before saying, "Well...no more tequila for you."

She burrowed her face into his neck, placing a kiss there before taking a deep breath, inhaling his scent. "What did I do to deserve you?"

He leaned back and smiled down at her. "You didn't do anything. You're just you."

* * *

><p>This time, when they arrived back at the hotel, Will <em>did<em> make love to her slowly and sweetly, worshiping her with his body, over and over again. He whispered words of love and adoration to her, wanting her to know just how beautiful she was, how desirable, how loved. He wanted, _needed_ her to understand that she deserved to have everything the world had to offer, and he wanted to be the one to give it all to her. It was nearly four in the morning before they both fell into an exhausted but satisfied sleep, completely tangled up in each other.

* * *

><p><em>The birthday celebration will be coming to a close in the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed your tour of the Vineyard! Please leave a review, I love to hear what you're thinking.<em>

* * *

><p>*'The Flying Horses' on Martha's Vineyard is the oldest operating platform carousel in America.<p>

**"Killing Me Softly" by Roberta Flack/covered by The Fugees

***"Teenage Dream" by Katy Perry


	23. Chapter 23

_This is the conclusion of the birthday weekend...glad you've all enjoyed your tour of Martha's Vineyard! Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 23<strong>

Will and Elizabeth stopped in to say goodbye to her aunt and uncle on Sunday morning, and promised that they would be back, once the tourists had all gone home and the island was back to its quiet self again.

Elizabeth had exchanged a long hug with her aunt, who had spoken quietly in her ear.

"He seems like a good man, Lizzy. I can see already that you've stolen his heart...and I'm glad to see that you've begun to trust your own again."

Elizabeth smiled at her aunt through watery eyes, and hugged her tighter. "Thank you Aunt Vee. For everything."

As Elizabeth was speaking quietly with her aunt, Will shook Mr. Gardner's hand. "It was nice to meet you, Ed."

"Well, it was nice to meet you too William. Vee and I meant what we said, we don't want you two to be strangers. You come over to visit whenever you like. Once the season is over, we always have rooms available, and we'd love for you to stay here at the inn." He paused for a moment, looking Will in the eye. "We're hoping to see more of you in the future."

Will didn't mistake his meaning, and he returned his steady gaze. "You can count on seeing much more of us. We'll be back."

Mrs. Gardner gave Will a hug and a kiss on the cheek, while Mr. Gardner wrapped Elizabeth up in a huge bear hug. After a last goodbye, the couple strode out the door and back toward the hotel. They checked out, and as they drove away, Elizabeth took one last glance behind her at the hotel.

"This was a wonderful weekend," she said, reaching up to play with the soft waves hanging over Will's collar as he drove. "Thank you again for bringing me here."

He turned to smile at her briefly. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

She continued to toy with his hair, loving the way the sunlight played on it. It was so dark, it almost appeared to be black, but it was really just a very deep shade of brown, and the sun brought out lighter shades that couldn't always be seen. Her eyes drifted over his profile, taking in his features, and lingered on his lips. She felt that little flip-flop in her stomach, and smiled to herself.

He glanced out the corner of his eye at her, and noticed her expression.

"You're staring at me."

She raised her eyebrows. "Aren't I allowed to stare at you? You're always staring at me. As a matter of fact, you've been staring at me since we met."

He smirked. "I guess I have."

She laid her arm on the back of his seat, continuing to run her fingers through his hair. He sighed in contentment.

"What was your favorite thing about this weekend?" she asked quietly.

He grinned at her, and without hesitation, said, "The vanity in the bathroom. Hands down."

She rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Let me re-phrase that question. What was your favorite _non-sexual_ thing about this weekend?"

He laughed, then became serious. "I couldn't pick a favorite...I liked all of it. I enjoyed hearing about your grandparents, and I was glad I was able to meet your aunt and uncle. I liked talking to them, and hearing their stories about you." He smiled at her. "What about you?"

She shrugged. "I just liked being here with you, showing you everything...and I'm happy that you got to meet my aunt and uncle. I knew you'd like them, they're good people." She bit her lower lip to hold back her grin. "_And_, I have to agree...the bathroom vanity was pretty unforgettable."

* * *

><p>They arrived at Elizabeth's house early in the afternoon, and as Will carried her bag into her bedroom, Elizabeth walked around opening windows to let the fresh air in.<p>

She had refused to take her cell phone with her over the weekend, so she picked it up off of her dresser to scan it for messages. There were three; one from Jane, one from Lydia, and one from Charlotte. Jane's message, left this morning, was just a quick hello. She wanted to discuss dresses for the Arts Alive Benefit.

Lydia's message and Charlotte's message were almost identical; both wanted her and Will to join them, along with George and Denny, at Monday Night Madness the next night. Obviously, Lydia and Charlotte had already talked and had planned on going together. Elizabeth wasn't in the least interested in going, and she knew Will wouldn't be either.

After unpacking a few things and putting them away, she walked back out into the living room to find him sprawled on his back on the couch, eyes closed.

_Is he sleeping_? She leaned down close to him and suddenly felt his arms snake up around her, pulling her down on top of him. She shrieked in surprise.

"I thought you were sleeping!"

"If you had given me about five more minutes I probably would have been. I got very little sleep this weekend, and it's all your fault," he said, a small grin creeping onto his face.

She frowned down at him. "Oh, you poor thing. I promise, it will never happen again."

"Oh no...it will. Trust me." He reached up to kiss her. "I have never been so happily sleep deprived in my entire life."

She laid her head down on his shoulder, cuddling into his neck. "What are we doing for the rest of the afternoon? Do you have any plans?"

"Well...it just so happens that Georgie texted me while you were in the other room...her friend Julie will be at the house for a couple more hours, before she heads back to Boston. She was hoping we'd head to New Seabury if we had time."

Elizabeth shrugged. "That's fine with me. I do have to look over some things for work tonight at some point, though."

Will reached up to play with her ponytail, running his fingers through it, then let his hands wander down to massage her back. She just about melted into him.

"What do you want to do about tonight?" he asked. He hated the thought of them going their separate ways after the weekend they just spent together.

She shrugged again. "My place or yours?" she murmured, yawning a little.

He smiled into her hair. "Why don't I stay here? It would probably be easier for you, wouldn't it?"

She nodded against his chest. "It would," she said sleepily. His hands were completely relaxing her, and she could feel herself fading.

Will could tell by her stillness and the weight of her body that she was falling asleep, but he continued to rub her back for a little while longer, loving the feel of her body draped over his.

"Hey," he said softly, kissing her head.

"Mmm."

"We don't have to go to New Seabury right now, we can stay here."

Elizabeth lifted her head up. "No, we can go. I'm fine. You're just so warm and comfortable. I've gotten used to sleeping on you, I think."

"You can sleep on me all you want tonight."

* * *

><p>Will and Elizabeth stepped out onto the deck in New Seabury, surprising Georgiana and Julie as they sat in the lounge chairs, enjoying the last hour of Julie's visit.<p>

"Hey guys! How was your weekend?" Georgie said, as she stood to give them each a hug.

"Hey Georgie," Will said, giving her a quick hug back. "We had a great weekend. Hi Julie, how are you?"

Julie stood up and smiled at Will and Elizabeth. "Hi Will, I'm great, how are you?"

He nodded at her. "I'm well, thanks."

Elizabeth held out her hand. "Hi Julie, I'm Elizabeth. I've heard a lot about you from Georgie, it's nice to finally meet you."

"Hi Elizabeth...it's nice to finally meet you, G has told me quite a bit about you too." She smiled brightly while she lightly shook Elizabeth's hand. Elizabeth's eyebrows rose slightly, not quite understanding what that smile was about.

Will rolled his eyes. "I'm going to get something to drink. Anyone want anything?"

"No thanks," said the three women, practically in unison.

He disappeared into the house.

"So, how was your weekend?" Georgie asked Elizabeth. "Did you have fun?"

"We did, we had a great time," Elizabeth replied, unable to stop the smile that was forming on her lips.

Georgiana noticed the starfish pendant. "Is that new?"

"It is, along with these," Elizabeth said, lifting her hair to show her earrings. "When your brother sets his mind to something, he's not easy to stop."

Georgiana smirked at her. "You're just learning this now?" They all laughed.

"What mischief did you girls get into this weekend?" Elizabeth asked.

Julie shook her head. "No mischief. We really didn't do anything...which was just perfect, actually! We went to the beach, ate, and drank wine. That just about covers it."

"We went to Wicked...I remembered how much you love that place. Now I can see why!" Georgie said. "Oh, and I made Julie go shopping with me yesterday morning, we got some stuff for the guesthouse."

Will joined the women back on the deck, and they all continued to talk until it was time for Julie to leave. Will grabbed her bag to carry it out to her car for her, and the three women were alone once again.

Julie turned to Georgiana. "Boy, G, you were right. Will's a goner."

Georgiana laughed, her eyes wide. "Julie!"

Elizabeth grinned. "It's okay Georgie. We're both goners."

"I'm sorry, but those snotty society chicks that he used to date...ugh, God, I couldn't stand them."

"Julie!" Georgiana was laughing again.

"Oh...sorry Elizabeth...but if you only knew...yikes."

"Somewhere in there is a compliment, I think," Elizabeth said, smiling.

"Totally. Totally a compliment," Julie said. "Anyway, sorry if I offended. I gotta run or I'll be late for work." She reached over to hug Georgiana. "I'll talk to you soon. Thanks for having me."

"I'm so glad you came. We needed this," Georgiana said, hugging her back.

"Bye Julie, nice to meet you," Elizabeth said.

"You too Elizabeth. Sorry, again...I have a tendency to blurt."

Elizabeth laughed. "It's fine, don't worry."

Will walked back in and stood by the door as the women came in from the deck. "You're all set, your bag is in the car, ready to go."

"Thanks Will." She walked toward the door, and reached up to give him a peck on the cheek. "I think Georgie is doing great, by the way," she said quietly. "She seems good, you know?"

Will smiled slightly, nodding. "She is, she's doing really well. Thanks for coming to visit her."

"What are friends for?" She winked at him before turning back to Georgie and Elizabeth. "Bye ladies, talk to you soon G."

"Bye Julie," they both replied.

The door closed behind her, and Will walked over to join Elizabeth and Georgiana in the great room. Elizabeth had plopped down on one of the long couches, and she patted the cushion next to her, smiling up at Will. He went over to join her, pulling her close to him, and she instantly curled against him and put her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes. Will sighed, leaning his head on hers, and his eyes drooped shut as well.

Georgiana looked at them for a moment before she spoke quietly. "So...good weekend, then?"

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Will were back at Elizabeth's house by six o'clock. Elizabeth sat on the couch, looking over her work email, while Will was outside, manning the grill. Her eyes scanned down the "from" column of her email, and one from Bill Collins, sent Friday, caught her eye. The subject line said "Travel."<p>

She opened the email.

_Elizabeth,_

_Just wanted to give you a heads up...there is a very good chance that you'll be sent to South Carolina in early August as part of the carbonate study. You have a chance to do some research in the Ace Basin, and I'm sure I don't need to tell you what a huge opportunity that is. Your name was put forth once again, and I told NOAA and the folks at WHOI that I would make sure you were available for the trip. You're looking at two weeks, no more than that. As soon as I know the exact dates, I'll be sure to let you know._

_See you Monday._

_Bill_

_The Ace Basin_, Elizabeth thought excitedly. _The Ace Basin! _If she had a chance to study and do research there, even if it was just for two weeks, she would be thrilled. It would make the two months of working on the carbonate system well worth it. At almost 135,000 acres, the estuary was one of the largest undeveloped estuaries on the east coast. It was fed by three large rivers, which were surrounded by cypress swamps, old rice fields, and huge tidal marshes. The three rivers eventually met at St. Helena Sound, a marine researcher's heaven. The diversity of the marine life found in the estuary, and in just the sound alone, was overwhelming.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Will as he came back in from the deck.

"Steaks are ready," he said.

"Oh...oh, shoot, the salad. I'll throw it together quick."

"I can do it if you're busy, these will stay warm."

She came up behind him in her little kitchen and kissed him between the shoulder blades. "No, I'll do it. I was just reading my email...I was looking at one from Bill, and I got distracted."

"Oh really? Why, did he propose?"

She pinched his bum. "No, wiseguy...he actually mentioned that I might have to travel in August for the carbonate study."

"Really? Travel where?"

"There's an estuary called the Ace Basin in South Carolina. I've always wanted to see it, so to actually have the chance to work there...I can't believe it. I mean, I don't know if it's definite yet, but...I would love to go."

He was looking down at her, and saw how her eyes lit up. Her excitement made him smile.

"I hope you do get to go, it sounds great. How long is the trip?"

"Two weeks," she said, as she sliced a tomato. "At least, that's what he said, two weeks at the most."

"And you thought all those calcified clams would be boring. See? Now they've brought you this great opportunity. No more making fun of the clams."

She laughed. "I won't, I promise."

They sat down to eat on the deck, and Elizabeth couldn't help but stare down to the spot on the sand where she could see the remnants of the fire pit. Will had filled it in on Friday morning before they left for the Vineyard, but she could still see the indentation in the sand. She smiled to herself as she thought about that night, every single moment of it still so vivid in her mind.

She looked up to see Will watching her curiously, a small smile playing on his lips as he sipped his beer. He was about to say something when her cell phone rang.

"Sorry," she said, "let me just see who it is."

Walking into the house, she retrieved her phone from the living room, and saw Lydia's name on the caller ID. She put the phone down without answering it and walked back out to the deck.

"It was just Lydia. I forgot to tell you that we were invited to Monday Night Madness tomorrow night."

Will grimaced, and Elizabeth picked up on it immediately.

"Don't worry, I'm not dragging you in there! It's the last place I want to go, believe me. Charlotte called too, they're all going together." She smiled. "I won't punish you with another dance club this soon."

"Thanks," he said, grinning at her. "I still want to take you dancing, really dancing, sometime. In Boston, at a nice place...some day."

"Speaking of Boston...tell me more about the Arts Alive Benefit we're going to. I know nothing about it, other than the fact that I get to see you in a tux."

He laughed. "The Arts Alive Foundation provides funding to schools for all those programs that are the first to go when the budget cuts strike...music, art, drama, things like that. It's a nationwide program, but the benefit we're going to this weekend will be raising money strictly for Boston schools. I already paid for our table...I bought a table for ten, but I think we'll have two extra seats."

"Is Richard still coming from California?"

"As far as I know, he is. He's supposedly bringing three people...I'll have to find out who they are. They could be people who work for me, I have no idea. So, at our table, it will be you and me, Charles and Jane, and Richard and his company. Two seats left."

He didn't want to tell her that originally, those two seats were meant for Caroline and whoever she wanted to bring. He had purchased the table two weeks after he and Elizabeth had started dating, and had included 'Caroline and guest' just to be polite. At the time, he knew that Jane and Caroline were getting along, and Charles had asked if Caroline could sit with them. The table itself had been $1,000 a seat; to him, it was money well worth losing. He knew that if he saw Caroline this weekend at the benefit, he'd have to deal with her. He only hoped she wouldn't cause a scene.

Elizabeth thought for a moment as she chewed a bite of salad. "Did you think about asking Georgie? Maybe she'd want to go."

Will's brows knitted together. "I hadn't thought of that, actually. Not at all. I don't know if she'd want to go, I don't know if she'd be ready for that."

Elizabeth shrugged. "There's only one way to find out, right? I mean, would you object to her going?"

Will shook his head. "Of course not."

"Then you should ask her."

* * *

><p>After dinner and cleanup, Elizabeth sat on the couch and opened her laptop on the coffee table. She was determined to get a little more work done, but all she could think about was crawling into bed. After an hour she finally closed her laptop and looked over at Will, who was sitting in the overstuffed chair, reading a book. He looked like he was barely keeping his eyes open as well.<p>

"Pssst," she said quietly. He glanced up, and she patted the cushion next to her. He put his book down, rose from the chair and walked to the couch, sitting down and pulling her close.

"All done?" he asked.

"All done. I can't think straight, my brain is too mushy." She rubbed the back of her neck.

He chuckled. "Mine too. I don't even know what I was reading, I think I've been on the same page for the last half hour." He pushed her hand away from her neck. "Let me do that."

He turned on the couch, pulling her in between his legs, and began rubbing her shoulders, kneading the muscles, working them loose until Elizabeth's neck felt like a wet noodle. After quite a few minutes of the delicious massage, he stood up and reached for her hand. "Come with me."

She took his hand as she rose from the couch. "Where are we going?"

"We're going to bed. We're both exhausted, and you have a long day tomorrow, I'm sure."

Elizabeth was not about to argue. He locked the door and shut off lights while she went into the bathroom. When she came out, he was already stripped down to his boxer briefs, sitting on the bed and waiting patiently for his turn. She watched as he walked out of the bedroom and felt that little tug in her stomach. She changed into her pajama tank top and shorts and went to gaze out the window. It was a very clear night, and the moon lit up the waves with a white glow as they crashed on to the beach and then receded slowly.

"Do you know what I just thought of?" he said, startling her as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"I can only imagine."

He playfully bit at her neck. "Mmm, besides that. I was thinking about this coming weekend. We'll get to dance at the benefit...they have a jazz band or an orchestra or something."

She grinned as she snuggled back against him tightly. "So, not only do I get to _see _you in a tux, I get to dance with you while you're wearing it."

He chuckled. "It looks that way." They fell silent as he leaned away from her, releasing his hold on her waist so he could rub her shoulders again. After a few minutes of silent enjoyment, she felt his caress begin to change, the way his hands softened on her and began to move in a seductive pattern along the sides of her breasts, down her ribs to her waist.

He spoke quietly in her ear. "We haven't stood here like this since that day we came home from Boston. Do you remember that?"

She grinned. "Of course I remember that, how could I forget? I practically threw myself at you."

He chuckled against her neck, sending goosebumps all over her body.

As he stroked her back and shoulders, Will thought about the past week, and about how much everything between them had changed in that little bit of time. Discovering his true feelings for her, and admitting them to himself willingly, paled in comparison to hearing her say that she loved him as well.

At this precise moment, nothing in his life could possibly be improved upon. He had Elizabeth, Georgie was healing and forging ahead with her life, and his business was thriving. He knew he had a lot to be thankful for, and he was especially thankful for the woman in his arms. He sighed loudly as he wrapped his arms around her waist again, squeezing her tight.

"What's the matter?" she asked quietly.

"Nothing."

Elizabeth pulled her head back and turned to look up at him, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the soft moonlight so she could read his expression. "Something's the matter. Will you tell me?"

His throat felt inexplicably tight. "Nothing is the matter, I swear. That was a sigh of contentment." He didn't even want to speak, was finding it difficult to move words past the lump securely knotted in his throat.

Elizabeth, unwitting of where his thoughts had traveled, tugged him over to the bed. She nudged him so that he would lay down first, and once he was settled, she crawled on top of him, her entire body covering his. She hovered over him, her face inches from his, and ran her hands through his hair as she leaned on her elbows.

"I have ways of making you talk, you know."

He smiled softly at her but remained silent as she gently but provocatively moved her hips against his, and slowly moved her breasts against his chest. Of course, the reaction in his body was instantaneous, and he felt his blood surge and his heartbeat pick up speed. He ran his hands down the length of her back until he reached her bottom, cupping her and pulling her closer to him as he moved his hips upward in a gentle thrust, rubbing himself against her.

One hand left her bottom and moved up to tangle in her hair, pulling her head toward his, closing the distance between their mouths. His tongue teased her top lip, then her bottom, lightly tracing the outline of each, before he settled his mouth over hers to kiss her thoroughly. Their tongues danced together, and he moved his other hand to settle on the back of her neck, holding her to him.

They kissed until they were out of breath, enjoying the steady build-up of desire, letting it coil slowly. Their bodies, though still partially clothed, slowly rocked together in an instinctual rhythm. By the time Elizabeth lifted her head from his, her lips felt tingly and swollen, and every other part of her body was aching to be touched.

"Will."

"Elizabeth," he replied, mimicking her 'we need to talk' tone of voice perfectly.

She sighed, shaking her head slightly. "Are you sure there's nothing bothering you?"

He nodded. "Do you want to know what I was thinking about?"

"I do, if you want to tell me."

He shrugged, then hesitated for a moment, looking up at her. "I was thinking about how incredibly blessed I feel right now. I mean, it probably sounds corny, but...I have you, and Georgiana is finally coming around...business is good, I'm healthy...I was just thinking that I'm an incredibly lucky person to have what I have."

Elizabeth smiled down at him. "Sounds familiar."

He smiled as he realized she had said something similar the day before. He reached up to stroke her cheek, becoming lost, as he always did, in the big green eyes staring down at him. Once again, he gently pulled her head down to his, and they kissed for a long while. Will began to sit up, and as he did, he gently pushed Elizabeth off of him so that she was kneeling on the bed. He reached forward to lift her tank top off, and watched as her nipples tightened into hard peaks. Lowering himself toward her, he took one into his mouth, running his tongue across the tip and sucking it hungrily before turning his attention to its twin.

Elizabeth could feel her entire body flush in response to his attentions, and she reached to hold his head, acknowledging how her body instantly became ready for his. All it took was a touch, or a kiss, and she could feel every change zipping through her, every sensation.

He released her nipple and worked his way up to her mouth again, hooking his fingers into the waistband of her shorts. After some squirming and tussling about, and not without some laughter, they both managed to remove their last remaining bits of clothing. Once again, Will pulled Elizabeth up to her knees. He moved behind her, putting his knees between hers, turning her to face toward the large mirror standing in the corner of her room.

Her eyes were closed, he could tell, but as he reached around her to cup her breasts, he whispered in her ear. "Elizabeth, open your eyes."

She did as he suggested, and immediately, her gaze locked on his in the mirror. The jolt she felt as she watched him touch her was astonishing; she couldn't pull her eyes away. She watched, mesmerized, as he lowered his head to her shoulder, kissing his way up to her neck, all the while playing with her breasts, alternately palming them or rolling her nipples in his strong fingers, making her press her hips back against him. As his mouth rose to her ear, he flicked her lobe with his tongue, and she could see that he was gazing at their reflection again too.

"Do you like watching me do this to you?" he asked quietly.

"Yes," she whispered back, unable to find her voice.

One hand left her breast and slowly, teasingly trailed down her stomach to her hip, lingering there, stroking the soft skin lightly. His other hand never stopped toying with her breasts, moving from one to the other in a seductive rhythm. Again, his mouth was at her neck, sucking on her pulse point, biting at her gently. The hand that was on her hip was now working its way to the juncture of her thighs, and she automatically opened them slightly wider, encouraging his hand to move further.

The minute his fingers stroked her, feeling how ready she was for him, Will truly thought he would burst. He lifted his eyes to the mirror, and almost did lose control.

"Oh God, Lizzy, you feel so good," he whispered into her neck as he watched her body move against his. He began to move his fingers in and out of her, slowly, watching with rapt attention as her hips began to match the movement. Her back arched slightly, pushing her breasts up higher, and his other hand stroked them greedily. He couldn't stop his own hips from moving against her bottom, and the friction was beyond enticing.

Elizabeth closed her eyes and leaned back against Will, letting his body brace hers as she let herself become completely immersed in sensation. She felt his fingers gliding in and out of her, and felt his thumb circling her clit, applying just the right amount of pressure. Her body began that familiar upward climb, and her breathing became erratic. She felt Will respond to the change, felt the thrusts of his fingers and the pressure of his thumb increase. His erection throbbed hotly against her backside, and she reached back with one hand to grasp him, stroking him firmly up and down, instantly feeling his body tense and his breathing increase as well.

His hand left her breast to grab her hand, moving it away from him. "Not necessary," he said, and she could hear the restraint in his voice.

"But I want to touch," Elizabeth breathed, turning her head to bite at his chin and jaw.

He took her hand again, putting it over her breast with his. "Touch here with me."

He watched in the mirror as her hand, now entangled with his, stroked her sensitive skin. She laid her head back against his shoulder again, trying to control her breathing. His eyes shifted lower and he watched as his fingers moved in and out of her. "Lizzy, open your eyes, look at me. Look at us."

She slowly lifted her head from its spot on his shoulder and locked gazes with him once again in the mirror. Her eyes, too, drifted lower, and as she watched him move his fingers in and out of her, the upward climb that she was feeling picked up significant speed. She was so close, but she didn't want to let go yet, she wasn't ready for this to be over. Will, however, had other plans for her. His hips were rocking against her, and his fingers and thumb were relentless. His other hand, still locked with hers, toyed with her nipples, going from one to the other.

"God, you're beautiful. Look at you...so beautiful," he whispered breathlessly into her ear.

Those words were all the encouragement she needed, and she felt her body completely flush hot before she was overtaken by a surging orgasm. Her muscles clenched his fingers repeatedly as he continued to move them, slower now, still circling his thumb around her overly-sensitized flesh. He had bitten down lightly on the spot between her neck and shoulder as she came, and the sensation was incredibly erotic. She removed her hand from his and lowered it to the one between her legs, covering it and stroking it.

They smiled at each other in the mirror, and Will, about ready to burst, slowly withdrew his fingers from her, chuckling when he felt her whole body shudder. Instantly, he guided her down to the mattress, and watched as she partially pulled one leg in toward her chest. That was all the invitation he needed; he moved his body behind hers and pushed into her, knowing it wasn't going to take much for him to go. They both sighed audibly as he sank into her completely. She shifted her hips, silently asking him to move, and he held her still.

"Don't move yet, please," he said hoarsely. "Let me...just give me a minute to get control."

She shifted her hips again playfully. "What if I don't want you to get control?" she asked, turning to look over her shoulder at him, smiling seductively, her cheeks glowing.

He half-laughed, half-moaned. "Elizabeth..." his voice came out on a large exhalation.

She wiggled again. "Will..."

He couldn't take her teasing anymore, and firmly grasped her hips as he began to move in and out of her, pushing into her with each thrust as far as he could go. He heard her soft intakes of breath, the sensual noises she made, and it fueled him further. Reaching around with one hand, he found her center again, stroking her, wanting to make her climax for him again. Her body responded almost instantly as he felt her tense and her muscles clench around him. That was all he needed, and before he knew it, he was spilling into her, thrusting harder, until he was completely drained.

He slowly pulled himself out of her and they both collapsed on the bed, breathing heavily. He rolled her toward him and pulled her up against him, cuddling her body into his as tight as he could. Neither spoke for several minutes.

Elizabeth's head was tucked under Will's chin, and as her ear rested again his chest, she could hear the hammering of his heartbeat. She smiled against his skin, happy that she could make him lose control like he made her lose control; happy that she could make him happy.

"I can feel you smiling on me."

She giggled. "You can?"

"Yes, and your giggle is tickling me."

"What am I doing now?" She mouthed some words against his skin.

"I have no idea," Will said, stroking her back. "Are you saying, 'more, Will, let's do it again'?"

She laughed and pinched his waist. "No...I was saying 'I love you, Fitzwilliam Robert Darcy'."

He wiggled down until they were face to face and gave her a warm, lingering kiss. "I love you too, Elizabeth Rose Bennet."

* * *

><p>Sitting at her desk the next day, Elizabeth was consumed with the amount of work she needed to get caught up on. She realized, in hindsight of course, that taking so many days off in the past two weeks was not conducive to working on a new project. With thoughts of going to the Ace Basin lodged in her mind, she was determined to prove herself competent on <em>any<em> project, no matter what was thrown at her.

The problem today was that her thoughts were more on the weekend she had just had, and not so much on the work in front of her. She kept having to retrain her brain to cooperate. One minute, she was studying some statistics, and the next thing she knew, she was staring off into space, images of Will's face...or body...floating through her mind. She even thought of his expression as he rode the carousel, and ended up giggling to herself. _Ace Basin, Ace Basin, Elizabeth. Concentrate_.

She had spoken to Bill this morning about his email, and he seemed sure about the trip. The only thing not set in stone was the date, but that was inconsequential. She didn't care if they wanted her to go in January, she'd do it. She would be traveling with two other people, one from NOAA* and one from WHOI*, and once down there, they would meet up with a team from the Basin.

As one o'clock approached, her cell phone chimed, and she glanced at it quickly. It was a text from Lydia.

_Hey! Are you ignoring me?_

Elizabeth shook her head, sighing, as she texted back._ No, I'm not ignoring you, __I've been away and __haven't had a chance to call you._

_Where have you been?_

_Went to the island with Will over the weekend. Birthday trip._

_Fun. Are you guys going tonight or what?_

_No, we're not. Sorry!_

_Come on, it will be fun! Charlotte and George are going too._

Elizabeth wrinkled her nose as she read George's name. More inducement to skip it.

_No thanks. Lots of work to catch up on. Have fun though! I'll talk to you soon._

_OK, we'll get you there next time._

_Sure, next time._

Elizabeth sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was spend the evening with George. She felt a twinge of guilt, realizing that she and Charlotte hadn't been spending too much time together lately. Before Will and George came along, they got together a couple of times a week, either to run, or shop, or even just to go to a movie or grab a bite to eat. Not lately, though. Maybe she'd call Charlotte to see if she'd go shopping with her this week. She needed a dress for the benefit!

* * *

><p>Will sat at his desk, tapping his pen impatiently as he waited for Lauren to connect him to Richard. <em>Hmm. Lauren. <em>Within five seconds, Richard's voice came booming over the phone.

"Hey, Darcy, what's up?"

"Hey Richard, how's it going?"

"Everything's great here, just great. Gliding along smoothly, if I do say so myself. I'm looking forward to the weekend, though, and getting back to Boston for a visit."

"Actually, that's why I was calling. I just wanted to make sure you were still a party of four."

"I am...we are."

"You never did tell me who you were bringing, you know. People from RJD?"

"Um, one person from RJD. I thought I told you that Anne and Catherine were coming too?"

Will's eyebrows flew up in surprise. "Oh, no, you neglected to tell me that. Jesus, Richard, don't you think you should have let me know?"

"I thought I did. What's the big deal? Anne will leave you alone, and Catherine...well, she's just Catherine."

"That statement says it all, don't you think? If she says anything to me regarding her ridiculous ideas about Anne, or better yet, says anything to Elizabeth about those ideas, I'll drag her out of there by her ear."

Richard laughed. "Now, that I would like to see. Relax, cuz, Anne knows you're involved with Elizabeth, she'll keep her mother at bay. Although, you may want to warn Elizabeth about her just the same."

Will sighed loudly. "Yeah, I guess I should. Who's coming with you from RJD?"

Richard cleared his throat, hesitating. "Lauren."

Once again, Will's eyebrows flew up. "Lauren? Your secretary, Lauren?"

Richard's voice was flat. "Yes, my secretary, Lauren. Who is also my girlfriend, Lauren."

Will closed his eyes. "You've got to be kidding me."

"No, I'm quite serious, actually."

"So, when I was in California, and I saw you outside your office with her, was she your girlfriend then?"

"Yes, she was."

"So you lied to me."

"I guess I did, yes."

There was silence for a moment while Will processed the information.

"It's so cliché, Richard," he said stonily, "you know, the boss boning the secretary. I thought you were more creative than that."

"Fuck you."

Will pursed his lips. "Not the way to talk to the boss, Richard."

"Yeah, well, when my boss gets back on the phone, let me know. Right now I'm talking to my cousin."

Will could hear the anger in Richard's voice, and made himself calm down. "Do you know how bad it looks, Richard? Do you know what the other people working for you would say, if they knew you were having a relationship with your _secretary_?"

Richard sighed. "Darcy, she and I were involved before she came to work here," he said quietly.

Will didn't know what to say. He leaned back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling, running his free hand through his hair. "Christ, Richard! You got her a job at RJD? That is wrong on _so_ many levels. What were you thinking?"

"I did not _get _her the job. She got it on her own, one hundred percent. Look, I knew Marilyn was leaving, so I told Lauren that a job would be opening with us. She had the qualifications, and was miserable at her other job. The pay was horrible and she had virtually no benefits. I did _not_ interfere with the hiring process here, trust me. If I had, she would have killed me. She's not like that, she wasn't looking for special treatment."

"She's certainly getting it now, though, isn't she?"

"Shut the fuck up, will you? You're being an asshole."

There was silence until Richard spoke again.

"You'll meet her this Saturday and find out for yourself what she's like. Will you just give her a chance before you hang her, for Christ's sake?"

Will sighed, shaking his head. "You do realize how it looks, don't you? I mean, you must see it."

"I know exactly what it would look like to other people, believe me. We are being totally professional at work, no one here has a clue. We've never behaved inappropriately."

"Unless you're in the hall together. And I'm sure it's not because you haven't tried."

"The hall thing was a little slip up, but even you can't say that anything happened. You're just good at reading body language."

Will could hear the smirk in Richard's voice and gave a curt laugh. "I'm good at reading you. At least I thought I was. I wish you had been honest with me that day."

"You would have fired her on the spot, you and I both know that," Richard said quietly.

"You're probably right."

"I know I'm right."

"So, you've been dating her since before she started at RJD. You said she started there six months ago."

"That's right."

Will's mind whirled. _Richard, in a committed relationship? _"Wow. That's so...monogamous of you."

Richard couldn't help but chuckle. "Hey, look, I could say the same for you, you know. That last day that you were out here...you were pretty pathetic."

"I know I was, I apologize for that, but my gut was right. Everything was a mess back here. There was the whole thing with Anne answering my phone, but then Caroline got her claws into Elizabeth too, fed her a bunch of shit about me."

"Caroline? God, when is she going to give up on you?" He paused for a second. "Please tell me she isn't sitting with us at the benefit."

"Not anymore she isn't. Charles officially uninvited her. I don't even know if she's going now. Part of me hopes she doesn't, so I don't have to look at her, but part of me hopes she does, so I can tell her off."

"Another thing I'd love to see."

"So when are you flying in?"

"Friday night. We're staying right at the Long Wharf, so we won't have far to go."

"Great." Will paused for a moment and sighed. "I'm sorry about earlier, you just caught me off guard. But listen, you _have_ to be discreet. I'm not comfortable with this at all. It's in everyone's best interest to not have rumors circulating about a possible relationship between the big boss and his secretary; you know this as well as I do."

"Darcy, I know that, and so does Lauren. You don't have anything to worry about, okay? Trust me."

Will sighed again. "I do, Richard. Just play it smart. Safe travels, okay? Get in touch with me Friday when you land, I'll be in Boston already."

"Sounds good. Talk to you soon."

Will sat back after his phone call, once again tapping his pen on his desk. _Wow. Richard has been in a relationship for over six months. _He shook his head in disbelief. _I hope this doesn't blow up in his face...or mine._

He walked out of his office to look for Georgiana, and found her sitting in one of the adirondack chairs in the back yard. He plopped down in the one next to her.

"What are you doing out here?"

She smiled at him. "Thinking."

"About what?"

She turned to look at him again, and she blushed slightly. "Nothing special. Um, I was thinking about my interview this week in Mashpee."

"When is it?"

"Wednesday."

Will shrugged. "You did fine at the other interview, I'm sure you'll do fine at this one as well." He studied her for a minute. "Are you sure there's nothing else on your mind?"

She shook her head. "No...not really. I'm going to start moving some of my things out to the guest house tomorrow if that's okay."

Will nodded. The crew from the alarm company had arrived at nine a.m., and were just about done with installing all the security measures that Will had asked for. The only things left to do were the flagstone walkway and the solar lights, which the landscaping company would take care of. "I'd say that's fine...you can move out there any time."

"Okay. Thanks."

"That doesn't mean you can't pop by, come have dinner with me, or breakfast."

She smiled at him and rolled her eyes. "When you're actually _here_ for breakfast."

He grinned back at her. "Yeah, I guess I haven't been here much lately. It's just easier for Elizabeth if we're at her house, so she can get to work."

"You don't need to explain it to me, I get it."

They sat there in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the weather, when the benefit popped back into  
>Will's mind.<p>

"Hey, I meant to ask you," he said, turning to look at Georgie again, "would you be interested in going to the Arts Alive Benefit this weekend?"

Georgiana raised her eyebrows. "Oh, um...I don't know. Why?"

"Well, I have two extra seats at my table. You know, I didn't ask you to go before...I just didn't know how you'd feel about it, if you'd be uncomfortable, so I figured I just shouldn't ask. I probably should have...in any case, I'm asking you now. If you want to go, just let me know. You can bring Julie, or someone else, if you want."

"It's formal, right?"

Will nodded. "Black tie."

"Who else will be at the table?"

Will could see she was weighing her decision. There would be _a lot_ of people there, people she hadn't seen in a long time. It would be a big deal for her. "Well, there's me and Elizabeth, Charles and Jane, Richard and his girlfriend Lauren-"

"Wait, did you say _girlfriend_? Richard has a girlfriend?"

"I did, and he does. Six months and going strong."

Georgie's jaw dropped. "Holy cow. I never thought I'd see the day."

"You and me both. Anyway, Richard and Lauren, and then Catherine and Anne."

"Catherine and Anne? Ugh. Really?"

"Hey, at least Caroline isn't sitting with us."

"Oh. She isn't going?"

"I don't know if she is or not, but she's not sitting with us." He shrugged at Georgie's questioning look. "Long story, and one I don't care to delve into right now. So what do you think?"

"Can I let you know later?"

He smiled and stood. "Absolutely. I'm heading back in, I've got to get some work done."

She smiled up at him. "Okay. Thanks Will."

* * *

><p>George walked into Monday Night Madness, being tugged along by Charlotte. The music was thumping out of the speakers, and the amount of people squeezed on to the tiny little dance floor was astounding. He smiled as he instantly took note of the male to female ratio. <em>Definitely in favor of the men.<em>

"Lydia!" Charlotte yelled over the crowd as she spotted Lydia and Denny by the bar.

George's eyebrows flew up into his forehead as he spotted the woman that Charlotte was calling out to. Lydia waved to Charlotte, and George was immediately struck by her appearance. He knew she was Elizabeth Bennet's sister, but didn't expect the resemblance to be so striking. His initial glee at this discovery began to wear off as he got closer to her. She was no Lizzy, to be sure. From a distance, the hair made him think she was similar to Elizabeth, but upon getting closer, he saw that the long, dark curls were the only physical trait they really had in common. Still, this one was cute.

"Lydia, this is George Wickham," Charlotte yelled over the music. She turned back to George. "George, this is Lydia Bennet, and this is Denny Wheldon."

George shook hands with both of them and smiled. "Nice to meet you both." Lydia's blue eyes sparkled up at him as she shook his hand.

"It's nice to meet _you_, George," she said, leaning into him.

Deep inside, George felt a little zap of awareness. He smiled at Lydia, already having a sense that she would be easy for him. Almost too easy. His gaze traveled to Denny, who Lydia seemed to have forgotten about entirely. George turned to Charlotte.

"Dance with me, love," he said, taking her hand and pulling her toward him. He needed to think, and found it easier to do so while he was on the dance floor, simply because he didn't have to make conversation with people he had just met. Already, it was turning into an interesting evening.

He had been contemplating Elizabeth Bennet for some time now, and had decided that pursuit of her would only lead to disaster. Really, how many times could he play William Darcy? The man had surely learned his lesson with his sister...could he really go down that road again? Trying to get money from him a second time would be like playing with fire. Fire, meaning jail time. As much as he would love to bed Elizabeth Bennet, and make a profit while doing so, the danger far outweighed the reward.

He had thought about bedding her just for sport, having a roll with her and being done with it, but even then...she was wary around him, he could sense it and read it in her body language. The chances of even getting her alone would be slim...she was very watchful around him. She would have to be...persuaded, and he knew that she wasn't gullible enough to play with in that way. Not like Darcy's sister; she had been such an easy mark.

Plus, he had a feeling that once he'd had a taste of Elizabeth, he'd want to go back for more, and that wouldn't be wise at all. She still flooded his fantasies, though, and he found that envisioning her as he screwed Charlotte had livened up his sex life fantastically. _The imagination is a wonderful thing_.

The sister, though...she was easy prey, he could tell already. She might be useful for a little fun on the side. He enjoyed Charlotte, he really did, but she was just...Charlotte. She wasn't feisty, there was no fire there, no passion. He thought she had it, when they first started dating, but since then, she had become a little too submissive. Granted, being in complete control turned him on, especially since she did anything he wanted, but he was tiring of her. He needed to feel challenged again. _Maybe it was time for someone new_.

He glanced up and saw Lydia dancing her way over to them, and he smiled at her and winked. She beamed back at him and jumped in the dancing, laughing with Charlotte. He looked and saw that Denny stood at the bar, talking with the bartender and a waitress. _Bad move, buddy_.

The song ended, and another one immediately kicked in. Charlotte leaned into George. "I'm going to get a beer. Want one?"

"Sure. I'll be back in a minute, I'll dance one more with your friend here." He nodded toward Lydia.

Charlotte smiled. "Okay. Have fun." She gave him a peck on the lips and left the floor.

George purposely moved backward as they danced, getting them out of the line of vision of the bar. As the music pumped loudly, he slowly moved closer and closer to Lydia, and could tell by the look on her face that she was well aware of what he was doing. _This one is no innocent_.

They danced closely, and she was even so bold as to put her hands on his hips briefly. George's eyebrows raised slightly, and she grinned flirtatiously at him.

"So tell me, Lydia," he said to her as they danced almost chest to chest, "is Denny your boyfriend?"

"Is Charlotte your girlfriend?" Lydia asked coyly, turning the tables on him. She had been knocked out by George as soon as she saw him. _He is one hot man._

He laughed at her bluntness. "I would call Charlotte a friend with benefits. We're not exclusive."

"Denny is...an old friend. We're not...exclusive either. We're not anything, really."

He smiled at her, and dug into his pocket for his phone. Pulling it out, he pushed a few buttons and handed it to her.

Knowing what he was about, she typed in her number and handed it back to him, then did the same with her phone. They danced closely, and he discreetly ran his hand up the outside of her thigh, under her short skirt and around to stroke her bottom.

"Is your old friend staying with you tonight?" he breathed into her ear.

Lydia's breath caught and she shook her head. "No." George smiled at her, and she felt a delicious warmth spreading through her body.

"Charlotte's not staying with me either." _At least not now she isn't_. "Perhaps I'll call you later, after we leave here?"

Lydia smiled. "Perhaps you will."

* * *

><p><em>Oh, I know darn well you have a lot to say about Icky Wicky and Lydia...so please feel free to leave a review. Thank you!<em>

_Just a reminder: *NOAA – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; *WHOI – Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution_


	24. Chapter 24

_This chapter marks the end of Part 3. It has a little of everything...including a dose of Wickham. Prepare yourselves! Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 24<strong>

"Hi Lizzy, it's me, Georgie...um, if you get a chance, can you call me later? I wanted to talk to you about something...I know you're at work right now, probably busy...anyway, just call me if you can. Thanks. Bye."

Georgiana hung up her cell phone and stared at the screen of her laptop. It was Tuesday afternoon, and she was sitting in the guesthouse, taking a break from cleaning and moving. Will had been helping her, but they had taken a short break for lunch, and he had gone back to the house to make a few phone calls. She looked around her, pleased with what they had accomplished so far.

Her eyes were drawn back to her laptop, and she re-read the email that she had received last night.

_Hello Georgiana,_

_How are you? Jules told me that you were okay with me emailing you, so I thought I'd send a quick hello. She said that she had a good weekend with you, and that you're doing well. I'm glad to hear it. She's been worried about you for so long, and was really happy when you decided to get back in touch with her. She missed you a lot._

_I heard that you're looking for work on the Cape, and plan on staying there for good. I think that's great. I'd love to get out of Boston! My job is pretty good, so I can't complain, but I definitely don't want to live in the city forever...too much noise and chaos!_

_I would really like to see you. I want to talk to you, face to face, not through email. Let me know if that's okay with you. Maybe I could drive down some weekend to visit for the afternoon or something. It's up to you._

_I hope to hear from you soon._

_Matt_

Georgiana's eyes scanned the email two more times. _Why does he want to talk to me face to face? _She was torn about seeing him. Part of her wanted to so badly; she had always been a little bit in love with him, and missed seeing him. The other part of her, though, was horrified at the thought. The last time she saw him was on New Years Day. It was all a blur, but she remembered that he wouldn't look her in the eye, and had barely managed to speak to her. _Now, he wants to talk to me. Face to face_.

She and Julie had talked about Matt over the weekend, and Georgiana had asked her why he wanted to get in touch now, after six months had passed without them talking.

Julie had shrugged. "I don't know, G, but I do know this; when everything...happened to you, he was not himself after. I think it really affected him. Do you know that he and I have never talked about it? He refused to talk about it with me. I mean, he'd let me go on and on until I was blue in the face, but he never said a word about how he felt."

Georgie knew that when Julie went home, she'd pass along the message to Matt that it was okay for him to email her, but she didn't think he'd do it so quickly.

Sighing, she closed her laptop and walked to the window. The landscapers were outside, working diligently, placing the large pieces of flagstone for the walkway to the main house. After that was done, they'd place the solar lights, and Fort Darcy would be complete. She grinned to herself. Despite her complaining and whining, she did feel better with all of the security measures in place. _I guess I need to stop thinking of it as the guesthouse, and start thinking of i__t as my house._

* * *

><p>Elizabeth was beginning to panic. The benefit was in four days, and she had yet to go out and shop for a dress. She could look today, after work, and probably tomorrow as well, but on Thursday she had a softball game, and since there were only two left, she didn't want to miss it. Still, if she didn't find a dress today or tomorrow, she might have to.<p>

The problem with shopping in Falmouth was that there were very few stores that carried dresses worthy of a black tie affair. She didn't want anything too extravagant; a nice cocktail dress would do. But where to look? There were probably two stores in town, and maybe two or three in the Commons in Mashpee that she could check out, but that was it.

She pulled her cell phone out of her desk to text Charlotte, and noticed that she had one missed call, from Georgiana. She quickly listened to the message, and hoping that nothing was wrong, decided to call her when she left work, and proceeded to text Charlotte.

_Hi Charlotte._

She left her phone on her desk so she'd hear it if Charlotte responded. About twenty minutes later, she heard the ping of her text alert.

_Hi Lizzy, what's up?_

_I have a shopping emergency! Need a swanky dress for the weekend. Any thoughts or free time?_

_I have to work tonight, but if you can wait til tomorrow, I can go with you then. Where are you going this weekend?_

_Fundraiser in Boston with Will. Black tie!_

_Ohh, nice. Check around in Falmouth…try 'Maxwells' or'Rosie Cheeks' if you have time today. 'White House/Black Market' in Mashpee is great too._

_Thanks…I'll look today after work, will let you know how I do. How was MNM last night? Are you upright? _

_LOL, yes I'm upright. It was okay…kind of weird. Long story, I'll tell you about it next time I see you._

_OK…will text you after I shop today. Have a good shift tonight._

_Thanks. Bye!_

* * *

><p>Elizabeth left work promptly at four and called Will. She hadn't spoken to him all day, but knew he had been at home, helping Georgie. He answered on the second ring.<p>

"Hi beautiful," he said, sounding upbeat.

"Hi yourself. What have you been up to all day?"

"Mostly helping Georgie get squared away. The big move is today, you know," he said, laughing lightly.

"It is a big move, for her."

"Oh, I know. I'm happy for her. She's excited. I've been lugging all of her boxes back and forth, while she stares at the walls and tries to figure out where to hang pictures. Doesn't seem very fair."

"A big manly man like you can lug a few boxes, I'm sure. Where is she right now, is she there with you?"

"No, I'm at my house, she's at hers." He chuckled. "Guess I have to get used to saying that. The landscaping guys did a great job with the walkway, it looks good."

"I'm glad. What are you doing later?"

"Seeing you, I hope. Did you just leave work?"

"Yes, and I'm going straight into town to go dress shopping. I can't believe I have nothing to wear yet."

"You'll find something, any dress will do."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Spoken like a true male."

"I guess I should have mentioned the benefit to you a little earlier."

"That would have been helpful, yes. It's fine though, I know I'll find something. I have today and tomorrow to look, and if I need to, I'll skip my game Thursday and look then too."

"I'll be heading into Boston Thursday, so I'll miss your game. We have to figure out how you're getting to Boston on Friday."

"We'll talk about that tonight. Did Georgie give you an answer yet about Saturday night?"

"Not yet."

"I have to call her, so I'll ask her about it. I'll call you when I get home, okay?"

"Okay. Have fun shopping, I'll talk to you later. Love you."

She smiled. "Love you too. Bye."

* * *

><p>George Wickham awoke mid-afternoon on Tuesday with a smile on his face. He had strolled in the door just before four thirty this morning, careful not to wake his cousin.<p>

_What a night._ Dancing at that little restaurant had been quite fun, especially since he was able to dance quite a bit with Lydia Bennet. Their last dance was full of sexual tension, which he had purposely been feeding into the whole evening. Brushing up against her, touching her discreetly…it was all part of the game. They had all parted ways shortly after midnight, and he had quietly told her to call him if she was interested in a night cap.

By twelve-thirty, Charlotte had dropped him off at Bill's house, after he lied and told her he had a headache from all the music. He was confident that his phone would be ringing soon, and he wanted to be ready to go when the call came. He didn't have to wait long; by one a.m., his phone was ringing. She wanted to meet up with him, but therein lay the problem; where to meet? He didn't want her to come to Bill's house, and she didn't want him to be seen by her roommates either.

They agreed to meet at Trunk River, a small parking area not too far off the bike path. It was fairly close to Elizabeth's house, and as he drove past her place, he slowed, noticing the Porsche parked next to her jeep. _Darcy_. A small surge of jealousy went through him as he thought about Darcy doing things to and with Elizabeth that he could only dream about. _I'll have the next best thing; her sister._ He couldn't help but laugh when he realized he was forming a bit of a pattern…_first Darcy's sister, now Elizabeth's._

He pulled his motorcycle into the rutted dirt parking lot of Trunk River, and saw a small car parked over in the farthest corner. Once his headlight was off, neither her car nor his motorcycle would be visible at all. _Perfect. _As he got closer, he saw a tiny, brief orange glow, and realized she was smoking.

He parked right next to her car, took off his helmet and climbed off the bike. She stared at him quietly as he walked over to her, taking another long drag from her cigarette. He boldly reached out and took it from her hand, tossing it to the ground and grinding it out with the toe of his black leather boot.

Moving his hand to her face, he held her chin firmly in his hand and stared at her intently. "I don't like the taste."

Thinking back to their encounter, George stretched, fondling himself as he felt his body stirring to life. The first time he had taken her, they were in her little car. Uncomfortable, to say the least, but he made do, to be sure. God, she had been eager. He remembered thinking that whatever she had been up to with that 'non-exclusive' friend of hers, it obviously hadn't been enough.

Afterward, they had walked across the bike path to the small spit of beach and had made some conversation. She was chatty, this one, but he didn't mind. She had asked about Charlotte, and he told her that they weren't exclusive. It was partly true; he had never told Charlotte that he was a one-woman man, and if she had made that assumption, it was her own fault. They had never talked about commitment or monogamy or anything of the sort. To him, that was as good as saying they _weren't_ committed or monogamous.

He admitted to Lydia that he was a little curious about her relationship with Denny. She explained that he was a former flame that had come back around to try to win her back. She had given a short laugh.

"You don't sound very enthusiastic about his attentions," he had said to her.

She laughed. "I'm not. I thought I was, when I first saw him, but…he has nothing I want. His little life in Maine, his white-picket fence dream…that's not me. It's just _boring_, you know? I don't want it. Not yet, anyway."

"Why are you stringing him along?" Not that he cared one way or the other.

She had shrugged. "He's here for the summer, and I like the attention, so why not?"

He had smiled then. This girl, he could relate to. A little fun, a little excitement, that's all she wanted. He could give her that, in spades.

They had fooled around for a while on the beach, mostly a lot of kissing and some very heavy petting, and it had been close to three a.m. when they headed back to the parking lot. At that point, even though he was as hard as a rock, he fully expected to say goodnight and be on his way home. He was willing to have her just once this time, because he knew, without a doubt, that he would have more opportunities with her soon. Leaving her while he was in this condition would only make their next encounter that much more exciting.

Imagine his surprise when she pulled him towards her, latching on to his mouth with hers, undoing his pants and releasing his erection, stroking and caressing him until he was ready to spill into her hands. He spun her around, bent her over the hood of her car, pushed her skirt up and slammed into her from behind, thrusting into her roughly. Reaching around to stroke between her legs, he held himself in check until he felt her tightening around him, making her cry out as she came, wanting her to go before him. After all...he was nothing if not a gentleman.

Laying in bed now, remembering the feel of her, he stroked himself up and down enthusiastically. Being with her like that, thrusting into her from behind, definitely had its advantages.

_It was so much easier to pretend she was her sister_.

* * *

><p>By the time Elizabeth was headed to Will's house, she was thoroughly frustrated. Shopping for clothes was not one of her favorite things to begin with, and it was even less enjoyable when she had a specific item to shop for. She had fallen in love with a dress at Maxwell's, but the size wasn't right. Even if it had been, the price tag had frightened her to death. She found nothing at Rosie Cheeks, and had even stopped into Port Cargo to look there, but she found absolutely nothing that was suitable. Oh, they had plenty of dresses, but none appropriate for the benefit. She had returned home disheartened, hoping that she would have better luck tomorrow.<p>

She let herself into Will's house without knocking, as had become her habit. Hearing the sounds of music from down the hall, she dropped her purse on the couch in the great room and quietly headed that way. She stopped in the doorway to his office, watching him as he played. It always transfixed her, seeing him like this, totally absorbed in his music. She smiled as she looked at the back of his head, realizing that he must have gone to get a haircut today. The curls that had hung well below his collar were gone, the hair there now just barely reaching it.

She snuck up behind him, running her hand up into his hair. He jumped, completely startled.

He turned toward her, eyes closed, shaking his head. "Why do you do that to me? You're going to give me a heart attack one of these days."

"Sorry," she said, pouting. "I was looking at your hair."

He ran a hand self-consciously through it. "What do you think?"

She smiled. "You're gorgeous, of course, but I have to say, I liked it a little long."

He shook his head. "Too hot in the summer. I almost got a crew cut."

She looked at him in horror. "Ugh, I'm so glad you didn't do that!"

He set his guitar down and pulled her toward him, wrapping his arms around her waist. "I couldn't do it. It's not me."

"I'm glad, for purely selfish reasons." She smiled and reached up to kiss him, deciding that this was a nice way to spend the next five minutes or so. Her hands snuck under his shirt and roamed his chest and stomach, before stealing around to his back. The frustration of the past two hours magically slid away.

Will slowly broke away from her and smiled. "Are you trying to seduce me in my office?"

She sighed. "Sadly, no. I need to talk to Georgiana, is she around?"

He smiled. "She's at her house."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Do you mind if I pay her a visit? She called me earlier today, and I never called her back."

"Go. I'll be here when you get back…just sitting in my office, all alone," he whispered, as he leaned down to place kisses on her neck, "you know, just in case you want to come say hi again." His lips traveled back to hers, and he reached up to hold her head, kissing her deeply.

She smiled dreamily as he slowly pulled away from her, keeping her eyes closed. "Hmmm, I'll be back."

He reached around and playfully spanked her bottom, making her jump. "Don't take too long."

She shook her head, grinning, and left his office. Her pulse was racing and she took a deep breath. _Good_ _God, the effect that man has on me._

She arrived at Georgiana's and knocked, and within a minute Georgiana came to the door.

"Hey Lizzy! I was wondering if you got my message today."

"I did, and I completely blanked on calling you back. Sorry. I was dress shopping, which was an absolute waste of time." They walked toward the living room and sat at opposite ends of the couch, facing each other.

"Oh no, really? You know, you could always browse my closet, I have a few nice dresses that would be perfect for the benefit, I think we're probably about the same size. Let me know if you want to take a look."

"Thanks, I may have to take you up on that if I don't have any luck tomorrow. Speaking of the benefit, have you thought about going?"

Georgiana sighed. "I have. I'd love to see Richard, it's been so long since I've seen him. I heard he has a girlfriend, and he's bringing her with him, which is mind-boggling to me."

"That's what Will said…I can only imagine what he must be like, if you two are so amazed that he's actually in a relationship with someone." She wasn't sure if Will had told Georgiana the _entire_ story of Richard's girlfriend, so Elizabeth didn't say any more about it.

"Oh, he's a great guy, he just never seemed like he'd settle down, that's all. Obviously, he's changed."

"So…are you going to go with us?" Elizabeth asked, looking at her tentatively.

She nodded. "I think so."

Elizabeth clapped her hands in excitement. "I'm so glad. Your brother will be happy too."

Georgiana smiled. "I know." She paused for a moment. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure."

"Remember when we talked way back, about everything that happened to me? I mentioned Matt, Julie's brother."

Elizabeth nodded. "I remember. Your crush, right?"

Georgiana blushed. "Yes, my crush. Anyway, last week, when Julie emailed me about visiting, she mentioned that he'd been asking about me, and said he wanted to get in touch with me."

"Oh. Well that's good, right?"

"It is…I told her she could give him my email address. He emailed me last night."

"So, what did he say? If you don't mind me asking."

"Of course I don't mind, that's why I wanted to talk to you! He wants to see me. He wants to come to the Cape, maybe visit for the afternoon some weekend."

"Are you alright with that?"

She shrugged. "I guess I am…I don't know." She looked down at her hands. "I know I've made a lot of progress, and everything has gotten so much better. I feel like my old self again, you know?"

Elizabeth nodded. "You're doing great."

"Thanks. I know I am, that's the thing…it's not just you and Will and Mrs. R _telling_ me I'm doing great, I really feel like I am."

"So…what's holding you back from seeing Matt?"

"He's the one who found me...after. I can't stop thinking about what he must have seen, what he must have thought…part of me feels ashamed, or embarrassed, even though I know I shouldn't be. We used to be friends, you know? Even though I was just his little sister's best friend, we've gotten to know each other pretty well as we've gotten older. He's always been so nice to me."

"Why would that change? He knows what happened to you, why would that change his opinion of you?"

Georgiana shrugged again. "I don't know…but I'm worried that it has."

"He wouldn't want to see you if that was the case. If he's the nice guy that you say he is, I'm sure his feelings for you, whatever they are, haven't changed at all."

Georgiana glanced up at Elizabeth. "What do you mean, whatever they are?"

"Brotherly affection, friendship…whatever they are. He obviously cares about you in some way." Elizabeth leaned forward to place her hand on Georgiana's. "Do you want to see him?"

Georgiana blushed again and nodded. "I do."

"What about asking him to go to the benefit?"

Georgiana's eyes opened wide. "I couldn't do that!"

Elizabeth laughed at her reaction. "Why not? At least then, you wouldn't be alone with him, you'd have other people around, and maybe you wouldn't feel so nervous. It's just a suggestion."

"I don't know…I'd have to think about it. Maybe I could just see him while I'm in Boston instead…that way he wouldn't have to come here."

Elizabeth nodded. "That's a good idea too. You're staying with Will, right?"

"I have to, I don't have my apartment anymore. Although, I could stay with Mrs. Reynolds, if that would be easier for you guys."

"Don't be ridiculous."

Georgiana grinned. "Just checking. You know, privacy and all that."

"Mmm, I know. Thanks, but I'm sure we'll manage just fine. Hey, I'm going to see if Will wants to get Thai take-out, I have a hankering. Want to join us?"

"Thanks, but I'm going to hang out here…I have some things to think about."

Elizabeth stood up. "Okay, but come on over if you change your mind. It's a short walk."

Georgiana laughed. "Yeah, I think I can find my way."

* * *

><p>After getting their Thai take-out, Will and Elizabeth walked through the streets of New Seabury and headed to the Popponesset Marketplace. The marketplace was located just beyond the Inn and had several shops, a few places to eat, a country store, and a nine-hole miniature golf course. White-stone walkways led from one place to another, winding among the grey-shingled buildings. They had live entertainment in the courtyard of the marketplace on weekends, but tonight the small stage was quiet. As per usual in the summer, the walkways and shops were very crowded with people.<p>

After challenging Will to a round of mini-golf and soundly beating him, Elizabeth decided that her prize would be ice cream, so they each got a cone and walked down toward the Inn, agreeing to walk back to Will's house via the beach. They climbed up into an empty lifeguard stand and sat squished together, enjoying their cones and the balmy weather.

"Is everything okay with Georgiana?" Will asked.

Elizabeth nodded. "Everything is fine. Why?" She didn't want to mention anything to Will about Matt, only because she felt Georgiana had been confiding in her, and she didn't want to betray her confidence.

He shrugged. "She seemed a little preoccupied today, that's all. I just want to make sure she's okay."

"I did ask her about the benefit."

"What did she say?"

"She wants to go. She wants to see Richard, and I think part of her wants to visit Boston again. I think she's ready for it."

Will sighed. "I do too." He wrapped his free arm around her shoulders, hugging her to him. "I'm looking forward to having you stay at the townhouse with me."

Elizabeth smiled. "I'm looking forward to it too. Georgiana offered to stay with Mrs. Reynolds, but I told her it wasn't necessary."

"I have plenty of room, she knows that. She's just trying to be considerate."

"I know. She also offered to let me borrow a dress if I needed to."

He looked contrite. "That's my fault. I'm sure you'll find something with Charlotte tomorrow."

"I hope so. I'll have to remember to talk to her about Madness, I asked her how it was and she said it was weird...I have no idea what that could possibly mean. Although, she was there with Lydia, so I guess it could mean anything."

They finished their cones and sat on the stand for a little while longer, before jumping down and heading back down the beach toward Will's house.

Elizabeth's face lit up as they walked. "You know, it's been quite a while since we sat in the adirondack chairs. I think I'm overdue for a performance from you...I haven't heard you sing since my birthday."

He squeezed her tightly to him and kissed the top of her head. "We can fix that."

They strolled into the yard, and Will left Elizabeth at the chairs while he went to get one of his guitars. Elizabeth looked over toward Georgiana's house, smiling at the sight of lights in the windows. Not ten minutes later, Will was walking back to the chairs, guitar slung over his back.

He pulled his chair around so it was facing her, just as he had on their first date, and leaned down to give Elizabeth a long kiss before sitting down.

"Okay, you know the drill. Requests?"

She laughed. "The drill? Geez, how romantic. No, I have no requests. Play whatever you want."

He smiled and strummed the strings randomly for a minute while he thought about what to sing.

"Ah, I know. You'll like this one."

_Child, my heart skips a beat for you  
><em>_more than I need to, it feels like  
><em>_you're the reason I never sleep  
><em>_you're safe with me all through the lonely nights.  
><em>_And I, I'll be your apple tree  
><em>_give you all you need  
><em>_and gladly more.  
><em>_When you feel that you don't need me  
><em>_just wait and see what I've got in store for you.  
><em>_Little darlin', little darlin', won't you let me  
><em>_let me love, love you like I  
><em>_Like I want to, like I want to  
><em>_Little darlin', 'cause you know  
><em>_I'm dying to, lo-o-ove you.*_

As he launched into the second verse, Elizabeth watched him, the way his body moved and the way he became totally engrossed in the music. He looked at her as he sang, but sometimes he just closed his eyes and rocked, tapping a foot to the rhythm or tapping his guitar. It really was mesmerizing to watch him, and she felt herself growing warm as her eyes wandered over his neck, down his arms to his hands. His fingers glided effortlessly over the strings, one hand sliding up and down the neck of the guitar while the other was plucking sound from it gently. He rarely used a pick, preferring to just use the pads of his fingers, giving the notes a softer sound.

Will played the final notes and opened his eyes to see her gazing at him, just barely able to make out her large green eyes in the darkness that had slowly enveloped them. He placed his guitar on the ground and moved forward to sit on the edge of his seat, watching as she did the same. They were now knee to knee.

"Did you like that song?"

"I did, it was very sweet. You always sing sweet songs for me."

Instead of replying, he leaned forward to cup her face, just as he did on their first date. This time, though, the kiss wasn't tentative or chaste; it was full of desire and promise. Elizabeth raised her arms to hold the outside of his shoulders, then slowly let her hands slide along his arms until they came to rest at his wrists. Her hands moved up and down his forearms, caressing him softly. His lips moved to her ear as his hands dropped to her waist.

"You're staying tonight, aren't you?" he whispered into her ear.

She sighed and shook her head. "I really shouldn't. I have nothing here for work...I was in such a rush when I got home, I didn't even think to grab anything."

Will shrugged, frowning. "Okay. You don't have to leave yet, though, do you?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, it's still pretty early."

_Good_, thought Will, _that gives me time to change __he__r mind_. He smiled at her. "You know, we should practice dancing, for the benefit. We haven't danced together in a while."

"We danced together this weekend."

He rolled his eyes. "Not like that. Although, I have to say, that was more enjoyable than I thought it would be."

She grinned, knowing that she had enjoyed it as well. "So you want to practice now? Where are we going to do that?"

He stood and held out his hand. "Follow me." He grabbed his guitar and led Elizabeth toward the house.

Elizabeth slowed as they began to pass Georgiana's. "Can we stop here for a second? I just want to wish Georgie good luck on her interview tomorrow."

"Sure."

As they walked closer to the house, the motion sensor lights blazed on, lighting up the entire yard. She smiled and shook her head as she saw Will look around him and nod in satisfaction. She knocked on the door softly.

Georgiana opened the door, all smiles. "Hi you two. What's up?

Will gawked at her. "You didn't even ask who it was. How come you just opened the door?"

"Umm, because I saw you out the window and heard you playing your guitar, dummy. I knew it was you."

"Oh. Okay, well, still, you should ask who it is before you open the door."

Georgiana rolled her eyes. "Yeah, because criminals always knock before they break into your house. Good idea, brother."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Enough you two, please! We were just stopping to wish you luck for your interview tomorrow. You have to call me and let me know how it goes, okay?"

"I will, thanks Lizzy. I haven't found anything else on line yet, but I'm still looking."

"You'll get something, you still have a couple of months to look," Will said.

Georgiana shook her head lightly. "Not really...about five weeks, actually. Most of the school departments want to have their staff squared away by mid-August. Those five weeks will go by fast."

"I'll keep my fingers crossed for you," Elizabeth said, reaching out to give her a quick hug. "Call me tomorrow."

"Okay. Thanks for stopping," she said, reaching up to give Will a kiss on the cheek.

"Bye Georgie. Let me know if you need anything during the night, okay?" Will asked, now a little nervous that this was her first night out here.

She looked at him and shook her head. "I'm sure I'll be fine. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

He hesitated, then gave himself a mental shake. "Okay. Goodnight sis."

They said their goodbyes, and Will and Elizabeth made their way up to the main house. Not too long after they entered, the motion sensor lights shut off.

Will walked around the great room, turning on the gas fireplace and pulling the vertical blinds that covered the slider closed. He dimmed the lights in the room, making it feel warm and cozy.

Elizabeth watched as he moved, wondering what he was up to. He disappeared down the hall, and came back with his iPod and its dock.

Smiling at her, he held up both. "Music."

She smiled. "I see that. We're dancing here, I take it?"

"Mmhm. We can practice just as easily here, don't you think?"

She nodded. "Certainly."

Will got his iPod set up on the mantle, and the song that began was 'Someone Like You', by Van Morrison. He walked over to Elizabeth and scooped her into his arms, holding her tightly to him, before releasing her slightly to hold one of her hands, while the other wrapped around her waist.

"You like Van Morrison, don't you?" He gazed down at her, talking quietly, as he slowly moved them around the room.

"Always have," she said, "but even more after you sang to me last week."

He smiled. "I sang for you... and then you sang for me. That was nice."

Her cheeks pinked. "It's not very gentlemanly to mention that, you know."

He released her hand so that he could wrap both arms around her. "Sorry. Memories."

She smiled into his chest, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck, playing with the now-shorter curls there.

They moved slowly to the music, no longer talking, just enjoying the comfort of being so close to each other and sharing the moment. The fire cast a soft glow over the room, and Elizabeth felt herself slowly melting into Will, inhaling deeply to breathe in his scent. He began singing along to the music softly, and she smiled, loving the sound of his deep, warm voice. He began to massage her back lightly, hands skimming over her shirt, relaxing her even further.

She felt one hand leave her back, and suddenly it was on her cheek, stroking down to her chin, which he lifted very slowly. He gazed at her as he lowered his mouth to hers, but instead of kissing her, he lightly grazed her lips with his, applying just the faintest touch. His nose stroked up the side of hers, nuzzling her, and slowly moved up along her eyebrow, into her hairline and down to her ear, making her shiver.

There was a brief moment of silence when the Van Morrison song ended, and Elizabeth immediately recognized the next song as it began. They were still dancing, but really were just swaying together at this point. Elizabeth could feel that her heart rate had picked up its pace, and as Will's lips gently skirted over her earlobe, she felt her entire body flush.

She heard Will's voice quietly join in with the sultry voice of Norah Jones, breathing the words into her ear.

_Come away with me in the night  
><em>_Come away with me  
><em>_And I will write you a song._

He stopped singing as his lips traveled down her neck, before he raised his hands to hold her face gently and bring his lips to hers for a long, sensuous kiss. As he slowly broke away from her mouth, he let his hands trail down the column of her neck to the buttons on her shirt, and he began to sing with the music again, staring down into her eyes as he did.

_Come away with me and we'll kiss  
><em>_On a mountaintop  
><em>_Come away with me, and I'll never stop  
><em>_Loving you._

It dawned on Elizabeth vaguely that this was possibly a seduction. Had she never realized before just how sexy this song was? Or maybe it just _seemed_ extremely sexy now because he was singing it to her, and he was unbuttoning her shirt as he sang, and they were still moving together, hips swaying against each other in perfect time. _Oh my__._

His lips followed the path of his fingers as each button was released, until her shirt was completely unbuttoned and hanging from her shoulders. He didn't move to push it off of her, but instead traced the outline of the lace of her bra with his fingertips, letting his thumbs drag over the hardened peaks of her breasts. Once again, he lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her thoroughly, before trailing excruciatingly slow kisses along her jaw to her neck. Pushing her shirt away from one shoulder, his lips moved to follow his fingers, stopping to suckle the extremely sensitive spot where her shoulder sloped up to meet her neck.

Elizabeth was finding it very hard to control her breathing, and her skin felt like it was on fire. Every time his lips caressed her neck or his thumbs trailed across her nipples, an arc of electricity shot through her body, landing right between her thighs.

Her hands moved, as if on their own, under his shirt and across the wide expanse of his chest, then down his stomach to the waistband of his shorts. She let her fingertips glide along his warm skin to his back, reaching around behind him, cupping his taut bottom and pulling him closer to her, wanting and needing to feel his body completely pressed against her. Lifting her head, she placed warm kisses along his neck, hearing his low moan of satisfaction. She closed her eyes and let his voice wash over her as he began to sing again.

_And I want to wake up with the rain  
><em>_Falling on a tin roof  
><em>_While I'm safe there in your arms  
><em>_So all I ask is for you  
><em>_To come away with me in the night  
><em>_Come away with me.**_

The song ended, and Will lifted his head to gaze down at her, moving his hands to reach up and cup her face, then letting them glide down her neck. He lowered his lips to her ear and whispered to her softly.

"Are you sure you can't stay?"

Before Elizabeth could bring herself out of the fog she was in to answer him, the next song started. She listened for a moment, pulling back from him to glance over at the iPod, before looking back up into his face. A sudden bubble of laughter threatened to spill from her, and she had to bite her bottom lip to keep it in check.

She pinched his bottom with both hands as their bodies still swayed together. "Ahhh, now I understand," she said quietly, "the dancing, the singing, the undressing...it's all part of a master plan, isn't it?"

Will gazed down at her, trying to maintain an innocent expression, but finding it very hard to do. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said softly. He lowered his lips to hers, effectively ending the brief conversation. After a minute, his mouth moved to her neck as his hands slid slowly back down to her breasts, this time sliding up and under her bra, stroking and caressing her again.

"Will...what is this playlist? This isn't a very subtle song," she whispered breathlessly as she leaned her head back, giving him more access to her neck.

"We're just dancing...practicing," he murmured against her skin, moving his hands down to grasp her hips and pull her firmly up against his growing erection.

"Oh, really? Do you plan on dancing like this at the benefit? I think we'll get kicked out," she said on an exhalation of air, as his lips skimmed along her shoulder. Her hips surged against his instinctively. "Are you sure you're not just trying to get me to stay tonight?"

Will trailed one hand down her bare stomach to the top of her shorts. He undid the button and lowered the zipper before sliding his hand down inside the waistband of her panties, not stopping until his fingers were stroking her core, feeling the wetness and the heat there, all for him. His erection strained painfully against his shorts, needing relief. As if reading his mind, he felt Elizabeth's hand lower to stroke him and squeeze him, making him inhale sharply as he pushed into her palm.

"Your body wants you to stay, and my body _definitely_ wants you to stay," he whispered into her ear, as his fingers deftly found her sweet spot, stroking it, circling it. "You're so ready for me, Lizzy...don't you want to stay?"

Her breath caught in her throat. _Yes yes yes yes. _Marvin Gaye sang seductively in the background.

_I know you know what I've been dreamin' of, don't you baby…***_

Will's fingers became more insistent as he lowered his mouth to kiss her again. Elizabeth felt that delicious tension building in her body and was powerless against it, especially when he was kissing her and touching her like he was. She was like one of his guitars; he knew exactly how to touch her and stroke her and pluck her to make her body sing.

His hand gently came out of her shorts and joined the other as he cupped her face and slowly pulled his lips from hers. "Will you please stay with me?" His eyes were like pools of chocolate as he stared down at her.

Unable to speak, she nodded, and shrieked in surprise when he lifted her up by the waist, pulling her close to him so that they were nose to nose. She wrapped her legs around his hips and her arms around his shoulders as he smiled at her, his hands cupping her bottom. He began walking confidently toward the stairs, his destination obvious.

Elizabeth returned his smile and was unable to stifle a giggle as he carried her, breaking the seriousness of the moment. Will looked at her as he walked, now ascending the stairs slowly, a smirk on his face.

"It worked," she whispered, leaning in to nibble his jaw. "I am seduced. Absolutely, positively, undeniably seduced."

"Then there's only one thing to do," he said, planting a soft kiss on her lips.

"And that is...?" she asked, her voice trailing off.

He smiled broadly before moving his lips to her ear to sing quietly. _"Let__'__s get i__t on..."_

* * *

><p>After Will and Elizabeth left, Georgiana sat staring at the screen of her laptop, re-reading the email she was about to send to Matt. She had tried to make it sound light and casual, when in actuality, it had taken her a ridiculous amount of time and editing for her to get it to sound that way.<p>

_Hi Matt,_

_Thanks for emailing me, it's really good to hear from you. Yes, Julie and I had a great weekend. I missed her too, and I'm so glad we've reconnected. I'm doing very well, and yes! I have decided to stay on the Cape permanently. I love being so close to the beach...and I love being away from the frantic pace of the city. I'm afraid I've turned into a beach bum...until September, anyway. Hopefully, at that point, I'll magically transform into a school teacher again! I had one interview last week, and have another tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed for me._

_It would be great to see you. I'll be in Boston this weekend, actually, for the Arts Alive Benefit...maybe we could see each other while I'm there, if you have time. Just let me know. I'll be staying with Will at his place._

Georgiana bit her lip nervously as she read the next part, wondering if she was being too forward.

_You can call me if you want, it might be easier than sending email back and forth. My cell number is -. I'm usually around, so call when it's convenient for you._

_Take care ~_

_Georgie_

Before she lost her nerve, she clicked 'send'. Sighing, she thought about the benefit again, and replayed Elizabeth's words in her head. Seeing Matt with a lot of other people around may relieve some of her anxiety...or it could do the opposite. It could make their meeting more awkward and uncomfortable. She had no idea what he wanted to say to her, but whatever it was, it probably wasn't the type of conversation to have in a crowded ballroom.

She'd just have to wait. Wait to see if he emailed her again, or called her. In the meantime, she'd think about the benefit, and make up her mind about what to do.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth's Wednesday didn't start out well.<p>

_Damn Marvin Gaye_.

She had overslept, of course. When she woke up, she had snuggled contentedly against Will, thinking she had woken before the alarm went off. When she opened her eyes to peek at the time, she was horrified to see that it was 7:40. She bolted from the bed, rousing Will from a deep sleep.

"What...what are you doing?" he asked, sitting up and running his hands over his face.

"I'm late. Shit!"

Will cringed as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Sorry...I must have shut the alarm clock off instead of hitting the snooze button." He heard the shower come on, and briefly debated joining her, but realized that a shower for two probably wasn't high on her list right now. He climbed out of bed and looked around for her scattered clothes. Shirt, shorts...underwear, bra...sandals. He smiled as he laid the clothing out on his bed, and placed her sandals below them on the floor, thinking about how much fun it was to remove all of those things last night.

He stuck his head in the bathroom doorway, admiring the blurred view of her body through the glass shower door.

"Need any help?" he called out.

"No! I think you've helped enough this morning, thank you very much!"

He grinned, even though he knew he was in trouble. "Okay. I'll meet you downstairs."

When Elizabeth came down ten minutes later, he offered her a travel mug full of coffee and a toasted English muffin as a peace offering. She squinted her eyes at him.

"Sorry again," he said quietly, tilting his head in that way that she found adorable.

She sighed and shook her head at him. "Oh, you're forgiven. I have to leave now, though!"

He walked her out to her Jeep, handing her the muffin and the coffee once she got buckled in, and leaned down to kiss her once, then again, and again. She smiled against his lips, which was exactly what he was trying to get her to do.

"You are incorrigible," she said quietly, leaning back to look into his eyes.

"I've been called worse. Still in love with me?"

She smiled and reached up to kiss him again. "Completely."

She had stopped at home to change into clean clothes, and by the time she arrived at work, it was nearing nine o'clock. She had called on her way to let Bill know she was running late.

Her day only went downhill from there. She was in the middle of reviewing a four-page report that she had just typed up, when her computer inexplicably crashed. She walked down the hall to Bill's office, and when she arrived in his doorway, he looked up at her.

"Mine too," was all he said. She turned around and went back to her desk, stopping to get some water on the way.

As she sat back down, she heard her cell phone chime with a text, and saw that it was from Charlotte.

_Lizzy?_

_Hi there, what's up?_

_I wanted to make sure we were still going shopping, I need to talk to you._

_Yup, we're still going. Are you okay?_

_Not sure. I think there might be something going on between George and Lydia._

Elizabeth nearly choked on her water.

_What? What makes you think that? _The thought of it made her stomach turn, for a variety of reasons.

_Just a feeling I have. I'll tell you more when I see you. Do you want me to meet you at your house later?_

_No, I'll pick you up around 4:15, I drove in today. See you then._

* * *

><p>At precisely 4:20, Elizabeth pulled into Charlotte's driveway and honked the horn. Charlotte came right out, obviously waiting at the door. She climbed into the Jeep, shutting the door and turning to stare at Elizabeth.<p>

"So?" Elizabeth said, backing out of the driveway. She felt no need to beat around the bush, and knew she didn't need to with Charlotte. They had known each other too long.

Charlotte sighed. "I don't have anything concrete...it's just a feeling I have. I wish you were there on Monday night, you'd understand my thinking better. They were very flirtatious...the chemistry between them was palpable."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "Chemistry? Lydia and George? Where was Denny?"

"He was there, but I have to say, he didn't pay much attention to Lydia, he was too concerned with chatting up his co-workers at the bar. She ended up dancing with George more than I did."

"Dancing is one thing...'something going on' is another."

"George was supposed to stay at my place, and all of a sudden he had a headache and said he wanted me to drop him at Bill's. I overheard Lydia giving Denny the same line before we left. She said the music gave her a headache, and she just wanted him to drop her off at home."

"Still...that doesn't mean anything." _Oh Lydia, you idiot._

"When I dropped him off at Bill's, his motorcycle was in the driveway, alongside the house." She paused here. "I know you'll think this is crazy, but I drove around for a while, then went back by his house. His bike was gone. I took a ride by Lydia's, and her car was gone."

"That sounds a little stalker-ish."

"I know it does, but I couldn't help it. Last night, I called him to see if he wanted to meet me at my house after my shift was over, but he turned me down. He knew what I was offering, and believe me...George _never_ turns me down. He's always up for it."

"TMI."

Charlotte blushed slightly. "Sorry. I just have this...feeling, I don't know."

"Oh Charlotte...I don't know what to say. I wish I could help you, but Lydia and I don't talk that often at all. I have no idea what's going on between her and Denny at this point. It seemed they were making a fresh go of it, but I'm not sure how far they've progressed."

"Would you call her?"

Elizabeth's eyes widened again. "And say what?"

"I don't know...feel her out, see if she brings him up."

Elizabeth sighed, shaking her head. "I really don't want to get involved in this."

"I know you don't. I know you don't like George very much-"

"Charlotte-," Elizabeth said, interrupting her.

"No, it's okay, it's fine. I can tell you don't." She hesitated. "Why, though? Why don't you like him?"

"It's not that I don't like him. I just...he's..." her voice trailed off.

"He's...what?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I don't trust him, I guess. I get a weird vibe from him, that's all. I don't like the way he looks at me..." she shook her head and turned to glance at Charlotte. "It's just a feeling I get. I can't explain it."

Charlotte said nothing, she just stared straight ahead. After a moment, she spoke. "He's...aggressive, sometimes, with me."

Elizabeth's stomach dropped at her friend's words. "Aggressive how? Has he hit you?"

She shook her head. "No, he's never touched me that way. It's...it's the sex. He can be so gentle sometimes, and other times...he's insatiable. Like a man possessed."

"Has he ever hurt you when he's...like that?"

"No...I just...I've found myself doing things, with him..._different_ things." She blushed and turned to look out the passenger window. "Is Will like that?"

Elizabeth blanched. "Umm, no..." She wasn't comfortable discussing her and Will's sex life with Charlotte. Although she had experienced some truly unbelievable sex with him, none of it had ever made her uncomfortable.

"He isn't into anything...weird? Kinky?"

"Look, Charlotte, all I'm going to say is that we have a healthy sex life, and I love it...but I've never once felt uncomfortable with him. Ever."

Charlotte turned to look at her again. "Will you call Lydia? Please?"

Elizabeth sighed. _I don't want to do this, I don't wa__nt to do this__, _she thought, but she knew she would.

"I will. I'll call her, but I'm not promising anything...I'm not going to ask her anything outright, I'll just see if she offers any information. That's it, that's all I'll do."

Charlotte sighed. "Thanks Lizzy."

Elizabeth's stomach was churning. "Are you sure you're up for shopping?"

Charlotte nodded. "I'm sure. You need a dress, don't you? Tell me about this swanky party you're going to."

Just like that, Charlotte's mood shifted, and Elizabeth was more than grateful. She filled her in about the Arts Alive Foundation and Will's involvement with it. In the back of her mind, though, she couldn't get the thought of Lydia and George out of her head.

_Oh Lydia, what have you done?_

* * *

><p><em>Any thoughts on George and Lydia (other than ewwwwwwww)? Please leave a review!<em>

_Songs: *'Little Darlin' by Landon Pigg, **'Come Away With Me' by Norah Jones, ***'Let's Get It On' by Marvin Gaye_


	25. Chapter 25

_Time to start Part 4. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Part 4<strong>

**Chapter 25**

"Hi Lydia, it's Elizabeth...umm, just calling to say hi, we haven't caught up in a while. I wanted to see how Madness was the other night, sorry we couldn't make it." She cringed as she said the words, fearing she was opening up a can of worms. But what could she do? Charlotte was her best friend, besides Jane, and she felt like she needed to help her. "Anyway, I'm going away for the weekend, but call me if you get a chance. See you."

Elizabeth hung up the phone and exhaled loudly. She had a rock lodged in the pit of her stomach, a sure sign that this was going to turn out poorly.

Her Thursday was half over, and with the stress of finding a dress _finally_ out of the way, she felt a tremendous weight lifted off of her shoulders. Charlotte was right, 'White House/Black Market' had exactly what she needed, and she was thrilled. The dress itself was very elegant but understated. At first, she had shied away from it, thinking it wasn't quite right, but Charlotte had insisted that she try it on, and Elizabeth was so glad that she did. It fit perfectly, and she fell in love with it as soon as she had it on. She already had a pair of high, strappy heels to wear that would complement the dress nicely.

After work, she headed to softball, wishing Will was there to cheer her on. He had stayed at her place last night, and after spending eight straight nights curled up against him, it was awfully hard to say goodbye this morning, knowing she'd be sleeping alone tonight. She had woken up before her alarm clock went off, more than likely due to the fact that Will had wrapped himself around her like a vine.

An impulse had struck her then, and before she talked herself out of it, she acted on it. She slid her body down his and gently took him into her mouth, swirling her tongue around him, coaxing him persuasively to _wake up_. She knew the moment that he did wake; his entire body jerked, and she felt him begin to harden in her mouth. It was very empowering. His hands tangled in her hair as he reached for her head.

"Elizabeth...baby...what...ahhh..._Lizzy_..."

She smiled at the memory, enjoying the fact that she had reduced her very well-educated and well-spoken man to a gasping pile of incoherent mush. Yes, very empowering...and, because he felt it totally necessary to return the favor, it was also a very good way to start the day.

* * *

><p>The Reserve team lost to the WHOI team, but Elizabeth played well. She rode her bike home from the ball field, hoping the rest of the night would be quiet. She was already mostly packed for the weekend, and only had a few things to toss in her bag before she left. There was an underlying knot in her stomach, though, all due to the fact that she knew that a conversation with Lydia was looming.<p>

She had called Georgiana after shopping with Charlotte yesterday to find out about her interview in Mashpee, which Georgiana thought had gone very well. They had also talked about going to Boston together on Friday, and Elizabeth had suggested taking the bus, but then realized that coming home would pose a problem; Will's Porsche was a two-seater.

"That's okay," Georgie had said, "we can come back to the Cape in his SUV."

_Of course_, thought Elizabeth, _his SUV...that I didn't even know he had_.

"Why didn't I know he has an SUV?" she asked Georgiana.

"Oh, well, probably because he only drives it in the winter, he doesn't really need it in the summer. He keeps it in a garage near his place in Boston. He doesn't like to drive the Porsche in the winter because all that crap they put on the roads when it snows kills the paint."

Elizabeth had realized that it made sense that she hadn't seen it yet, but it still surprised her. She forgot, sometimes, that he was wealthy, except for when he was pulling SUV's out of thin air, or buying her expensive jewelry on the spur of the moment.

They had agreed to take the six p.m. bus. Georgie would take a cab to Elizabeth's house from New Seabury, pick her up, and they'd go to the bus station together.

As Elizabeth puttered around her house, double-checking her bags to make sure she had everything, her cell phone rang. Her stomach dropped just a little, then completely plummeted when she saw that it was Lydia. She picked up the phone.

"Hi Lyddie," she said, forcing a cheery tone. _Why did I say I would do this?_

"Hey Lizzy, what's up?"

"Oh, not much. Just going through my bags, making sure I have everything for the weekend. What's going on with you?"

"Oh, umm...nothing much. You know, same old same old. Where are you going this time? Willy whisking you away to another island somewhere?"

Elizabeth forced a laugh. "No, _Will_ is not whisking me anywhere. We have a function to go to Saturday night, a fundraiser type thing, so I'll be in Boston for the weekend with him."

"Ohhh, fancy. What are you wearing?"

"I found a great dress at a place in Mashpee. It's black tie, so I wanted to get something nice."

"Ohhh, black tie. Sweet. Willy in a tux! That's not so bad, huh Lizzy?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes, holding back the sigh that she was dying to let loose. "Mmm, yes. Not bad at all. So, how was Madness? Was it mobbed?"

"Oh, Madness? Um, it was good, it was...fun. Interesting."

"Interesting?"

"Yeah, you know, typical Madness...oh, I met Charlotte's, um, friend, George. He's...he was nice. He seems like a nice guy. You've met him, right? He's kind of hot."

_Oh no, here we go_. "I've met him...he's used my darkroom a couple of times."

"Oh, that's right, the whole photography thing. Cool. So...is Charlotte really into him? I mean, it was hard to tell, she didn't dance with him much, so I couldn't really tell if they were, like, you know, really _into_ each other, like, exclusively. You know?"

"She seems to like him a lot," was all Elizabeth would say about Charlotte's feelings towards George. She could tell that Lydia was digging for information, which wasn't a good sign.

"Well, you'd never know it. I mean, he was, you know, pretty flirtatious with me. So, I just assumed, you know, that they weren't, like, _together _together_..._like a couple. There were a lot of girls watching him, totally checking him out. I mean, he's the whole package...he's a photographer, he rides a motorcycle, he has a _slammin'_ body...he's just got it goin' on, you know?"

Elizabeth felt her stomach plummet. _He_ _rides a motorcycle_. How does she know he rides a motorcycle? Did he tell her? Or did she see it?

"I think Charlotte thinks they are a couple, and have been for a little over a month now," Elizabeth said, trying to keep her voice even. "Where was Denny while George was busy flirting with you?"

Lydia sighed. "He was at the bar, talking away with all of his friends. I was pissed, he didn't ask me to dance once! George asked me to dance half a dozen times!"

Elizabeth pursed her lips. "What's going on with him – Denny?"

Lydia sighed again. "Nothing. Nothing at all. I mean, we see each other a lot, we hang out and stuff, but I'm not ready to pack up and head to Maine to be a cafe owner's wife. It's just not in my plans, you know?"

_Oh, so __now __you__ have plans. _Elizabeth could tell by the way that Lydia was talking that she didn't take her relationship with Denny, whatever it was, seriously. And, it was obvious that she didn't think George and Charlotte were serious either. This was all heading downhill, rapidly.

"Listen, Lydia," she said quietly, "don't get tangled up with George, okay?"

"What do you mean, don't get tangled up with George? What's that supposed to mean?"

Elizabeth picked up on Lydia's defensive tone immediately. "He's involved with Charlotte, and I would hate for you to get in a messy situation with them...with him."

"He says they're not exclusive, they're basically just friends with benefits, he told me that himself," Lydia said quite firmly.

Elizabeth closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "Please tell me you haven't been seeing him." Lydia didn't have to say anything; Elizabeth already knew.

"So what if I have? I'm not settling for Denny, I want more than what he has to offer, and obviously, George must want more than Charlotte's offering him, or he wouldn't be seeing me."

"No one wants you to _settle_ for anyone, even Denny. If he's not the one for you, he's not the one for you, I get that. That doesn't give you license to go after another woman's man. Especially someone you've known, and been friends with, for years."

"Oh please, Lizzy. He's not 'another woman's man'. He said it himself, and I believe him. If Charlotte thinks they're exclusive, she's wrong...those words came straight from George's mouth. And, if he's saying those words to me, you can bet he's already said them to someone else. He doesn't strike me as a one-woman man."

_Then why on God's green earth do you want to be with him?_ Elizabeth realized the battle was already lost, and there was no point even continuing the conversation; the more she told Lydia that George wasn't to be trusted, the more Lydia would make him into a woefully misunderstood man.

"Fine, Lydia, you're a grown woman, you do what you want. You should at least tell Denny that his life isn't going to include you, so he can pack up and go back to Maine. You're the reason he came here, you shouldn't mislead him into thinking that you want to be with him."

"I've _never_ led him to believe that I want to be with him! Why should I tell him anything? He wants to be here, he _chose_ to come here on his own, and he's leaving in a month anyway, so why tell him all that now?" Lydia's voice was rising with every syllable.

"Because it's the right thing to do! Jesus, Lydia, think about someone other than yourself for a change!" Elizabeth was exasperated and wanted to get off the phone. She was done.

"I don't have to! George is doing what he wants to do, I'm doing what I want to do, and Denny is doing what _he_ wants to do! I never asked him to come back. I didn't want him years ago, and I don't want him now! I thought, at first, that maybe...maybe it would work, but it won't. He's just...boring. Steady, boring Denny. I want excitement. I'm too young to be tied down to _boring_."

Elizabeth had already stopped listening, and was trying to think of what she would tell Charlotte. _Another conversation to dread_. She knew she'd have to tell her, though, somehow.

"Okay, Lydia, whatever you say," Elizabeth said flatly. "I can't tell you what to do, or how to handle this whole situation, obviously, so I'll just tell you to...be careful. There's just something about him I don't trust."

Lydia sighed, clearly irritated, but she had calmed slightly. "For Christ's sake, Lizzy, let it go, would you? I don't need to be careful...George is great. I'm sorry if Charlotte gets hurt, but I'm not going to let him pass me by, especially if he's not happy with her anyway."

"Okay, okay, you've said more than enough," Elizabeth replied, feeling anger well up inside of her once again. "I have to go, I have to finish packing, and I'd like to get to bed early. I'll talk to you soon."

"I have to go too. George will be here to pick me up soon. Hey, the next time he comes to use your darkroom, can I come too?"

Elizabeth's eyebrows flew up. "Seriously, Lydia? There won't _be_ a next time. He's not welcome here anymore."

Lydia scoffed. "You're kidding me! So, you're choosing _sides_, you're choosing _Charlotte_? Fine, fine, _whatever_ Lizzy." Her voice rose again, saturated with sarcasm. "Have a _great_ weekend...I'll talk to you later."

Before Elizabeth could say another word, Lydia hung up. _It's just as well_, she thought, _I had nothing else to say anyway_.

* * *

><p><em>Hi Georgie,<em>

_I would really like to see you this weekend when you come to Boston. I would call you, but I'm at work right now, so I can't make any personal calls. I will definitely call you tonight or tomorrow, and we can make a plan._

_Hope your interview went well, you can fill me in when I see you._

_Matt_

Georgiana smiled at her laptop, and felt nervous flutters in her stomach. _I'm going to see Matt!_ She knew the next couple of days would probably be sheer torture, the anticipation would build, and she'd get more and more nervous...but still, she was excited.

She had thought about what Elizabeth had said, and realized that she really had nothing to fear; Matt contacted her, _he_ wanted to see _her_. The big 'why' was still hovering out there, but she knew she wouldn't have to wait much longer to get her answer.

She sighed. _Patience_.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stood outside her office building on Friday afternoon, waiting for Charlotte to join her for lunch. She had been dreading this moment all morning, and the rock that had lodged itself in her stomach yesterday was now officially a gigantic boulder, teetering on the edge of a cliff, ready to roll off any second.<p>

She had called Jane before going to bed last night, knowing that she could talk about the whole ugly situation with her in confidence. Jane was appalled at Lydia, but sadly, she wasn't surprised. Maybe that was what was disappointing to Elizabeth, as well; the fact that Lydia's behavior, once again, didn't surprise her.

Jane was adamant, though, that Elizabeth tell Charlotte. She didn't need all the gory details of the conversation, not anything too detailed; just enough to let her know that she could no longer trust George. Elizabeth had agreed; she didn't want to give Charlotte a blow-by-blow account of her conversation with Lydia, it wouldn't help, and in fact, it would probably make Charlotte feel worse than she already did.

She smiled as she saw Charlotte making her way up the sidewalk toward her, and Charlotte did manage a weak smile in return.

"Hey Lizzy," Charlotte said softly as she approached the spot where Elizabeth stood.

"Hi Charlotte. What do you feel like for lunch?"

Charlotte shrugged. "Anything, really...I'm not very hungry, so wherever you want to go is fine."

"Let's go to the market, we can split a sandwich or something."

"Okay."

They walked in silence to the market, only a short distance from Elizabeth's office, and after getting their food, they headed over to the small waterfront park that looked out to where the mouth of the harbor met Vineyard Sound. They settled themselves on a bench, and were mostly quiet as they ate.

Charlotte cleared her throat. "So, I'm assuming you've talked to Lydia, or else you probably wouldn't have called me to come meet you for lunch."

Elizabeth turned to look at her. "I did, I talked to her."

Charlotte looked out to the water, nodding slightly. "What did she say?"

* * *

><p>Will looked up from his desk as his office door was thrown open and Charles barreled in.<p>

"Well, look who it is, fresh from his island getaway," Charles said through a grin.

"Hello Charles." Will smiled at his oldest friend, whose energy never failed to amuse him. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Charles sat down in a chair in front of Will's desk, and tapped out a rhythm with his hands on the surface of the desk, before sitting back and stretching out casually. "I just wanted to check in with you about this weekend. When is Elizabeth coming into Boston?"

"They'll be here tonight, sometime after seven."

"They?"

"Oh, I didn't tell you...Georgie is using one of the extra tickets. I told her she could bring Julie if she wanted to, but I don't think she invited her."

"Georgie's coming? That's great!" Charles gave Will a genuine smile. "She's really doing well, isn't she?"

"She is. She moved into the guesthouse this week, did I tell you that? And she's looking for work on the Cape. She's had a couple of interviews already."

"Wow...she's _really_ doing well. You must be relieved."

Will sighed, nodding his head. "I am. I still feel like I have to watch out for her, you know? I suppose I'll feel that way for quite a while."

"You probably will, but I'm sure that as time goes by, you'll feel a little more secure. She's gotten pretty tight with Lizzy, hasn't she?"

Will smiled. "They've become good friends. I really think Elizabeth had a lot to do with Georgiana's recovery...she helped her find her confidence again, brought her out of her shell. Their friendship has been good for Georgie."

"We should all go out tonight to celebrate, don't you think?"

"Sounds good to me. I'm sure Elizabeth will be up for it, hopefully Georgie will too. It's her first time back in Boston since...everything. Why don't we wait to make plans until I've talked to her, see how she feels? I want to make sure she's comfortable with it."

"Of course, that's fine. Jane's really looking forward to the weekend, so she'll be happy doing anything, as long as she spends time with Lizzy."

"How is Jane? Still angelic?"

"Umm...yes, still as angelic as ever. In fact, I wanted to tell you something...something in confidence that you absolutely _cannot_ share with anyone, _especially_ Lizzy."

"Oh...okay. You're not going to tell me something personal about Jane, are you? Something your best friend shouldn't know?"

Charles looked at Will in confusion. "What? No, you idiot, I wanted to tell you that I'm going to ask Jane to marry me."

Will's eyes literally popped out of his head. "You're what?"

"You heard me," Charles said, jumping up out of the chair. "I'm proposing to Jane. This weekend. Tomorrow night. I'm going to ask her to be my wife." He began pacing back and forth in front of Will's desk, before walking over to the windows that looked out over the gorgeous view of the Boston skyline.

Will was surprised, to say the least. "What...what brought this on? You've only been seeing her for what, four months?"

"Five. Five months of unparalleled bliss." Charles was beaming as he turned to look at Will.

"Okay, five blissful months, but -"

"_Unparalleled_ bliss, Darcy. Unparalleled."

Will rolled his eyes. "Sorry, five _unparalleled_ blissful months. What does that even mean?"

Charles laughed. "It means that I've never felt this way before, ever, and I don't want to wait any more. I want Jane to be my wife. As soon as possible." He began striding around the office again, all nervous energy.

Will looked at his friend and pursed his lips, trying to suppress a grin. "Can you sit down please? You're like a puppy on Red Bull right now."

Charles moved to sit in the chair again, leaning forward as he looked at Will, eyes wide with excitement. Again, Will had the urge to compare him to a puppy.

"Are you sure you've been together long enough? I mean, five months isn't very long, when you think about it. Five months is nothing, really."

"I know, I know, it hasn't been long, we've got plenty of time, our whole lives in front of us, what's the rush...I've heard it all."

"From who?"

"From myself! I actually was trying to talk myself out of this for a little while, but then I thought, why am I trying to do that? I _know_ I have my whole life in front of me, I _know_ I've got plenty of time, but why wait? I'm thirty-six years old! Why not start the rest of my life now, with Jane? Right?"

Will didn't know what to say. "This is a little impulsive, isn't it Charles? Maybe just a little bit _too_ impulsive? I mean, do you know how Jane feels? Are you sure she's ready for this?"

Charles shrugged. "She loves me, I know she does, and I know she's happy...I'm hoping that's enough. We're together all the time anyway. She practically lives with me, and if she doesn't stay at my place for some reason, I stay at hers. Why not make it official?"

"I don't know, Charles...it still seems sudden. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that you've found the person you want to spend the rest of your life with. I just hope you're not rushing it."

Charles visibly deflated, and Will felt slightly guilty. It wasn't that he was trying to talk Charles out of proposing, he just wanted to make sure his friend had thought things through, had really thought about what marriage means, the level of commitment that it demanded.

"I'm not trying to discourage you," Will said quietly. "I just want you to be sure, that's all. About yourself, and about Jane."

"Do you doubt her feelings for me?"

"Not at all."

Will paused for a moment, thinking about what he had just said, and everything that Charles had just said to him. "You know what? I should be happy for you, and instead I'm questioning you." He stood up and extended his hand across his desk to Charles. "Congratulations, Charles."

Charles stood and shook Will's hand, smiling. "Don't congratulate me yet. She still has to say yes."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth sat on her deck, waiting for Georgie to arrive in the cab. She couldn't wait to get to Boston, couldn't wait to see Will. Her thoughts wandered to her lunch with Charlotte. She had taken the information about George and Lydia surprisingly well; she hadn't cried, hadn't gotten angry. In a way, she almost looked relieved. Elizabeth had imparted the bare minimum of information, only telling Charlotte that she thought it would be wise for her to stop seeing George.<p>

"Is he seeing Lydia?"

"I believe they've seen each other, yes, and I think they have plans to see each other again."

Charlotte had only nodded.

"I'm sorry Char, I really am. I feel horrible...ugh, my sister!"

"Lizzy, it's okay. I'm not in love with him, I'm really not. There was just something about him...he just had me sucked in. He was very seductive that way...he has charm to spare, and Lydia obviously fell for it too. If it wasn't Lydia, it would have been someone else, I can see that now."

"You're not going to see him anymore, are you?"

Charlotte shook her head. "God no, I can't. I won't be with someone who can't just be with me. I don't share men. I guess it's good that I found out now, instead of finding out in another month or something...I mean, they just met, so at least I've caught it at the beginning."

Elizabeth nodded. "You're right, that's good." She turned and looked at her friend, who despite her denials of being in love, still looked very sad. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Charlotte turned to her and smiled, a real smile. "I'm fine. I'm not going to let it get to me. He is just not worth it. There are plenty of other fish in the sea, right? Especially at the hospital! All those good-looking docs that help out in the ER in the summer..." She paused for a minute, grinning. "I'll be fine, I really will."

Elizabeth's cell phone rang, startling her out of her reverie. She smiled when she saw it was Will.

"Hi," she answered.

"Hi, babe, how are you? Ready to go?"

She sighed. "More than you could possibly know."

"Rough day?"

"A little. I'll fill you in when I see you. I'm just waiting for the cab to arrive with Georgie, then we're off to the bus station."

"I'll meet you on the other end."

She smiled. "I know you will. I can't wait to see you. One night away from you is long enough for me."

"Me too. Oh, Charles stopped by my office today. He wanted to know if we'd like to go out tonight, the five of us. I told him I wasn't sure how Georgie would feel about it, and I don't really want to leave her out...will you ask her about it and text me when you're on the way? Then I can let Charles know."

"That's fine. Where are we going if we go out?"

"I have no idea. Charles suggested dinner somewhere, so maybe we'll just do that. We could all go back to my place after."

"Ohhh...your place. I like the sound of that. I'm looking forward to checking out your bachelor pad."

Will grunted. "It's hardly a bachelor pad. I'm afraid it's not as cozy as the house in New Seabury, but it's my home away from home."

Elizabeth grinned. Not too long ago, New Seabury would have been his home away from home.

"I'm sure I'll love it."

"I hope so."

From her deck, Elizabeth heard the sound of a car horn.

"Oh, the cab is here, I have to go. I'll text you soon, okay?"

"Okay. See you soon. Love you."

"Love you too. Bye."

* * *

><p>The ride to Boston went quickly, due to the fact that Elizabeth and Georgiana chatted the entire way, mostly about Matt. It seemed, to Elizabeth anyway, that Georgie had more than a crush on him. Elizabeth had asked her about going out tonight, and Georgiana said that she'd rather stay in. Elizabeth understood, and she really didn't care, one way or the other, what they did. She texted Will to let him know so he could contact Charles.<p>

They also chatted about the benefit, which made Georgiana remember her conversation with Will about the seating arrangements.

"What's going on with Will and Caroline?"

Elizabeth's heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean?" she asked quietly.

Georgiana shrugged. "Will mentioned that she wasn't sitting with us. He said it was a long story. I can only imagine what she's done now."

"Is she going to be there?" Elizabeth asked.

Again, Georgiana shrugged. "I would assume so, if Charles is going to be there. She seems to ride his coattails everywhere. Will made it pretty clear that she wasn't welcome at our table though. I think he gave me her ticket."

Elizabeth paused for a second. "Remember when Jane and Caroline came to visit a couple of weeks ago, when Will was in California?"

Georgiana nodded.

"Caroline and I had an interesting conversation about Will. Well, 'conversation' isn't quite the right word, I guess, since she did most of the talking." Elizabeth sighed. "I don't really want to rehash it, but suffice it to say she had a lot of things to say about your brother and his...dating habits...most of which turned out to be lies. She also very blatantly implied that she had slept with him."

Georgiana's jaw dropped. "What? You're kidding me! That lying, gold-digging bitch! Will would never touch that...that...bean pole!"

Elizabeth couldn't stifle the laughter erupting from her.

"It's not funny! I can't believe she did that to you!" Georgiana exclaimed, clearly upset.

Elizabeth stopped laughing, but continued to grin. "No, it wasn't funny, believe me. Unfortunately, there were other things going on at the same time, and I almost fell into her little trap. Until your brother set me straight, that is. Neither one of us has seen Caroline or spoken to her since then. I didn't even think about her being there tomorrow night."

"She better hope she doesn't cross my path."

"Georgie, I can fight my own battles, believe me. Hopefully, it won't come to that, at least not at the benefit. The last thing I want is some sort of scene."

"Just stay close to Will. If Caroline knows he's mad at her, she'll avoid him like the plague. Plus, she can't stand Richard, and the feeling is mutual, so she won't go near our table. I can't wait to meet his girlfriend, I wonder what she's like?"

Elizabeth remained mum on the topic.

"Are you prepared to meet Catherine and Anne?"

"Catherine and...Anne? Anne DeBourgh?"

"Yes...Catherine was married to my uncle, Richard's father, until he died a few years back. Anne is her daughter from her first marriage."

"They're coming?" Elizabeth suddenly felt sick.

"Yes...Will didn't tell you? Well, it's not a big deal, anyway. Catherine is annoying, but bearable. Anne is okay, once you get to know her. I think Catherine has always hoped that Anne and Will would hook up, and I think Anne is more than willing, but Will was never interested."

Elizabeth was more than a little irritated that she was just now finding out that Anne would be at the benefit. Granted, she had nothing to dislike the woman for; in fact, Anne had made it a point to go out of her way to let Will know about Elizabeth's phone call on that fateful morning, even offering to talk to Elizabeth if Will needed her to. Still, she didn't know what to expect when she met her, and at an event like tomorrow night's, she didn't like the idea of the unexpected. On top of that, she may have to deal with Caroline, if she decided to attend.

Feeling her mood beginning to sour rapidly, she was lost in thought when she heard Georgiana speak.

"Here we are. Hopefully Will isn't running late."

They left the bus and grabbed their bags, heading into the terminal. Elizabeth immediately spotted Will's handsome face in the crowd.

He smiled at them both as he reached them. "Hello ladies."

"Hi," Elizabeth and Georgie said at the same time.

"How was the ride?"

"Fine," Georgie said.

Will looked at Elizabeth expectantly. "Fine," she said, giving him a half smile.

He leaned down to kiss her, and though she kissed him back, he sensed a slight hesitancy. He pulled back to look at her, and she smiled, but something about her smile wasn't quite right.

Will grabbed both bags and they began walking through the terminal to the doors that led to the parking lot, Georgiana walking a few steps ahead of him and Elizabeth.

"Hey," Will said quietly, looking at Elizabeth.

She turned to look up at him, raising her eyebrows.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Are we going straight to your place?"

He nodded, glancing at her as they walked, not believing that she was fine at all.

* * *

><p>Walking into Will's townhouse, which was actually a classic Boston brownstone, Elizabeth couldn't believe her eyes. He had told her that it wasn't as cozy as the New Seabury house, but he was mistaken; the entire residence emitted warmth. The floors were dark hardwood throughout, and the walls were painted a soft linen white. One wall, which ran the length of the home from front to back, was all exposed brick. The paintings on the walls were very contemporary, and exuded a definite masculine tone, but still contributed to the overall feeling of warmth.<p>

The home had three levels. The bottom level was the common area; kitchen, living room, dining room, half-bath, and of course the foyer, which Elizabeth now stood in, gawking at the high ceilings and beautiful staircase that led up to the next level.

"Come on, lets get your bags upstairs and get you settled," Will said quietly, wanting some alone time with Elizabeth.

The second level had two decent sized bedrooms, each with its own private bath, and Will's office. _This is where Georgiana will stay_, Elizabeth presumed.

As Will led her up the staircase that wound up to the third level, she looked around, amazed. The entire third floor was made up of the master suite. As on the bottom level, the floors were hardwood, and the furnishings up here were minimal. There was a large bed with a night stand on either side, and across from the bed, over a fireplace, was a large television. There was an en suite bathroom, and a huge walk in closet, even bigger than the one he had in New Seabury. In front of the large bay windows that overlooked the busy city street below were two very comfortable looking overstuffed chairs. Elizabeth could imagine curling up there on a Sunday morning with a cup of coffee, reading the paper with Will.

Right now, though, she was annoyed with him. She could feel his gaze on her, and he was being fairly quiet, so she knew he was waiting for her to say something. Just as she was about to, she could hear Georgiana bounding up the stairs.

"Can I come in?" she called out from the stairs.

"Sure, come on in," Will said flatly, obviously irritated at the interruption.

"What's the plan for tonight? Is Richard coming over?" she asked, looking from Will to Elizabeth curiously.

Will shrugged. "I told Jane and Charles to come over whenever they wanted to, and Richard's going to text me when he lands. I thought we could just get some take-out instead of going out. Is that okay with the two of you?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Fine."

"Sounds good to me," Georgiana said. "I can't wait to see Richard."

"His plane should be landing right about now, so he won't be too long, I'm sure."

"Is he bringing his girlfriend?" Georgie asked.

"Well, I would think so, wouldn't you?"

"Is he bringing Anne and Catherine too?" Elizabeth asked quietly, looking at Will.

He pursed his lips. _Aha. There we have it._ Clearing his throat, he answered Elizabeth's question. "No, he isn't, because they weren't invited to join us. We'll see them tomorrow night."

Elizabeth only nodded, not saying anything.

Georgiana jumped as her cell phone began to ring in her pocket. Staring at the screen, she looked momentarily puzzled, then her eyes opened wide. She glanced at Elizabeth quickly, then eyed her phone again.

"Oh, um, I have to take this. I'll just go down to the living room."

She practically ran out of the room, and Will just shook his head as he watched her go.

He walked over to Elizabeth, putting his arms around her, and hugged her. She let her arms hang loosely around his waist, and laid her head against his chest.

"Are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" he asked her quietly, as he stroked his hands up and down her back.

She leaned back to look up at him. "You didn't tell me that Anne and her mother are coming to the benefit. When did you plan on telling me?"

He shrugged. "I guess I didn't think it was very important."

Her eyes opened wider. "You didn't think it was important?"

He looked puzzled. "No...should I have thought it was?"

"I would have liked to have that information."

"Well, you do have it...you know they're coming, obviously."

She closed her eyes, wondering if he was being deliberately obtuse, and thought that he wasn't. She decided she had to explain it to him.

"While I know that nothing happened between you and Anne when you were in California, I still feel like she's someone I need to...be careful of. Caroline told me that she has the hots for you-"

"Oh, Jesus, Caroline told you? Can we _not_ go back to the whole Caroline fiasco again? Please?" His annoyance was evident in his tone.

"I'm not going back to it. I discounted what she said, once you and I got everything...straightened out. But then, Georgie said the same thing today, more or less. Not only is Anne willing to 'hook up' with you, but her mother is pushing for it. So, tomorrow night, I'm facing these two women, and if left up to you, I wouldn't have known they were going to be there."

Will still looked puzzled. "I still don't understand why you're upset. You know nothing happened with Anne, so why are you all worked up about meeting her? I'm with you, I love you, so you have nothing to worry about."

She sighed, trying to be patient. _Is it just a woman thing? Am I truly being ridiculous? Is it really just as simple as that?_

She spoke quietly. "I just feel like I need a little mental preparation, that's all." She paused and looked at him. "Caroline is going to be there too, right?"

A muscle in Will's jaw clenched. "Possibly."

"Is there going to be anyone else there that I should know about?" she asked softly.

His brows furrowed. "Like who?" he asked, his voice raising a little.

"Just...anyone. Ex-girlfriends?"

Will dropped his arms from around Elizabeth and walked towards the windows. "This is ridiculous. I'm not having this conversation with you."

"This is _not_ ridiculous! I'm going to the benefit tomorrow as your girlfriend. I have never been to any kind of function like this with you, ever. It's a part of your life that's totally new to me, so excuse me if I'm a little nervous and anxious about it."

"But you have no reason to be!" Will said, exasperated. He raked one hand through his hair. "I am with _you_, right where I want to be. No one else matters to me."

"I _know_ that, I do. I know you love me." She sighed and walked over to him, taking his hand, and decided that the best way to diffuse the tension was to put a little levity into the conversation. "Try to understand where I'm coming from. You are hot property. Scorching hot...stand too close and you get burned hot." She ran her hands up his chest to his shoulders.

Will rolled his eyes, but Elizabeth saw the corners of his mouth twitch.

"There are going to be women there that have pursued you in the past, and there will be some there that would like to pursue you now. If Caroline is anything to go by, I won't be much of a deterrent. _That_ is why I said I want to be mentally prepared. If I know what I'm going up against, it will make it that much easier."

"You're not going into a lion's den, for Pete's sake, you're going to a fundraiser."

"Oh, William, you have _no_ idea what a woman can be like when she sets her sights on a man. A lion's den is a very apt description."

He shrugged. "I still think it's ridiculous. I don't plan on letting you out of my sight, or out of my arms, for one minute. You have no idea how much I've been looking forward to this."

"Did I just ruin it for you?"

He shook his head. "No. I still can't wait to show you off." He paused, searching her eyes with his. "You're not feeling insecure about me, are you?"

She sighed. "No, it's not about _you_. It's...remember that girl in the club on the island? _That's_ what it's about. Women can be ruthless, you know. And you still didn't answer my question...will there be any ex's of yours there?"

Will shrugged, pursing his lips. "Probably. It's not like there's dozens of them all over the city, believe me. But it's likely that one or two will be there. It's just the nature of the beast."

Elizabeth smiled. "Ahh, the beast. Would that be high society, or you?"

He bent his head to growl into her neck, making her shiver. "I'm _your_ beast," he whispered against her skin, nipping at her to prove his point.

His lips traveled up her neck to her jaw, making her sigh, then on to her lips. What started out as a soft, tender kiss quickly changed to something passionate and hungry. Her tongue entwined with his as he grasped her face with his hands, holding them together. As he pulled away from her, he caught her bottom lip in his teeth and pulled on it gently.

Elizabeth's entire body was tingling, every nerve alert with delicious anticipation, the passion between them simmering. She kept her eyes closed, letting his warm breath bathe her face as he spoke softly to her.

"I don't ever want you to feel insecure about me, about how much I feel for you, how much I love you. No one compares to you...no one has ever made me feel the way you do. I wish I could explain it better, but I can't. I can never find the words...I don't think you understand what you are to me, what you do to me."

Elizabeth opened her eyes, green seeking brown. At that moment, she fell even more in love with him, if that was even possible. Her previous ire was forgotten. "What do I do to you?"

He reached to grasp one of her hands and held it over his rapidly beating heart.

"This," he said quietly. "This is what you do to me." She felt the rapid, steady thrumming under her fingertips.

He took her hand again and guided it down his stomach, over his abdomen, to the throbbing stiffness in his jeans. "And this...you do this to me so well, Lizzy."

Elizabeth let her fingers move over his erection, up and down, watching as he closed his eyes and inhaled sharply. After a moment, he moved her hand away, lifting it to his lips to kiss her palm. He released her and moved to shut the door that closed off his bedroom from the rest of the house, making sure to lock it.

He moved back towards her. "Do you know how many times I've thought about yesterday morning?" he asked as he lifted his hands to run through her hair, slowly backing her toward the bed. "I've thought about it to the point where I've been in _pain. _Waking up with your gorgeous lips wrapped around me...God, even talking about it now..." He swallowed thickly, never taking his eyes from hers.

Elizabeth felt desire coursing through her body. It was amazing to her, still, that he had this effect on her; that he could speak to her or look at her a certain way, and her body would respond, readying itself for what was to come. The peaks of her breasts hardened and tingled, and the ache between her thighs intensified.

As he backed them up, Will pulled her tank top over her head and dropped it to the floor. Her bra quickly followed, and as they fell onto the bed, he was already working at her shorts, pulling them down, dragging her panties with them.

He lowered his head and latched on to one nipple, flicking it with his tongue then grazing it with his teeth, while his fingers worked the other one, rolling it and tugging it, cupping her breast and running his thumb across the sensitive peak.

Elizabeth squirmed beneath him, all sensation now, arching her body up further into his mouth. She grabbed at his hair and pulled his lips to hers, devouring his mouth. Releasing his head, she moved her hands to the bottom of his shirt, desperate to peel it off of him, needing to feel skin on skin. He ducked out of it and tossed it, then paused to yank his jeans and boxer briefs off, adding them to the growing pile of clothes on the floor.

They were both breathing heavily, almost panting. Will looked down into those large green eyes that he knew so well, and he was overcome, once again, with a surge of emotion.

"I wish I could tell you..." he whispered as he lowered his body down to cover hers. "I wish I could put it into words..."

Elizabeth reached up to cover his lips with her fingers. "Don't tell me," she said, shaking her head slightly. "Show me."

Locking his lips onto hers once again, he slowly slid into her, releasing a huge exhalation of air as he pushed into her fully. A groan came from low in his throat as he closed his eyes.

Abruptly, he rolled them over so that Elizabeth was looking down on him. She reached for his hands, interlocking her fingers with his, and leaned to pin them next to his head. She gasped at the feel of him deep inside, filling her. He released her hands to grasp her hips, and began moving her up and down, pulsing into her, never taking his eyes from hers.

Will sat up, so they were face to face, and Elizabeth inhaled sharply at the sensation. She grabbed at his upper arms as he gently clasped her head, once again holding it as he kissed her deeply. He flexed his hips, and the pleasure intensified, making her gasp again. Just as suddenly, she found herself on her back again, with Will lifting one leg to wrap it around his hip. Her hands slid down his back to his bottom, and she held him tightly to her, pulling him into her as far as he could go.

He began to surge into her again, slowly at first, controlling his movements, but increasing the tempo of his thrusts as he heard the soft sounds of pleasure coming from her mouth, her body responding to his attentions as if it was completely in tune with his. Trailing one hand slowly down her body, taking time out to stroke one perfect breast, he reached down between them to stroke her sensitive flesh, circling, letting his fingers match the rhythm that the rest of his body had already set.

Elizabeth felt Will's lips kissing her everywhere...her mouth, her jaw, her ear, her neck. As she looked up at him, she could see everything he felt for her written on his face, etched into his expression; it was all there, laid bare for her to see. She could feel it in the way he was touching her, the way he was making love to her, the way he was looking at her. His eyes alone held so much emotion, and she knew that hers mirrored his.

She reached up to grasp his head, and as she did, she felt her body coiling, getting ready for the ultimate release.

"I love you," she whispered as they gazed at each other, "I love you so much." At that moment, her body took control over her mind, pushing her over the edge.

"Ohh Lizzy," Will groaned, his thrusts coming faster, harder. "I love you. I love-" He couldn't finish the thought, couldn't speak, as he joined her in oblivion, finally letting his body collapse on top of hers.

They lay tangled together on Will's bed for over an hour, caressing each other, slowing their breathing, kissing and murmuring words of love to each other.

Elizabeth was getting sleepy, and would have been content if this was officially the end of their evening. She would have liked nothing better than to crawl under the sheets and go to sleep with Will wrapped around her.

A buzzing noise sounded from the floor, rousing them from their peaceful rest, and Will immediately recognized it as his cell phone.

He slowly moved to disentangle his body from hers, then reached over the edge of the bed to the floor to grab his jeans, digging his phone out of his pocket. He smiled as he felt Elizabeth rubbing a hand over his bottom. He rolled back over to lay next to her.

"It's just Richard. They're not coming tonight, he's going to get them settled at the hotel and call it a night." He quickly texted him back, telling him they'd talk tomorrow.

"When are Charles and Jane supposed to get here?" Elizabeth asked, settling her head back on his chest. "I haven't spoken to Jane since last night."

"They should be here any time."

As if on cue, Will's phone buzzed again, and this time, he started laughing as he read. "Oh no."

"Oh no what?" Elizabeth asked, smiling at his laughter.

Will held his phone up for her to read, and she bit her lip as she blushed. The text was from Charles.

_Are you two coming downstairs sometime tonight, or should we eat without you?_

* * *

><p>"I really appreciate you doing this for me. I just need to get a few things that I left here. Knowing what your sister thinks of me now, I don't know if she'd even let me back in to get this stuff."<p>

"She really pissed me off, you know? Who is she to judge you? I know she's Charlotte's friend, but I'm her sister! Blood is thicker than water and all that, right?"

"It's supposed to be."

George flipped on the light in Elizabeth's living room, and a thrill of excitement tore through his body. He was here, in her house. Granted, he was here with Lydia, but so what. He'd make the most of it. He had his 35mm camera _and_ his video camera, and his little stash of pills as well.

"So...you said Lizzy is gone for the weekend?" George asked, reaching up to stroke Lydia's cheek as he closed the door and locked it behind her.

"That's what she said, she was spending the weekend in Boston. It was easy enough to get the key, my parents have a spare, I just swiped it from them."

"Clever girl," he said, holding her chin in his hand before running it down the side of her neck. _This could be a very good weekend._

"You know, Lydia...we could really take advantage of having this place to ourselves for the weekend. We could stay, play house...live it up, have a little fun. We could clean up before we left, no one would even know we were here."

Lydia's eyes brightened. "Play house?"

"Mmmm...play house," he whispered as his lips lowered to her jaw. "You could be my model, too, if you wanted."

Lydia smiled devilishly. "Your model? You want me to be a model?"

"Mmhmm...I think you're just right for the role. We could get some really hot shots."

Lydia shivered. "What about you? Will you model for me?"

George smiled slowly, leaning to kiss her and pulling her up against his already growing hardness. "Of course I will, baby...I'd love to."

* * *

><p><em>Leave a review if you can! Thanks!<em>


	26. Chapter 26

_This is the first of the two chapters that finally have Will and Elizabeth attending the benefit. Hold on to your hats! Thanks, again, for reading and reviewing!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 26<strong>

Georgiana sat at a table near the front window of a small cafe just around the corner from Will's place. She realized that she was holding the oversized mug in her hands with a death grip as she watched for Matt. She forced herself to release the mug, and took a deep breath.

_There's nothing to be nervous about. It's just Matt. _Matt, who she had known for most of her life. The same Matt who teased her mercilessly when she was younger, right up into their teens, but who since then had always been kind to her. She had vague memories of New Years Eve, of what had actually happened when he found her...she remembered him holding her and murmuring something to her over and over again, but she couldn't remember exactly what it was he had been saying. That was it, that was all she remembered; everything immediately after that was a total blank.

Her breath froze in her lungs as she saw the familiar shape of him walking down the sidewalk in the morning sun, his shaggy light brown hair falling over his eyes, eyes that she knew were an incredible shade of blue. Wearing plaid shorts and a white t-shirt, he looked just the same, but then, why wouldn't he? It had only been a little over six months since she'd seen him, but in terms of events that had happened, it seemed like a lifetime ago.

He paused when he saw her in the window and smiled at her. Georgiana's heart dropped into her stomach and started to bounce around. Her hands began to shake, so she chose to wrap them around the mug again. _Calm down, Georgie_.

The bells on the door jingled as he entered the small cafe. He walked to the table, and she could tell he was unsure of how to greet her. They had talked easily on the phone yesterday, their conversation lasting about thirty minutes, but now, seeing him face to face, her confidence faltered slightly.

"Hello Georgiana," he said quietly.

"Hello Matt," she replied, her eyes never leaving his face. She felt her cheeks warming, and knew she was blushing a little.

He sat in the chair across from her, and for a moment neither spoke. She noticed that his eyes seemed to be searching her face, for what she didn't know.

"You look great," he said, causing her to smile again.

"You do too. Though, you could use a haircut." He laughed, and it was as if that small comment broke the ice, lifting the veil of awkwardness.

He dragged one hand through his hair. "Yeah, I'm overdue. Laziness, I guess."

"It looks good long," she said, then felt herself blushing again. _I'll look like a tomato if I'm not careful._

He smiled at her. "You look very tanned. I guess that goes with living on the Cape."

"Well, it goes with living on the Cape _and_ being unemployed. Hopefully that won't be the case for long."

"Do you think your last interview went well?"

"I think so. I hope so. I'd love to have the full time job in Falmouth, but if I have to start as a permanent sub in Mashpee, I'll take it. It's a start."

"You miss it, don't you? Teaching?"

She nodded. "I do. I really love it." She turned to look out the window, watching people hurry past the cafe. "I think about the kids that were in my class when I left Boston...I wonder what they were told, if they wondered why I didn't come back. I missed them."

"I'm sure they missed you too. Kids are resilient though...I'm sure they did fine."

"I'm sure they did too."

The waitress came over and filled a coffee cup for Matt, then asked what they wanted to order.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, looking at Georgiana.

She shook her head. "Not really."

"I'm starving. Could I get an order of pancakes and bacon?"

"Sure thing hon," the waitress answered, "coming right up."

Georgiana watched as he poured cream in his coffee, stirring it before taking a sip. He set the mug down, and they looked at each other. The moment of silence stretched between them, and Georgiana couldn't take it.

She cleared her throat. "So...why did you want to see me?"

He looked surprised at her question. "Why? Um, I just wanted to...see you, see how you are."

Georgiana looked puzzled. "Why all of a sudden, though? What made you decide to get in touch with me now?"

He shrugged. "I thought you'd be open to it now, I guess. You wouldn't even talk to Julie for the longest time...I knew that if I had tried to get in touch with you, you'd probably refuse to talk to me or see me."

Georgiana nodded. "You're right, I would have."

He shrugged. "It's okay...I figured you needed space. And time. Plus, I don't think your brother would have let me anywhere near you."

She smiled softly as she stared into her coffee cup. "Probably not."

"It was hard, though, not to try," he said quietly. "I wanted to call you..." His voice trailed off.

Her eyes flew to his as he talked, and she noticed his face was flushed.

"I feel like I should apologize," he continued, speaking softly.

"For what?" Georgiana asked.

"For...everything. For not watching you closer when that guy was talking to you...for not noticing right away that you were gone."

The waitress appeared with his food, placing it down in front of him, smiling at both of them before disappearing again.

"Matt...you don't feel guilty, do you? You weren't babysitting me that night, you know. Please tell me you don't feel responsible"

He shrugged again. "I do. Well, I did. And I'm sorry to bring it up, it's probably the last thing you want to talk about, but I have to tell you I'm sorry."

Georgiana shook her head. "It's okay. I don't mind talking about it now...but you have nothing to apologize for." She paused for a moment. "It was the same with Will. He's just finally realizing that what happened to me wasn't his fault. It took him a while to get to that point, he was really beating himself up about it."

"I get that...it's hard not to feel responsible when something bad happens to someone you...um, you care about." He blushed slightly. "Especially if you feel like you could have...prevented it. Stopped it, somehow."

"That's what he told me. He felt like he should have been able to protect me. Now he understands that he can only do so much; things, sometimes bad things, will happen that he can't control. It's the way life is." She paused, looking out the window again. "Unfortunately, we share the world with horrible people, people that prey on others. I was unlucky enough to meet one of those people."

Matt stared at her for a long while, she could feel his eyes on her as she gazed out the window.

"I just wish I could turn the clock back, change things about that night," he said quietly.

She turned her eyes back to his. He sounded so sad, so full of regret. "But you can't, so you just have to let it go. Will you do that for me?"

Matt swallowed and nodded, once again staring at his coffee. He reached for his fork and began eating his pancakes, chewing slowly. After a few bites, he finally looked back up at her, his eyes slightly glassy. "These are really good."

Georgiana smiled, remembering his ability to eat virtually anything, at any time of the day or night, and not gain a pound. He held out his fork toward her, a piece of pancake balancing precariously on the tines, syrup dripping onto the table between them.

"Want a bite?" His grin disarmed her, and she found herself nodding and leaning forward to let him feed it to her. This comfort between them had always been there. They had practically grown up together; Julie and Matt's house was like Georgiana's second home. She missed this relationship, this unique friendship she had with him.

She smiled as she chewed, then swallowed. "Oh my God, those are the best pancakes ever." She reached over and stole a piece of bacon from his plate.

"I thought you weren't hungry?" he said teasingly.

She shrugged. "I didn't think I was. I guess I am."

He got up from the table and grabbed a fork from the cafe's counter. When he sat back down, he handed her the fork and pushed the plate to the middle of the table. "Dig in."

They made small talk while they ate, and Georgiana realized that her nervousness was completely gone. This was just Matt, sharing his breakfast with her, chatting about his job, telling stories about his crazy co-workers. She couldn't stop smiling. She told him about moving to the guest house, and it all felt so _normal_, sitting with him like this. So natural. Almost as if nothing had ever happened, like there had never been a six-month interruption in their friendship. Almost.

During a lull in the conversation, she decided to voice her fears about seeing him today. She focused on the nearly empty plate in front of her while she spoke.

"You know, I was really nervous about seeing you today. I didn't know what to expect..." She glanced up at him to see him staring at her intently, then lowered her eyes to the plate again.

"Why would you be nervous?"

She chewed her bottom lip before speaking quietly. "You found me that night. I really don't remember much. I don't know what you...what you saw. I had no idea, all this time, what you thought...of me. What you thought about what happened, or if you even thought of it at all."

"Georgie," he said quietly, his voice causing her to look up from the plate. He sighed, and the expression on his face was one of sadness. "In my eyes, you are still the same girl I...I've known forever. Nothing can change that. You were a victim...why would what happened to you change the way I...I feel about you?"

Georgiana swallowed. "I don't know. I hoped it hadn't." She looked out the window again. "I finally feel like my life is returning to normal, that I'm just about back to my old self again. The one big question mark out there was you."

"I hope I'm not a question mark anymore." He tilted his head slightly and gave her a gentle smile. "I missed you."

Her stomach fluttered. "I missed you too."

His smile grew. "Will I get to see you again before you go back to the Cape tomorrow?"

She thought for a moment, then grinned at him. "You wouldn't happen to own a tux, would you?"

* * *

><p>"Thanks for coming with me. Although, if you don't like the ring, don't tell me. It's already paid for."<p>

Will rolled his eyes at Charles. "It doesn't really matter if I like the ring, does it? I'm not the one who'll be wearing it."

Charles nodded. "True."

The two men ambled down Summer Street together, headed toward the Financial District and Long's Jewelers.

As they walked in, they were greeted by a very pretty, chic looking blonde sales clerk. "Good afternoon, gentlemen. May I help you with anything?"

Will left Charles to talk to the clerk and slowly walked around the store, peering into the cases absentmindedly. Another clerk, this one male, approached as he browsed.

"Can I help you with anything today, sir?"

"Ah, no, thank you. I'm just here with a friend."

"Fine, sir. Let me know if I can be of any assistance."

"Thank you." He had moved in front of a display case filled with emerald jewelry, and was beginning to look closely at some of the pieces when Charles called him over.

He was pointing to a ring nestled in a velvet display stand. "That's it. What do you think?"

Will nodded appreciatively. "It's beautiful. Diamond and sapphires?"

"Yes...Jane's birthday is in September, so I thought it would be nice to add the sapphires, instead of just giving her all diamonds. Do you think she'll like it?"

"Of course she will. How did you know what size to get?"

Charles smiled. "I measured the ring that she wears on the ring finger of her right hand...hopefully it's the same."

"It must be...right? If it's not exact, it must be close."

"That's what I'm hoping. Anything catch your eye while you were browsing?"

"Actually, yes. I'm going to go look some more. Let me know when you're ready to go." Will walked away, back toward the last display he had been looking at.

The clerk came to take the ring away for some additional polishing, so Charles headed over to join Will. He whistled. "Emeralds, huh?"

Will smiled softly and shrugged, glancing up at Charles. "They're the same color as her eyes."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth felt like she had been buffed and polished to a high shine. At Will's insistence, she and Georgiana had spent the afternoon at a spasalon, and at Charles' insistence, they were joined by Jane. After hours spent having a facial, massages of various body parts, a manicure and a pedicure, she felt completely relaxed, all of her concerns kept at bay during the leisurely afternoon. As she got dressed, however, she felt nervous flutters taking over. She paused, taking a deep breath, rubbing her hand over her stomach, willing herself to relax.

_It's just a big party, nothing to be nervous about. _She cringed. _A big party that may or may not have a couple of Will's ex-lovers on the guest list. Not __to mention lying-scheming bean-pole Caroline, and cell-phone-answering Anne. Oh, and Catherine. Let's not forget match-making Catherine._

She stood in the center of Will's bedroom, staring at the black dress hanging from the door of his closet. She gently slid it from the hanger and let it glide over her head. The soft material felt wonderful against her skin. The style of the dress, low in the front and completely backless, prevented her from wearing a bra, and in keeping with the idea of minimal underthings, she opted for a very tiny, very lacy, black thong.

Her hair was a totally different matter. While Jane and Georgiana opted to have their beautiful blonde manes swept into complicated styles atop their heads, Elizabeth had chosen to leave her hair down, for two reasons: one, her hair rarely cooperated with being 'up' in any shape or form, other than the basic ponytail; and two, Will would, at some point, attempt to pull it all down anyway, so why bother? She knew he preferred it around her shoulders, and it would be easier for her, so why fight it? She decided to pull up the sides, clipping them at the back of her head with a rhinestone hair clip, letting the rest fall in gently tumbling waves around her shoulders.

Tonight was also a night for make-up, though with her tan, she didn't need much. A little bit to bring out her eyes, a light lipstick with a little gloss, and she was good to go. She admired her perfectly shaped and painted fingernails and toenails. _I need to indulge in that more often._ She sat on the bed to put her heels on, and stood up.

With a deep sigh, she gazed at her reflection in the full length mirror, and decided that she very much liked what she saw. _You clean up pretty darn well, Elizabeth Bennet. __The shoes will take some getting used to, though. _It wasn't often that she wore heels; she wasn't fond of them and avoided wearing them if at all walked around Will's room, pacing back and forth, getting used to the feel of them and the way the dress moved when she walked.

She reached the far end of the room, and as she turned to walk back toward the door, she was surprised to see that Will had entered and was standing just inside the doorway, staring at her.

_Ohhhhh. My. God. _Elizabeth had been eagerly anticipating the vision of Will in his tuxedo, and the reality did not disappoint. In fact, the image she had formed in her mind didn't even come _close_ to the real thing. He looked as if he had just stepped out of the pages of a fashion magazine, or as if he was about to walk down the red carpet at some fancy awards show.

"Wow," was all she could manage to squeak out.

He smiled at her as they began to walk toward each other. "I could say the same about you," he said hoarsely.

They met halfway across the room, and he gently grasped her hands, holding her out in front of him at arms length. "You...you look absolutely stunning...beautiful." He tugged her closer and grinned. "Taller."

She laughed lightly and looked down at her feet. "About two inches taller." Turning to look back up into his eyes, she couldn't resist touching him. She let go of his hands and reached up to stroke his shoulders, letting her hands slowly trail down his chest, over the lapels of his jacket, before reaching back up to adjust his bow tie (which really needed no adjusting at all). Her hands glided down his arms and grasped his hands again.

"You are incredibly handsome, and you smell absolutely delicious." She leaned up to kiss him, but stopped short of his lips, letting her mouth hover just in front of his. "In fact, it's odd that seeing how good you look in this tux only makes me want to rip it off of you."

His arms wrapped around her as he lowered his lips to hers, and she heard what sounded like a quiet growl come from deep in his chest. Her hands floated up under his open jacket and smoothed over the muscles of his back before settling on his hips, gently pulling him up against her. She loved that kissing him was much easier with heels on, and took full advantage of it.

After a minute or two, he slowly broke away from her. "If we're not careful, we'll never make it out of this room tonight," he said teasingly. He continued to caress her back lightly, up and down. "I like all this bare skin," he said softly as his lips moved to her ear. "And I love that you left your hair down. I can play with it all night."

She leaned back and arched an eyebrow at him. "The clip has to stay in."

He grinned. "That's okay, there's plenty here for me to run my fingers through. I won't touch the clip." His eyes moved to her neck. "No jewelry?"

"I was going to wear my birthday jewels. Will you put the necklace on for me?"

She headed over to the closet and opened the door, walking to the large dresser that was against one wall of the massive space. When she came out, she walked over to Will, handing him the necklace and turning her back to him while she swept her hair up off of her neck.

_Now that's an invitation_, Will thought. He bent to kiss the back of her neck, keeping her distracted while he dropped the starfish necklace into his jacket pocket. She sighed and bowed her head slightly, obviously enjoying the attention. Reaching for the box in his other pocket, he quickly opened it and removed the emerald necklace he had bought, all the while still kissing her neck. _Good thing I can multitask._

He stood straight and quickly brought the necklace around the front of her. She lifted her chin higher as he clasped it, letting it fall lightly and gently onto her neck and chest. Immediately, her hand went up to touch it.

_This is not my necklace_, Elizabeth thought. She felt the stones around her neck and turned to face him.

"What is...what is this?" She walked over to the mirror and her mouth dropped open as she gazed at her reflection. "Will...what is this?"

"Something for you. Do you like it?"

"Are those...are those emeralds? And diamonds?" It was a ridiculous question, really, because she already knew the answer.

He smiled at her in the mirror. "The emeralds remind me of your eyes," he said softly.

"Will, it's beautiful. I...I don't know what to say."

"Sure you do."

She grinned, blushing. "Thanks Will, it's lovely."

He laughed. "See how easy that is?" He leaned down to kiss her, and as he did, he pulled out the box with the earrings. "You're not done yet, though."

Her eyes widened as she looked at the box. "What's in there?"

"Open it."

She gasped at the sight of a pair of emerald earrings, in a beautiful teardrop shape. Her mouth hung open as she looked at him. She turned back to the mirror and put them on, moving her head back and forth lightly to watch them sway. "These are gorgeous. It's all too much...you shouldn't have done this."

He pulled another box out of his pocket. This one was a last minute purchase, somewhat of an afterthought. After buying the necklace and earrings, he had thanked the clerk for her help and had walked out the door, then suddenly turned around, dragging Charles back in with him, to the amusement of the clerk. He had left again twenty minutes later with an emerald and diamond bracelet, one that he knew she would like. Nothing chunky or too flashy...something simple.

He handed her the box, and she was completely speechless when she opened it.

He took the bracelet and placed it on her wrist securely, lifting her hand when he was done to plant a kiss on each of her knuckles. "There. Now you're ready to go," he said softly.

His fingers stroked over the bracelet before he reached up to let them gently glide over the earrings, then moved them slowly down her neck to caress the necklace lightly. "They look amazing on you, I knew they would."

Elizabeth gazed at her reflection in the mirror, smiling shyly. "They're beautiful." She was still shocked and completely surprised. "I still...I don't know what to say. Thank you doesn't seem to be enough."

He leaned down to kiss her slowly, cupping her face and stroking her cheeks. "It's more than enough."

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes later, Georgiana and Elizabeth stood admiring each other before they climbed into the limousine. Georgiana had worn a shimmery silver dress that looked absolutely beautiful on her. She was glowing, and Will guessed it probably wasn't just from her tan.<p>

Now on their way to pick up Charles and Jane, Will looked at his sister as she sat gazing out the window at the passing scenery. She had told them that Matt was joining them tonight, which was a bit of a surprise. He didn't know what to think about it. Matt was no stranger; being the brother of Georgie's best friend, he had met him several times, and from what he could remember, he was a decent, polite guy. As he had thought before, it was unfortunate that everything that had happened to Georgiana had taken place at the Evans' uncle's party. On the other hand, he was grateful that the brother and sister were the ones to find Georgiana, and took care of her as best they could under the circumstances.

He was curious to see what their interaction would be like tonight. The possibility that Georgie's feelings for Matt might extend beyond friendship became obvious when she turned bright red as she talked about him. Will had to bite back a grin as she told him that she had met Matt for coffee, and had decided to invite him. She was still so innocent, in so many ways.

His attention was drawn back to Elizabeth as she lowered her hand to his thigh. He turned to look at her, covering her hand with his.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked, noticing that he had been lost in thought.

He cleared his throat. "Nothing in particular."

She arched a brow, obviously not believing him.

He patted her hand. "I'll tell you later," he said quietly, throwing a meaningful glance in Georgiana's direction.

"Okay."

The limousine pulled up in front of Charles' building, and Will called him quickly to let him know they were waiting. Five minutes later, the beaming couple emerged from the building.

It was obvious from the expression on Jane's face that Charles had already proposed, and it was obvious from the expression on Charles' face that Jane had said yes. _Oh, this ride is going to get noisy_, Will thought.

As they got situated in the limousine, comments were tossed around about how nice everyone looked. Charles cut a dashing figure in his tuxedo, and Jane looked stunning in her deep blue dress.

Elizabeth studied her sister, noticing that she was beaming with happiness and excitement. Before she could think too hard on it, Jane interrupted her thoughts.

"Lizzy, what is that around your neck?"

Elizabeth felt her cheeks pink. She lifted the necklace off of her neck slightly as Jane leaned forward to look at it closer. "It's a gift from Will."

"It's gorgeous, I love emeralds."

"Show her the rest," Georgiana said.

"The rest?" Jane's eyebrows flew up.

Elizabeth pulled her hair away from her ears and then lifted her wrist. "The rest."

Jane smiled at Will. "Ooooh, beautiful. Nice job, Will, you have good taste."

Will grinned. "Thanks Jane."

Jane sighed, and looked at Will, Elizabeth, and Georgiana, all seated across from her and Charles in the limo. "I got some new jewelry today too."

"Oh, you did? Let's see," Elizabeth said, leaning toward her, ready to inspect whatever she was about to show.

Jane held out her left hand, adorned only by her engagement ring.

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "Jane...is that...what I think it is?"

Jane could only nod excitedly.

Will was right...it was a very noisy ride.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth's nerves were in a continuous flutter by the time they arrived at the Long Wharf. Granted, the story of Jane's just-announced engagement managed to take her mind off of the evening ahead for a little bit, but by the time the limousine pulled up in front of the waterfront hotel, her stomach was back to doing somersaults again.<p>

Will and Charles were the first to leave the limo, followed by Georgiana, then Jane, and after a moment of hesitation, Elizabeth. She gave herself a mental pep talk, horrified that she was feeling so much trepidation.

Georgiana chose to wait just inside the entrance of the hotel for Matt. He had texted her a short time ago to let her know that he was on his way, and she wanted to walk in with him, rather than walk in as a 'third' with Will and Elizabeth. Will hesitated, but was persuaded by Elizabeth's pointed look to let her wait.

Jane and Charles had already gotten far ahead of them. Will could sense Elizabeth's nervousness, and squeezed her hand tightly as he escorted her through the lobby of the hotel. He tried to think of something to say that would relax her as they walked.

"Have I told you how beautiful you look?" he leaned down to say quietly into her ear.

She turned to smile up at him. "You have, several times. Thank you."

"Have I told you how much I'm looking forward to dancing with you?"

Her lips twitched. "Yes. I'm looking forward to dancing with you too."

He released her hand and moved it to her waist as they walked, letting it travel up her back, under her light wrap, to stroke her bare skin. "Have I told you how good you feel, how soft your skin is?"

She felt goosebumps move up and down her arms. "Mmm...I think so." She was smiling brightly now.

His hand traveled up to the nape of her neck, and briefly flirted with her curls. "Have I told you how much I love your hair down, just like it is now, so I can play with it and wrap it around my fingers?"

She blushed slightly. They were now at the entrance to the ballroom, and she realized that her nerves had calmed significantly. She finally became aware of all the people milling about around her. Before they walked in, she turned to face him, and reached to give him a soft kiss. "Thank you."

"My pleasure."

As they walked through the doors, she realized they were entering a smaller room, almost like a foyer, that led to the ballroom. There were photographers here, and members of the press, waiting to catch glimpses of the top echelon of Boston society. As soon as they were in the room, they were assaulted by flashbulbs, and were called out to by the few reporters that were there.

Most just wanted a picture and a quick remark, and Will was happy to oblige, while Elizabeth stood silently at his side, smiling for pictures when she needed to. After parading through that room, Will escorted her through to the ballroom.

It took several minutes to find out where they were sitting, and even longer to get over to the table. Will was constantly being stopped, and Elizabeth had been introduced to at least a dozen people before they reached the table. _I will never remember all of these names. _

They arrived to find Charles and Jane in conversation with another couple. The man was handsome, and as he turned to glance in their direction, he smiled broadly.

"Darcy!" he called out, turning to walk over toward Will and Elizabeth. The woman he had been standing with hung back slightly.

"Richard, how are you?" Will asked, holding out his hand.

Richard ignored the offered hand and instead gave Will a quick hug. "Good to see you." He turned toward Elizabeth. "This must be Elizabeth."

Will smiled. "This is. Elizabeth Bennet, this is my cousin, Richard Fitzwilliam."

Richard was just as tall as Will, and had dark hair as well, but where Will's was wavy and curly, Richard's was straight. Elizabeth noticed his piercing blue eyes. She smiled, feeling immediately at ease. "It's nice to meet you, Richard. Will has spoken about you quite a bit."

Richard grasped her hand loosely, laughing. "Well, if he's said anything bad, I should let you know that he has a tendency to exaggerate."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Richard turned to the woman who had slowly come to join them and was now standing awkwardly to the side. "Lauren, I'm sorry," he said as he reached out a hand toward her, "come meet my taciturn cousin and his lovely girlfriend."

Elizabeth noticed that he wrapped his arm around her waist, almost protectively, as he introduced her. "This is Lauren Jeffries. Lauren, this is my cousin Will Darcy, and this is Elizabeth Bennet."

Will tried, really tried, to school his features and not appear uneasy. He told Richard he would give Lauren a chance, and he would. They all shook hands, and shortly after, Jane and Charles came to join them.

Immediately, the three women struck up a conversation, complimenting each other on their dresses. Elizabeth told Lauren about Jane's engagement, and there was appropriate oohing and aahing over the ring.

Lauren was strikingly beautiful, Elizabeth thought. She had jet black hair that was completely straight, and large brown eyes, set in very fair skin. She was tall, too, Elizabeth noticed. She had to be 5'10" or maybe more. Together, she and Richard made a very attractive couple. Initially, she seemed shy, but as was always the case, Elizabeth and Jane just chatted away, observing other people, ogling dresses, and eventually, Lauren's reserve began to slip away as she joined in with them.

Elizabeth noticed that Will kept glancing at the door, and knew he was watching for Georgiana. She finally appeared, walking with a handsome young man, and Elizabeth couldn't help but grin. She turned to Will, who noticed her grin and rolled his eyes in reply. She bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing.

Georgiana reached the table, and after greeting Richard enthusiastically, she was introduced to Lauren, then proceeded to introduce Matt to everyone. As Matt was pulled into conversation with the men, Elizabeth reached out to tug Georgiana over to her.

"He's very handsome," Elizabeth said quietly.

Georgiana's face pinked even more. "He is, isn't he? There's something about a man in a tux."

Elizabeth smiled. _Don't I know it._

Will and Richard left the group and headed to the bar to get wine for the table.

"Where are Catherine and Anne?" Will asked as they walked.

Richard shrugged. "They should be here shortly, I suppose. I have no idea what's taking them so long."

He paused. "Do you think you could at least try to smile a bit when you look at Lauren, or when you talk to her?"

Will looked puzzled. "Didn't I smile when you introduced me?"

"No, you didn't. You glared, like you always do. She's been nervous as hell about coming here and meeting you like this, so please be nice. She's very bright, very outgoing...usually. You'll like her, I know you will, if you just give her a chance."

"I told you I would. Stop trying to sell her to me."

Richard was taken aback. "What? _Sell her to you? _Screw you, Darcy. That's not what I'm doing."

Will held up a hand to interrupt. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, that came out completely wrong. What I mean is, if she's everything you claim she is, then I _will_ like her. You don't have to...plead her case. Does that sound better? I didn't mean that as an insult, I really didn't." He sighed. "The whole thing, though...it still makes me uneasy. I don't like it."

"I know you don't. And _she_ knows you don't. So for tonight, can you just pretend she doesn't work at RJD?"

Will shrugged. "I'll try."

By the time they got back to the table, Anne and Catherine had arrived. Before he could mentally put his guard up, Catherine called out to him.

"Fitzwilliam! There you are, my dear. It's so nice to see you." She held out her hand, fully expecting Will to walk around the table and take it, which he did.

"Catherine," he said, bending to kiss her cheek. "It's nice to see you too, as always."

"Oh, it's been entirely too long, hasn't it? I demand to know why you didn't come to see me when you were in California. Anne said you were there five days, and you never paid me a visit."

"I was busy with work, you know how RJD keeps me running. I had to keep an eye on your stepson too, make sure he stayed out of trouble."

"Oh, now, it looks as though he found someone _else_ to keep him out of trouble. Have you met his Lauren? She's lasted a bit longer than a week or two, hmm? Must be something special. Although, it's a shame she's just a _secretary_. Does she have no ambition, no drive to be more? I must have some conversation with her later."

Anne strolled over and heard the last bit of conversation. "You'll have nothing of the sort, mother. She's very nice, and Richard adores her. You just let her be."

Will smiled at Anne. She always stuck up for Richard, no matter what. That, he always did like about her. "How are you Anne?" he asked quietly. He hadn't spoken to her since their conversation when he was headed to the airport in California.

She reached up to kiss his cheek. "I'm well, thanks. How are you? Everything...still good?"

He nodded. "Great. Um, I'd like you to meet Elizabeth."

"I'd love to meet her."

Will walked over to where Elizabeth stood with the rest of their small group, and introduced Anne to Elizabeth, Charles, and Jane.

Elizabeth smiled at Anne, and noted that she was very pretty, but not strikingly so, like Lauren. They all made small talk for a bit, and after a while, Anne turned to Elizabeth.

"It's nice to finally meet you," she said, smiling genuinely. "God knows, I heard enough about you when Will was in California."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open, but no words came out. She wasn't sure, exactly, what to say. Anne waved a hand dismissively.

"Sorry, that kind of came out wrong. I probably shouldn't even bring it up."

"No...um, no, it's okay," Elizabeth stuttered. Thankfully, no one else was participating in their conversation.

"I can only imagine what you thought of me...what you thought of Will! I am a lot of things, but one thing I am not is a man-thief."

Elizabeth nodded her head, as if this was something she needed to know. "Um, great. That's good."

Anne shook her head. "Look, I know you've probably been told that I have the hots for Will, and that my mother is trying to push us together, but that's not the case. Actually, the part about me having the hots for Will is not the case. My mother, unfortunately, is still insistent on pushing us together."

"Oh...well, thanks for telling me...I guess. I had heard, sort of, about you. And your mother."

"You heard? Oh, that's great. Fantastic." Elizabeth was cringing, and Anne shook her head. "Ugh. I'm really making you uncomfortable, aren't I? That was not my intention. Okay, once upon a time, the idea of getting together with Will was not unattractive to me. It was blatantly obvious that he had no interest, though, so I let it go. A _long_ time ago. He's always been more like family anyway, kind of like a cousin. It would have been weird."

Elizabeth smiled, feeling less tongue-tied now. "So why is your mother insistent on it?"

Anne shrugged. "She wants to unite the Darcy and DeBourgh fortunes. It's as simple as that. My father was wealthy in his own right, he owned a very successful shipping line, and made millions. My mother sees dollar signs when she sees Will; if I were ever to marry him, it would be more like a merger, I think."

"Why would she want you to marry for money, though? It sounds like you have plenty."

"I do. It's just the idea of it; money marrying money, creating more money. It's a power thing. She's greedy that way." Anne laughed, despite the flatness of her tone. "Who needs love when you have cold, hard cash?" She sighed, shaking her head. "In any case...my mother is bound to speak to you tonight, and just a warning...she can be quite direct. She won't have any qualms about telling you that you're not good enough for Will. Just give it right back to her, or let it roll off, if you can. I'll try to keep an eye on her, but she's bound to break from her leash at least once."

They both laughed at that, then were quiet for a moment, until Anne spoke again. "What did you mean, you had heard about me?"

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. "Oh, um...Georgiana said that she thought you were interested in Will, at one time. And, um, Charles' sister...she mentioned something too."

Anne's eyes widened. "Charles' sister? Do you mean Caroline?"

Elizabeth nodded.

"Oh God, don't get me started. Do yourself a favor and stay the hell away from her. If _anyone_ is trying to snag Mr. Darcy, it's Caroline Bingley."

"I know...I've already learned my lesson about her...the hard way."

"Ugh. I hope she doesn't show up tonight."

"For her sake, I hope she doesn't either."

Anne smiled. "I sense a little fighter in you, Elizabeth. You're not the scene causing type, are you?"

Elizabeth blanched. "God no, the last thing I want is a scene."

Just as they were talking, the very topic of their conversation floated into Elizabeth's line of sight.

"Speak of the devil," she said quietly.

Anne turned to follow her gaze, and rolled her eyes. "Good grief. Who dresses that woman?"

Elizabeth laughed. Caroline had outdone herself tonight. _Does she have a thing for orange? And plumage? _Her dress was similar in color to the sundress she had worn to Charles' Memorial Day party – a loud, putrid shade of orange. She wore some type of feathery...thing...in her hair, which Elizabeth thought may have been the actual bird that the feathers came from.

Jane also spotted Caroline, and walked over to where Anne and Elizabeth were standing. Elizabeth knew that Jane had still been talking to Caroline occasionally, but things had changed after that dinner on the Cape. Jane wasn't very tolerant of her, and Charles made it a point to not force the two of them together unless it was necessary.

At that point, the host of the event made his way to the microphone, and asked that everyone be seated.

* * *

><p>By the time dinner was over, everyone at the table was very well acquainted. Even Georgiana was relaxed, with Matt doting on her constantly. Will and Lauren were talking more comfortably, to Richard's relief. The host had walked to the microphone to let everyone know that the dancing was going to start soon. Elizabeth glanced at Will, who was already looking at her, smiling. He reached up under her hair to let his hand rest at the back of her neck, softly stroking her with his thumb.<p>

Elizabeth had felt Catherine's eyes on her constantly during dinner. When she rose from the table at the end of the meal to head to the ladies room, Catherine stood also. Elizabeth felt her stomach drop.

"I'll join you, Miss Bennet, if you don't mind. I need to head that way myself."

"Certainly," Elizabeth replied.

She saw Will begin to rise from his seat, and it was obvious from the look on his face that he was concerned about Elizabeth leaving the table with Catherine. Elizabeth subtly shook her head at him, letting him know that she would be fine. He hesitated, but sat back down.

The two women walked to the restroom in silence, and as Elizabeth passed Caroline's table, the two exchanged glances, with Caroline practically sneering at Elizabeth. For some reason, this struck Elizabeth as humorous, and it was all she could do to stop herself from laughing outright.

As they entered the enormous restroom, Catherine put a hand on Elizabeth's arm to slow her down.

"Miss Bennet, I feel we need to have a word."

Elizabeth arched a brow. "A word?"

"Yes. A word about my nephew, if you please. Discreetly." She led Elizabeth to a quiet corner of the restroom, which was actually set up as a small sitting area.

"Your nephew? Are you referring to Will?"

Catherine sighed. "Of _course_ I'm referring to Fitzwilliam. I know we don't know each other well, but I feel I must be forthright with you. Just how long do you think this dalliance of yours will last?"

Another brow, raised. "Dalliance?"

"Yes, yes, this...distraction. This affair. This _dalliance_. Fitzwilliam needs to think about his future, to think of the future of the Darcy name, of the generations of Darcys to come. Certainly, you don't think that you are suitable for the role as his lifelong partner, do you? You have no connections, no strength of name, nothing to recommend you."

Elizabeth was starting to become annoyed. _No connections? Strength of name? What century is this lady from? _

She cleared her throat. "If you don't mind, _Catherine_, I will be forthright with you as well. Will is a grown man who needs no assistance in choosing his partner, least of all from you. Whether ours will be a lifelong partnership remains to be seen, but I can tell you right now, it won't be because _you_ have a say in it. As for connections or strength of name...whatever that means...I have strength of character and my own integrity to recommend me. I don't rely on wealth or social standing to _recommend_ me to anyone, especially Will. Those things are inconsequential to him, therefore they are of no concern to you."

Catherine's face reddened as she looked at Elizabeth sharply. "You cannot _possibly_ think that you will fit into this life. You are no one, and will be viewed as nothing more than the gold-digging social climber that you undoubtedly are. In fact, I'm sure that's what most of these people are whispering here, tonight. They know you aren't one of them...who do you think you're fooling? He will tire of you, and will come to realize that choosing outside of his sphere was not wise."

Elizabeth's annoyance turned to anger. "So Anne is within his sphere? Anne, who wants nothing to do with your plans for her future? Perhaps you should leave the fate of Anne and Will up to Anne and Will, instead of trying to manipulate it for your own gain." She took a deep breath. "I have nothing else to say to you, and in fact, I've probably said too much already." She turned on her heel and walked out of the restroom, and straight into Will.

"I was coming to check on you," he said, holding her lightly by the upper arms, which were trembling slightly. He lowered his head to get her to look at him. He didn't like what he saw. "Jesus, what did she say to you?"

Elizabeth forced a smile. "Nothing I didn't expect, although she doesn't beat around the bush, does she? She cuts right to it."

"Why don't you go back to the table. I'll wait here and...escort Catherine back." He was silently seething.

She shook her head. "Absolutely not. The dancing has started and I've been waiting all night to dance with you. I refuse to let that woman ruin my night. Just forget about it." She reached up to kiss him, holding gently to his lapels. The strains of a familiar song drifted down the long hallway.

"Come on, let's go. I love this song, and I want to dance with you."

Will recognized the song too, and it always made him think of his childhood, of his mother. Those memories faded away quickly, though, as he held Elizabeth in his arms on the dance floor. They moved together effortlessly, gliding amongst the other couples.

_At last, my love has come along  
><em>_My lonely days are over  
><em>_And life is like a song  
><em>_Oh yeah, yeah, at last  
><em>_The skies above are blue  
><em>_My heart was wrapped up in clover  
><em>_The night I looked at you._

Elizabeth was barely aware of the flashbulbs that were going off, instead choosing to focus on the man holding her, singing to her as they danced. She closed her eyes and pushed her face into his neck, nuzzling him and inhaling deeply, and felt him squeeze her tightly in return and lightly kiss her temple. More flashbulbs. She lifted her head and smiled at him, and he gazed at her steadily as he sang quietly, discreetly.

_I found a dream that I could speak to  
><em>_A dream that I can call my own  
><em>_I found a thrill to press my cheek to  
><em>_A thrill that I have never known.  
><em>_Oh yeah, yeah, you smiled, you smiled  
><em>_Oh and then the spell was cast  
><em>_And here we are, in heaven  
><em>_For you are mine, at last.*_

Elizabeth was quite surprised when, at the end of the song, Will gently held her to him and kissed her quite thoroughly, right on the dance floor. She knew, in the back of her mind, what he was doing. He was telling Catherine, and Caroline, and whoever else had any designs on him, that his heart was already spoken for, and that he would not be swayed otherwise.

The notes of the next song started, and once again, they began to dance. Will hummed to the tune, and although Elizabeth thought it sounded familiar, she couldn't place it. "What is this song?"

"It's called 'The Very Thought of You'."

She smiled as she listened to him sing along again. "I like it." Glancing around the dance floor, she spied Jane and Charles swaying together, totally absorbed in one another, and her spirits lifted further. "I can't believe Jane is engaged. What a surprise...I never expected it." She raised her eyes to his. "Did you know?"

Will nodded. "Charles just told me yesterday. He swore me to secrecy."

"Smart man." She reached up to give him a soft, brief kiss.

Will felt a tap on his shoulder, and looked up to see Richard standing next to him. "May I cut in?"

Will glared at him. "No."

Richard laughed. "You can't say _no_, it's not really a question. It's just a polite way of saying 'my turn'. Come on, give her up."

Will sighed. "Fine." He gave Elizabeth a long kiss before releasing her and heading off the dance floor, to the sound of Richard's quiet laughter.

He spotted Georgiana and Matt, and as he made his way over to them, he felt a hand grip his arm.

"Darcy," a female voice said to his back.

Without turning around, he knew who it was. Her hand stayed on his arm, and he slowly turned to look first at her hand, then at her face.

"Take your hand off of me. Now."

* * *

><p><em>Okay, who do you think it is? It should be fairly obvious. Please leave a review! Thanks!<em>

_*Song: "At Last", by the late, great Etta James_


	27. Chapter 27

_I have to work tomorrow, so I'm posting today. Two days in a row! (Don't get used to it!) Let's reveal the mystery woman. Oh, and there is a little bit of angst in this chapter...nothing too horrible, and it will get resolved quickly. Thanks for reading and reviewing!_

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><p><strong>Chapter 27<strong>

"Take your hand off of me. Now."

Caroline pulled her hand away quickly, as if she had been burned. "Obviously, you and I need to talk."

Will glared coldly at the woman standing in front of him. "I have _nothing_ to say to you, Caroline, that you would enjoy hearing." His voice was quiet but harsh.

Caroline sighed, and wasted no time getting to the point. "I didn't tell her anything that wasn't true."

"You told Elizabeth that you and I had...had been _together_. God, I can't even say the words, they're so distasteful to me."

"I said no such thing. If she told you that, she's lying to you. You have to understand that I'm only looking out for you, looking out for what's best for you."

"You may not have said it outright, but you certainly implied it. And where do you get off thinking that you have a right to say _anything_ about me, or look out for me in any way? How could you _possibly_ know what's best for me? You are an acquaintance, and only because you're my best friend's sister. If you weren't related to Charles, you and I would never even be in each others company. I know what's best for me, Caroline, and it certainly isn't, and never will be, you. I wouldn't have you if you were the last woman on this earth."

She pulled back as if she had been slapped. "Surely, you can't mean that. I...I always thought of you as a friend, Darcy."

"No, Caroline, you thought of me as a prize, a prize in some big game. If _I _looked at my life as a game, this whole thing would actually be kind of funny, because I would never eventhink of you as one of the players. You wouldn't even be _in_ the game to begin with."

Caroline's mouth dropped open. "How can you say that to me?"

Will shook his head, nearly laughing. "Because it's the truth!" He sighed. "I'm not some attainable goal, Caroline, but when you look at me, that's what you see. Don't you get it? Elizabeth doesn't see me that way, and never has. I was drawn to her, I fell _in love_ with her, because she is the _exact opposite_ of you and just about every other woman in this room."

Caroline blanched. "You'll be sorry, some day. The time will come when she isn't enough, when you need more, when you miss this life and get tired of playing in the _sand_ with her. This is where you belong, your life is here."

"My life is where Elizabeth is."

Caroline shook her head. "You'll regret it."

"I won't, and I certainly will have no regrets over you. Move on, Caroline. Find some other prize to pursue."

She stared at him for another moment, speechless, before turning and stalking off. Will took a deep, calming breath. He glanced at the dance floor, and saw Elizabeth watching him closely as she danced with Richard, a look of concern on her face. He smiled and blew her a kiss, and she seemed to relax a little.

Anne came to join him as he was about to walk away to find Georgiana.

"_That_ didn't look like a friendly conversation," she said, raising her eyebrows.

"That's because it wasn't. But it was a conversation that was long overdue, believe me."

Anne grabbed Will's arm. "C'mon, you owe me a dance. Your girlfriend is stuck with Richie, so you might as well dance with me."

Will smiled at her use of Richard's nickname, and allowed himself to be led out onto the floor. He winked at Elizabeth, who smiled back. Richard was definitely entertaining her, and Will was grateful that he was making her laugh. The last thing he wanted was for her to be upset by Caroline and Catherine.

"So, between my mother and Caroline, you've probably had enough tonight, hmm?"

"Yes, you could say that. Thank God no one else has bothered us." He gazed around the ballroom and did see two familiar female faces, but both women were with other men, and paid Will no attention.

"I had a chance to chat a little with Elizabeth. She's very nice." Will looked at her suspiciously, making her laugh. She squeezed the hand holding hers as they danced. "I'm serious, don't look at me like that! I like her. You're obviously mad about her, and I can see she feels the same way. Don't worry about my mother, she'll come around."

"Honestly Anne, I could care less what your mother thinks."

Anne smiled. "Good." She paused for a moment. "You seem to be getting along okay with Lauren."

Will shrugged. "She's nice, and obviously very smart. I don't have anything against _her_, it's just the situation. You do know that she's his secretary?"

Anne nodded. "I do. And she's his executive assistant."

Will rolled his eyes. "Okay, executive assistant. My point is the same, regardless of her title."

"What can you do, though? When the arrow strikes, it strikes. Maybe she shouldn't have taken the job, but she did, and she can't leave now, not with the baby coming. I mean, I know Richard will do his part, of course, but she needs the money."

Will froze and looked at Anne, who was looking up at him. "What?" she asked, confusion showing on her face.

"What did you just say?"

Anne's jaw dropped when she realized her blunder. "You...you didn't know," she said quietly. "Ohhh, oh no. Forget what I said. I wasn't thinking." She looked at Will with pleading eyes. "I thought you knew...I thought he told you."

Will stepped away from Anne and headed straight for Richard and Elizabeth. When he reached them, Elizabeth turned and smiled, expecting him to cut in as Richard had. The thunderous look on his face made her smile disappear, however. He looked furious.

He grabbed Richard's shoulder firmly. "Can we talk please?"

Richard looked confused. "Right now?"

"Yes, right now."

Will turned and walked away, fully expecting Richard to follow, which he did. Anne stood with Elizabeth, horrified that she had blurted out what was obviously still a secret. She quietly told Elizabeth what had happened.

Elizabeth closed her eyes and sighed. "We should follow them, I have a feeling this isn't going to be pretty."

By the time they found them, the two men were in a heated argument, in the back hallway that led behind the ballroom to the hotel's kitchen. Thankfully, other than them, the hallway was deserted.

"I was going to tell you," Richard said forcefully. He was leaning back against the wall, while Will paced back and forth in front of him. Anne and Elizabeth hung back, not wanting to interfere, but willing to step in if things escalated. The men weren't even aware of their presence.

Richard continued. "Actually, it's none of your business, but I – make that, Lauren and I – thought it would be best if you knew. We've known for a while, but we wanted to wait until you were a little more comfortable with us being together."

"Well, my comfort level is blown out of the fucking water now, isn't it? How could you even let this happen, Richard? What are you, sixteen for Christ's sake?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You're thirty-eight fucking years old! You can't control yourself long enough to put on a condom? Or make sure she's on the pill? Anyone over the age of sixteen knows what it takes to get pregnant, and knows what to do to avoid it. It's not rocket science."

"I don't owe you an explanation. You've crossed way too far over the line."

Will stopped in front of Richard, anger radiating from his entire body. "The poor girl gets knocked up by the rich boy. It's the oldest fucking trick in the book, Richard, and you fell for it. This time, though, the rich boy happens to be the poor girl's boss." He shook his head. "Maybe she planned it. Maybe she wanted to make sure you wouldn't go anywhere. Are you even sure it's yours?"

Richard reacted instantly, grabbing Will by the lapels of his jacket and slamming him against the opposite wall once, then again, before releasing him and stepping back, turning away from him. It was obvious he was trying to regain control of himself.

"Fuck you, Darcy. Fuck you."

At the sight of the men almost coming to blows, Anne began making her way toward them. "Stop, both of you. What the hell are you doing?" She turned to look at Will, who was still leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

He shook his head. "There's nothing wrong with me." He stood straight, and just then, noticed that Elizabeth was standing in the hall as well, watching him.

"There's _plenty_ wrong with you," Richard said icily. He stood up straight as well, and stood face to face with Will. He took a deep breath, looking his cousin squarely in the eyes. "Fuck you, and fuck your company. I quit."

He turned and walked away, not even acknowledging Elizabeth as he strode past her. Anne glared at Will before turning to follow Richard down the hall. She glanced at Elizabeth as she passed her, shaking her head slightly and frowning.

Will slowly made his way toward Elizabeth, straightening the lapels on his jacket. He noticed that she looked pale, her eyes wide. He reached out to touch her cheek, but she pulled away.

"Is that what you really think?" she asked quietly.

His brows furrowed. "Is that what I really think about what?"

"About Lauren being pregnant. Is that what you think? That she got pregnant to trap him?"

He sighed. "It wouldn't be the first time in history, would it?"

She chose not to answer him; instead she looked away from his face, down at his hands, as he absentmindedly clenched and unclenched his fists.

"Elizabeth," he said softly, "I'm sorry you had to see that, to hear all that. I apologize."

"I'm sorry too." She felt a wave of anger, and lifted her head to look at him. "I'd like you to tell me how Lauren's situation is different from the situation I found myself in years ago."

Will looked at her closely, and saw that her eyes were blazing. He realized that she was mad. Very mad, apparently at him.

"How her situation is different...from yours?"

"Yes. From mine."

"I...it's...I don't—"

"I was the poor girl that got knocked up by the rich boy. When I told you about all that, my...history, with Jason...I wonder, now, what your thoughts must have been. Did you wonder, at first, if I had done it on purpose? That perhaps I conveniently left that part out of my tale?"

Will's mouth was hanging open. "No, I...I never thought that. How could you think that I would-"

"Well, why wouldn't you? What makes Lauren's situation any different from mine?"

"It...I don't know, it just is!" Will said, feeling like he was being backed into a corner. "You were young, a college kid-"

He was cut off by a short, caustic laugh from Elizabeth. "Well, I was certainly over sixteen at the time, and so was Jason, so according to your standards, there was no excuse. After all, it's not rocket science, right?"

She paused, but Will knew better than to say anything yet. She needed to finish.

"Since we're talking about age, I'd also like to know how old _you_ truly are, because I recall that we, not too long ago, couldn't seem to control ourselves long enough to _put on a condom_. And you didn't seem to be too concerned, at that moment, about whether or not I was on the pill."

"That was different."

"Why? Because it was _you_, and not Richard? Because it was _me_, and not Lauren? Because I don't work for you? Really, Will, you're going to have to spell out what's so different about it. What if I wasn't on the pill, and got pregnant? How would you feel if Richard said all those things to you that you just said to him? What if he implied that I was a gold-digger, looking to trap you? Catherine already said as much, so it wouldn't be a stretch for someone else to believe it. Try putting the shoe on the other foot."

She looked at him expectantly, but Will remained silent. His thoughts were swimming in his head, and he had no idea what to say. No idea at all.

When it was obvious he was going to remain silent, Elizabeth spoke again quietly. "You had the gall to ask if it was _his_? How could you ask him that? Do you know what that implies about Lauren? He's in love with her. My God, William, what got into you?"

Will shrugged, suddenly feeling drained. "I don't know. I don't know," he said quietly.

Elizabeth shook her head, her patience shot. "You better figure it out." She turned and walked away from him, back down the long hallway toward the ballroom.

_I need air. I need to walk. _As Elizabeth started across the ballroom, she bumped into a very alarmed looking Georgiana, walking with Matt.

"Lizzy, what's going on? Richard and Lauren just left, and Anne and Catherine were right behind them. Richard looks like he's ready to explode." She looked around. "Where's Will?"

Elizabeth gestured toward the hall with her hand. "He's...back there. I'm...I'm going for a walk. I need some air. Excuse me."

She walked away from a baffled looking Georgie and Matt, working her way through the throngs of people. She noticed Jane and Charles on the dance floor, and chose to keep a wide berth around them. Stopping quickly at their table, she grabbed her purse before heading straight out into the lobby of the hotel. Thankfully, most of the press had disappeared, and those that were still there weren't at all interested in her, didn't even recognize her in fact, without Will by her side. She went through the doors of the hotel and out onto the sidewalk.

Immediately, she was struck by the oppressive, humid air. _A s__ummer night in Boston_. Her senses were assaulted by the noise of the traffic and the lights and smells of the city. She had left her wrap at the table, but thankfully, it wasn't needed. She turned and walked toward Christopher Columbus Park, the closest place she could think of that had grass and trees, and a place for her to sit and ponder what had just happened.

Within fifteen minutes, she reached the park and headed in. It was a well-lit area, and because of the warm weather and lush greenery, she wasn't surprised to see other people there, some with children, even at this late hour. She wandered over to a bench and sat, sighing to herself, and reached down to remove her shoes.

Her anger had waned a little as she walked and now, she almost felt like crying. She played the words that Will had said over and over in her mind, and every time she did, the desire to burst into tears grew stronger.

_Where did all those horrible words come from?_ Listening to him say those things to Richard, she felt as though she was seeing a totally different person, someone she didn't even know. How could that be possible? How could it be that the same judgmental, arrogant man that she had first laid eyes on two months ago was still lurking inside of him?

Her cell phone rang from inside her purse, and without even looking at it, she knew it would be Will. She hesitated, and decided not to answer. She just needed to think for a bit; she needed a little bit of time to get her thoughts sorted out. The phone stopped ringing, and seconds later it chimed, notifying her of a text message. She pulled it from her purse and read the message, from Will.

_Where are you? _

As upset as she was, she still didn't want him to be worried about her. She quickly texted him back.

_Taking a walk._

Her thoughts wandered back to the argument she had witnessed. Along with her shock at _what_ Will had said to Richard, was her shock at _how_ he had said it. His voice had dripped with disgust and derision. Did he really feel that way? She had shared her past with him, all of the details of that horrible time when Jason had left her...finding out she was pregnant...then miscarrying...

_Had he been disgusted with me too?_

She shook her head again, lowering her eyes to stare at her hands, feeling the sting of tears. The gems in her bracelet sparkled, reflecting the lamplight in the park. The man chastising Richard, and the man that gave her this bracelet, were worlds apart.

Lost in thought, she sat there for quite a while, until she looked around and realized she was the only one left in the park. She pulled her cell phone out of her purse and glanced at the time, surprised to see that it was almost eleven, and that she had been there for over an hour. She was about to put it away when it rang. Seeing it was Will again, she decided to answer it this time.

"Hello Will."

"Where the hell are you?"

Her brows flew up at the tone of his voice. She didn't expect anger from him, and it instantly put her on the defensive. "I told you, I went for a walk. I needed some air."

"That's great. You're out walking around Boston at eleven o'clock at night. Not very smart."

"Excuse me, but I used to live here too, and I know exactly where I am. You don't need to yell at me."

"I've been sitting here in the lobby for over an hour, waiting for you." His voice lowered to its normal tone. "I didn't go out looking for you because I assumed you wanted to be left alone."

"I did. I still do."

"Jesus, Elizabeth...can you please just come back to the hotel?" His voice had risen again. "I don't want you walking around, it's not safe. Where are you?"

Elizabeth had already put her shoes back on, and was slowly heading out of the park, back to the hotel. "I'll be there in a few minutes." Without waiting for a response, she hung up.

_It's amazing_, she thought, _how I went from being angry, to feeling bewildered, right back to being angry again._

Will was waiting for her just inside the main doors of the lobby. His bow tie hung loose from his collar, and his hair was a complete mess. She knew without a doubt that he had been running his hands through it repeatedly. He looked completely disheveled, and his relief at her return was palpable. They stood there for a moment, neither saying a word.

"Where's Georgie?" Elizabeth finally asked.

"Gone. She left with Matt, he promised to deliver her home safely in a cab. She was worried about you." He paused. "We both were."

Elizabeth felt a twinge of guilt.

He cleared his throat. "Charles and Jane are still here, although a lot of people have been leaving already."

Another twinge of guilt. Elizabeth needed to find her sister and apologize for the turn of events. "I'm going in to find Jane."

Will looked at her, unsure if she wanted him to go with her or not. He got his answer when she turned and walked away from him. After waiting a moment, he slowly made his way back to the ballroom.

Elizabeth looked out at the dance floor, but didn't see Jane and Charles among the couples. She was turning to go back to the table and almost collided with Jane.

"There you are! I was looking for you," Elizabeth said, forcing a smile.

"What the heck is going on?" Jane asked, her eyes wide. "Are you okay? Will has been worried, so have I...and so has Georgie."

"I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted was to ruin your night."

Jane smiled softly. "Lizzy, you didn't ruin my night, I'm just concerned about you. What's going on with Will? What happened to Richard and Lauren?"

Elizabeth sighed. "It's a long story." She spied Will walking toward them. "Can we talk tomorrow?"

"Of course...are you sure you're okay? Do you need to stay at my place?"

Elizabeth smiled and gave her older sister a hug. "I appreciate the offer, but no, I'm fine. We'll be fine." She wished she felt as sure about that as she sounded.

Will came up behind her. "Ready?"

She looked at him and nodded before turning back to Jane and hugging her again. "I'm so happy for you, Janie," she whispered in her sister's ear. "Charles is a great guy. You're very lucky, but he's even luckier."

Jane squeezed her tight. "Will is a great guy too. You and I are both lucky."

Elizabeth glanced at Will, who was now in an earnest conversation with Charles. She watched as the men shook hands, Will reaching up with his other hand to grasp Charles' shoulder. He was obviously congratulating him again.

"Work it out, okay?" Jane said quietly.

Elizabeth could only nod again.

* * *

><p>"Do you want to come in?" Georgie asked Matt, somewhat hesitantly, as the cab pulled up in front of Will's townhouse.<p>

"Are you sure it's okay?"

"Of course it's okay, Will won't mind." She frowned slightly. "I wish I knew what was going on with him."

They climbed from the cab and Georgie waited while Matt paid the driver. They continued their conversation as they walked into the foyer.

"I hope Lizzy is okay. They must have had an argument or something, although I'm not sure exactly how it would have anything to do with Richard and Lauren. Or Anne, for that matter." She glanced at Matt. "Sorry, I'll stop."

"No, it's okay. The whole thing was a little weird, for sure."

"Do you want something to drink?"

"Water would be great."

Georgiana headed into the kitchen, Matt right behind her. She filled two glasses, and they headed out to the living room, seating themselves on the couch that faced the fireplace.

"Other than the end of the night, did you have a good time?" Matt asked her.

Georgiana smiled. "I did, it was fun. I was a little nervous, at first...I haven't been to Boston at all, since I left in January. I'm glad I came, though." She laughed. "I had no idea you could dance so well."

Matt rolled his eyes. "You can thank my mother for that. She taught Jules and me how to dance _properly. _She'll be happy to know it paid off."

"It did. You're very graceful."

He laughed. "_Graceful_. The compliment that every man is dying to hear."

Georgiana laughed lightly, and watched as he took a sip of his water. His jacket and bow tie had long since been discarded, and he had unbuttoned the top two buttons on his shirt. She couldn't help but stare at him, he was so handsome. He turned to her then, and smiled at her.

"Did I remember to tell you how pretty you look tonight?" he asked quietly.

She felt her cheeks warm as she smiled. "You did, thank you."

"You're welcome." His expression became serious, and he cleared his throat. "Georgie, I want to tell you something...but I'm not sure if now is a good time."

"Why wouldn't it be a good time?"

He shrugged. "I don't know if it's something you'll want to hear...but I think I should tell you anyway."

Georgiana's heart pounded in her chest, and she feared the worst. _He looks so serious; it has to be something bad__._

"Okay," she said quietly. "What is it?"

He didn't speak right away, and the silence seemed to stretch endlessly. Finally, he began to talk.

"That night...New Years Eve...when we talked about it this morning, I told you I felt guilty for not keeping a better eye on you."

Georgiana nodded, but remained silent.

"I should have...I was waiting..." He stood abruptly and walked to the fireplace, then turned and walked back to the couch, sitting down next to her. "I had a whole...thing...planned. When it hit midnight, I was going to ask you out."

Georgiana was sure the surprise she felt must have shown on her face. She felt her cheeks flush. "You...you were going to ask me out? On New Years Eve?"

He nodded, seemingly embarrassed. "I was. At first, I was going to ask you to be my date to the party. But then I thought, why not ask you out at midnight? I thought it would be, you know, romantic...but then, as it got closer and closer to midnight, I couldn't find you. I had watched that guy talking to you for most of the night, and I was getting more and more bummed out. Then I saw him leave, and I still didn't see you anywhere. That's when Jules and I went looking for you."

"I told you already, you couldn't have stopped what happened."

He shook his head. "I could have, if I had stayed closer to you. Instead, I was trying to play it cool, hoping to surprise you at midnight. If I had just asked you to be my date from the get go, none of that horrible stuff would have happened. You would have been with me, not talking to that...scumbag...and everything would have been fine."

Georgiana smiled slightly at him. "You're assuming I would have said yes."

Matt's eyes flew open wide, and his cheeks pinked slightly. "I guess so."

"I'm teasing you, I'm sorry. I would have said yes."

He looked at her. "Really?" He seemed to hesitate for a moment. "I'm sorry if this is making you uncomfortable."

"It's not." _Ask me __out __now._

"And it's not like I'm asking you out now or anything. I'm not."

"Okay." _Why not?_

"I mean, only because I don't want to pressure you. I just want you to know that...that I really like you, and I really do care about you." He paused, clearing his throat. "And...and when you're ready, I would really like to take you out, on a date. If you would like to go on a date. With me."

"Okay."

"Okay...what?"

"Okay...to all of it. I would love to go out on a date with you."

"You would?"

"Yes, Matt, I would."

He smiled, and Georgiana felt her heart skip a beat. _He wants to take me __out on a date! _She returned his smile fully, and he reached over to lightly grasp her hand, entwining their fingers.

"The last thing I want to do is screw up our friendship…it means a lot to me. You mean a lot to me. So, like I said, I don't want to pressure you. We'll do it when you're ready."

Georgiana studied the expression on his face, the way his gaze never wavered from hers, and she knew. Without a doubt, she knew. "Matt?"

He nodded in response.

"I'm ready."

* * *

><p>George reclined back on the comfortable bed he had been sharing with Lydia since last night, staring ahead, out the windows to the ocean. <em>A man could get used to this. <em>

He heard the sounds of Lydia in the shower, and smiled to himself_. _It hadn't been that bad, being here with her. She was actually fun, a lot more fun that Charlotte had ever been. Lydia was much more willing and adventurous as well; granted, Charlotte had been easily persuaded in some areas, but Lydia needed no persuasion at all, she was up for _anything._

They had started out last night making a little video in the bedroom. Nothing big, not too long, but fun just the same. It was amazing to him that Lydia was so trusting; she barely knew him, after all. Who's to say what he'd do with that video? She probably assumed that since he was in it too, he would keep it for himself. He had to admit that those assumptions would be right, he wouldn't do anything with it except watch it himself, occasionally.

The photos that he had taken were a whole other story. He had gotten some fabulous shots of her, some of them innocent…some of them, erotic and steamy as hell. They had set up his camera on a tripod and done a few of the two of them together, using the timer…_that _was fun. She took a few of him as well. That was all part of it; he had to let her have her fun too. He couldn't wait to develop them, hopefully he'd get to it tonight.

They wanted to get up and clean tomorrow morning and get out of the house early. Lydia had been insistent that they not have sex in Lizzy's bed, she didn't want to deal with washing sheets and all that. George had really wanted to, was aching to dirty up her sheets, but Lydia was adamant about it, so he had given in to her wishes. Instead, they had stayed on top of the bed, laying out an old blanket that Lydia had in her car. In the end, it was fine. _Whatever works_.

She was also adamant about him using condoms, which wasn't a big deal, although the first two times they'd had sex, down at Trunk River, they'd used nothing. _Kind of like closing the barn door after the __horse has escaped, _he thought,_ but again, whatever works._ Charlotte had always insisted on using them, so he had a healthy supply, in all varieties.

Lydia came padding into the bedroom, wrapped in a towel. "Whatcha doing?"

"Nothing. Thinking."

"About what?"

He smiled. "About how much fun this has been, playing house with you. Have you had a good time?" He yanked the towel off of her as she stood next to the bed, dropping it to the floor. His hand trailed slowly up her leg, reaching the juncture of her thighs. He began stroking her, watching as her eyes drifted shut.

"Mmhmm." She reached down with one hand and began to stroke his already burgeoning erection.

"Put your mouth on me," he ordered her quietly. She lowered herself to the bed and did as he asked, working on him until he was gasping and ready to explode into her mouth. Abruptly, she pulled her mouth off of him.

"I want a picture of you just like this," she said, smiling coyly.

George grinned. "Like this?" He shifted his hips, thrusting them up slightly. "I don't know if you can get all this in the lens, baby."

Lydia laughed, rolling her eyes. "Oh please." She walked to the camera, still on its tripod, and aimed it toward him. "Yes, you fit just fine. Just fine," she said, grinning.

George modeled for her, stroking himself while gazing at the camera.

"God, you're hot," Lydia said breathlessly, as she snapped several photos.

"Set the timer, babe. I want your mouth on me again. I want a picture of you doing that to me."

Lydia did as he requested, giggling as she jumped on the bed to reach him before the camera took the shot. Her hair fell around her as she took him into her mouth, and George immediately thrust into her as the picture was snapped. As soon as he heard the click of the camera, he pulled out of her mouth and grabbed for the steadily dwindling pile of condoms on the nightstand. He unwrapped one and put it on hastily, then grasped her hips and pulled them toward his, making her straddle him. He pushed himself up into her, coming almost immediately.

"Sorry babe," he said, breathing heavily.

"You should be," Lydia whined.

He flipped her on to her back and began to let his mouth drift slowly down her body. He glanced up, giving her a predatory look.

"You see what you do to me?" His tongue played with her navel before continuing down further. "Don't worry, baby, I know what you need. I'll take care of you. I'll always take care of my girl."

* * *

><p>Will and Elizabeth ended up taking a cab back to the townhouse. Jane and Charles had opted to stay at the benefit a little longer, since they were enjoying the dancing and their own little celebration. Will insisted that they use the limo; it was the least he felt he could do for them.<p>

He sighed. The cab ride home was painfully silent. He turned to look at Elizabeth, but her position hadn't changed; she sat rigid, staring out the window at the passing city scenery. She held his hand, but loosely, almost indifferently. When they arrived at his home, she climbed out of the cab, walking ahead of him to the door of the townhouse while he paid the driver.

They walked in together and came upon Georgie and Matt, standing in the foyer.

"Oh," Georgiana said, "you're home." She glanced at her brother, then at Elizabeth. "Umm, Matt just called a cab, we're waiting for it."

"Okay," Will said. He looked at Matt, his thoughts shifting from Elizabeth to his sister. He shook Matt's hand firmly. "Nice to see you again, Matt."

"You too, Will," Matt replied. "I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other."

Will's eyebrows raised, and he glanced at Georgiana, noticing the blush on her cheeks. "Okay, well, maybe we will."

Elizabeth and Will headed into the living room.

"Should we just go upstairs?" Will asked, knowing that they had a lot to talk about. Rather, _he_ had a lot to talk about; he knew he had some explaining to do, and owed Elizabeth a huge apology. That, he could take care of tonight. Richard was a whole other matter, one that he couldn't deal with until the morning.

"Wouldn't you rather wait, at least until Matt leaves?" Elizabeth asked, as she sat in a chair to remove her shoes once again. Her feet were done with being in heels.

"No...Georgiana will lock up. Let's go upstairs."

Elizabeth rose and they walked back toward into the foyer. Will noticed that Matt was loosely holding one of Georgiana's hands, but quickly looked up to her face. "We're going up, Georgie. We'll see you in the morning."

"Oh...okay. Goodnight Will, goodnight Lizzy."

Elizabeth smiled at her. "Goodnight Georgie, goodnight Matt."

"Goodnight," Matt said.

* * *

><p>Upon entering Will's room, Elizabeth headed straight for the walk-in closet. Once inside, she yanked at the side zipper on her dress, lowering it roughly. The dress puddled at her feet. The thong was next; no way was she wearing that for the rest of the night. She stepped out of both and walked toward her bag, pulling out a pair of panties and her yoga pants. Hearing a noise at the doorway, she quickly glanced up and saw Will watching her while he leaned against the door frame. She felt her face pink.<p>

"I was really looking forward to removing those for you tonight," he said quietly.

Her only response was to arch a brow at him as she pulled on her panties, followed by the pants. When she straightened, she crossed her arms self-consciously over her breasts. "Do you have a t-shirt or something I could throw on?"

He walked over to the dresser and opened a drawer, pulling out a Boston Celtics t-shirt. "Will this do?"

Elizabeth nodded. "It's fine, thank you," she said softly. She took it from him and pulled it over her head quickly, pulling her hair out of the collar before releasing the clip that held up the sides, letting it fall down around her shoulders. The t-shirt hung down to her mid thighs, the sleeves nearly reaching her elbows.

He moved to another side of the closet, and efficiently changed out of his tux and into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. His expression was somber, unyielding, but she didn't know if he was feeling angry or contrite.

She could feel Will's gaze on her, and knew that he was waiting for some type of opening to start a conversation. As she moved to walk past him, he blocked her path. His hands reached up to hold her loosely by the shoulders. "I refuse to go to bed with you angry at me, with all this hovering over our heads. I want to get it straightened out tonight."

As she looked up at him, all she could do was nod. It's what she wanted too. "Let's go sit."

They walked back into the bedroom, and Elizabeth chose to sit in one of the chairs near the window. Will maintained distance, choosing instead to sit on the edge of the bed. She turned to look at him and felt a surge of sadness well up inside of her. His elbows rested on his knees, and his head was bent, as if he was studying something on the floor.

He spoke first. "I don't feel that way about you," he whispered, so quietly that she could barely hear him. "I never thought those things when you were telling me about your past. About Jason. I never thought that of you."

"How could you say all that to Richard, then?" The sadness she felt quickly dissipated, once again leaving anger in its wake. "The things you said to him, Will-"

"I know," he interrupted, still talking quietly. "I know what I said." He sighed loudly, shaking his head, before slowly raising his eyes to hers. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking. I...I was just angry, and I wanted to lash out, I wanted to piss him off." He looked at Elizabeth, and saw that she was silently fuming. Her eyebrows rose, but she said nothing.

"I just...I don't know...the whole thing with Richard, and Lauren...its completely thrown me. I have this fear – it may be an irrational one, but it's there just the same – this fear that she's going to...do something. Turn on him, attack him, attack RJD."

"So, yelling at him, implying that the baby isn't his, is your way of dealing with it? You were rotten to him, Will! No matter what you think about her and what her motives are, Richard is clearly in love with her. His feelings are real, they are legitimate, and you stepped all over them."

"All that shit I said, about the poor girl being knocked up...about the birth control...I didn't mean any of it. I crossed way over the line, he was right." He looked at her imploringly. "You have to believe me, I didn't mean any of it. I wasn't thinking...you were standing right there, listening to all of it, and it didn't even dawn on me that you would think..." His voice trailed off.

"Do you have any idea how that made me feel, hearing you say all those things, knowing I had been down that road myself? I know the situations aren't the same, but still...to listen to you lecture Richard, with that condescending tone in your voice, the disgust pouring out of you...it was easy enough to believe that you must have felt the same way about me." Elizabeth felt tears well up in her eyes, and fought to hold them back.

"No," he said quietly but firmly, shaking his head. "No, no. I just told you, I was pissed off and lashing out. Those worries, those fears I have about Lauren, they all came to the surface, and I gave voice to them, saying anything I could think of. I never, ever thought that way about you. Never."

They were quiet for a while. Elizabeth stared out the windows, but was oblivious to any of the scenery. Will only stared at her, waiting, giving her time to think things through.

"You know, when I left the hotel to go for a walk, I was trying to reconcile how the man that I had just witnessed cussing out his cousin was the same man that gave me those beautiful jewels earlier, the same man that sang to me while we danced, and kissed me in front of everyone. How could they be one and the same?"

She paused. "Part of me knew, inside, that it must have been anger that made you say all those things. The thing is, even if it was...it's no excuse. You realize that, don't you? You showed a blatant disregard for Richard's feelings, and acted only to assuage your own. I realized, during the cab ride home, that you did the same thing last night."

In the silence of the cab ride to his townhouse from the benefit, she had done a lot of thinking about their discussion the night before. She realized that Will had never really acknowledged her feelings of anxiety about the benefit; he hadn't apologized for not taking her feelings into consideration.

Granted, he had reassured her about how _he_ felt about _her_, but that was never the issue anyway, it wasn't what she had been anxious about. Not once did the thought enter her mind that Will might be drawn to someone else; she was secure in her relationship with him.

No, her anxiety stemmed from the feeling of not being able to measure up; she was stepping into a whole other arena with him, and initially, it had terrified her. The unfamiliar, the unknown, the unexpected...she was a brave person, for the most part, but she was willing to admit that the whole idea of seeing this part of his life had intimidated her.

Will's head jerked up. "Last night? What are you talking about?"

"Do you remember what I said to you last night, about going to the benefit? How I was nervous about it?"

He nodded, but said nothing.

"Do you...understand what I was feeling? Did you get it?"

He shrugged. "I did...I think I do, yes," he said softly, watching her. "I tried to tell you that you had nothing to worry about." He paused and looked down again. "I love _you_, Elizabeth."

She sighed. "You don't understand," she said quietly. "You think you do, but you don't. I tried to tell you last night, it's not about you...this was about how _I_ felt. Walking into that ballroom on your arm tonight...it was a bit surreal."

"I tried to relax you when we walked in...that's why I was talking to you, to calm you. I thought it worked."

"It did, and I appreciate that you did that for me. It made me forget where we were, for just a few moments..." she smiled slightly at the memory of him talking quietly in her ear as they walked across the lobby of the hotel. "Last night, though...you didn't take my words seriously, I think."

His eyebrows rose at that. "Of course I did."

She shook her head slightly. "No...this is what I think. I think you kind of let my words go in one ear and out the other...not because you don't care about how I feel, but because you just couldn't understand where I was coming from. As far as you were concerned, I'd be with _you_, and _you_ love _me_, and that was that. Everything else was inconsequential."

"That's not true."

"It _is_ true. You didn't stop to consider my feelings...you only saw the situation from your point of view...I tried to get you to see it from my point of view, and I realized that we got caught up in the moment, and never really finished the conversation."

"Caught up in the moment?"

"Yes...I was telling you how I felt, and next thing I know, I'm naked and flat on my back on your bed."

"I'm not going to apologize for that. No way."

"I don't expect you to...or want you to, believe me. We were equals in that. My point is, you never...acknowledged how I felt. You never said, 'I can see your point, Elizabeth. I'm sorry I didn't tell you that Anne and Catherine were coming, or that there may be an ex or two of mine there.' You knew I was nervous, you knew I was upset, but because you didn't _get it_, you ignored it."

Will remained silent, staring at her, before turning his eyes away slowly and shaking his head. "I can't believe this is how this night has turned out."

Elizabeth's brows rose into her forehead. _Did he just hear what I said?_

He went on. "Last night, when we were talking, you asked if you had ruined the benefit for me, if you had spoiled it, basically. You didn't. The truth is, I fucked it up pretty well, all by myself."

"Will...even though that conversation we had didn't end...as I thought it would, you made me feel loved, you made me feel beautiful, and that gave me confidence. I just need to know that you understood where I was coming from...that my feelings were legitimate."

"I understand, I do. I should have told you, but you're right...I wasn't thinking at all about how you'd feel, seeing Anne and Catherine...or how you'd feel about being in the same room with women I'd...dated in the past. I'm ashamed to say it, but it's true."

She walked over to him and stood in front of him. He reached up to wrap his arms around her waist, laying his head against her stomach.

"I don't want you to think I've been dwelling on that, because I haven't. I really had let it go...I had given myself a mental pep talk before we got there. Like I said, walking into that room on your arm was surreal, but I wouldn't have traded places with anyone in the world at that moment. I was exactly where I wanted to be, with the man I love."

Will buried his face in her stomach, inhaling deeply. "Mm. Sure, with the man you love, who made you feel horrible, and shit all over his cousin."

Elizabeth ran her hands through his hair, over and over again. "You're trying to fix it, right? No one's perfect, Will."

"You are."

She laughed softly. "I'm not. I'm very far from it, actually."

He kissed her belly loudly, then turned his face up toward hers. "I love you so much," he said quietly, "and I'm so very, very sorry. About all of it...last night, tonight. I can't apologize enough."

She leaned down to kiss him lightly. "Once is enough...for me, anyway. You still have to deal with Richard tomorrow."

Will groaned. "He said he quit." _Fuck! _"What if he's serious?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't know...you said a lot of things out of anger...maybe he did too."

"I hope that's all it was...though, I wouldn't blame him at all if he walked away." He rubbed his face with both hands. "Can we go to bed now?" he asked quietly. "I'm wiped."

Elizabeth nodded and leaned down to kiss the top of his head before heading off toward the bathroom. She was exhausted too, and the thought of crawling into bed was very appealing. Ten minutes later, they were ensconced under the covers, holding each other tightly.

"You know what?" Will asked, whispering into the dark room.

"What?" Elizabeth whispered back.

"I love you."

She smiled against his chest. "I love you too."

"You know what else?"

"What?"

"I'm very lucky that you're still here."

"Of course I'm still here."

She felt him nod in the dark, and he pulled her closer to him. "Of course you are."

* * *

><p><em>So, a little bit of angst, yes? Please leave a review, I really appreciate the feedback. Thanks!<em>


	28. Chapter 28

_You've made it through the mild angst...there will be more coming, and I'm warning you all now, it's much worse than what they just went through. Thanks for sticking with the story...and with me! I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 28<strong>

Will woke in the morning after a mostly sleepless night. Glancing at the clock, he saw that it was almost nine. Elizabeth was curled next to him, her head practically under his arm, one arm wrapped around his waist, and one leg thrown across his. He could tell from her steady breathing that she was still deeply asleep.

They had talked for quite a while as they lay in bed last night, mainly about Charles and Jane, and Catherine and Anne, then also about Caroline. She had drifted off to sleep in his arms, but he had remained awake for a long while after that, going over the events of the evening in his head, analyzing his behavior. He didn't like what he had discovered about himself. Not at all.

He realized that he could narrow it down to pretty much one thing; he liked to be in control, and always felt better when things were going as planned. Rather, as _he_ had planned. When something veered off in a different direction, spiraling out of his control, he saw that he had a tendency to fly off the handle, especially if he felt threatened in some way. Thinking on it more made him realize something else; feeling threatened was one thing, reacting the way he did was another.

His behavior toward Richard was atrocious and immature, and he had said the things he said primarily to push Richard's buttons, to get a rise out of him, and that wasn't fair to Richard or Lauren. Or Elizabeth, for that matter. The whole situation with Richard and Lauren was clearly beyond his control; that much was evident when Richard had confessed to him that he and Lauren had been a couple for quite some time. Another lesson learned: he couldn't control everyone and everything, in every situation, around him, but he could certainly control his response to those situations.

Lauren was still an unknown to him, and even though he could see that Richard was happy, happier than Will had ever seen him, there was still an element of uncertainty that he couldn't dispel. Therein lay the threat, Will realized. As much as he did trust Richard's judgment, he wouldn't be able to let down his guard with Lauren until he was confident that she was genuine. Maybe he was over-analyzing it, over-thinking it. If that was the case, then so be it. He had a lot at stake, and he would never, ever take anything that could threaten his company or his well-being, or the well-being of those he loved, lightly.

Looking back, he realized he reacted the same way to Elizabeth when she had first tried to talk to him about Georgiana, during their road trip down Cape. He had been harsh with her, simply because she had stirred up feelings that he had worked so hard to repress. Feelings of helplessness, which to him, equated to a loss of control. Come to think of it, he did it to Georgiana as well. The only difference was that he didn't verbally strike out at his sister. How could he? Instead, he became sullen, internalizing all that anger, pushing Georgie away. Until Elizabeth finally made him talk about it, that is.

_Elizabeth._ She was right when she said he was inconsiderate of her feelings. All she wanted was validation, for him to look at her and say "I understand," and he couldn't see it. Instead, he chose to reassure her about _his_ feelings for her, which was the last thing she was actually worried about. She was just nervous about the unfamiliar, the unknown. Cloistered away as he had been for the past several months on the Cape, it was easy to forget how intimidating and caustic the people of Boston society could be; Caroline was a prime example. Although, after his 'discussion' with her, he was pretty sure Caroline would back off for good.

He, of all people, should have understood where Elizabeth was coming from; he hated being in a crowd of people that were not known to him. It was extremely difficult for him to strike up a conversation with a total stranger, and it was equally hard to just jump into a discussion that was already taking place. His talent for lighthearted banter was lacking. Severely.

There were good things to look back on about the evening, though, too; it wasn't _all_ bad. Dancing with Elizabeth, albeit all too briefly, had been wonderful; she had looked incredibly beautiful, and it was hard not to stare at her all night. Celebrating with Charles and Jane was fun; their excitement had been contagious. Seeing Georgiana happy – no, not happy, _beaming_ – was a big deal, too.

At some point this morning, around 5:00 he thought, he had gotten up to sit by the windows, and had watched as dawn slowly came creeping into the city. He had no idea how long he sat there, thinking, watching, but he didn't return to bed until the street below was bathed in the soft glow of early morning light.

When he returned to bed, he was surprised to see that Elizabeth's eyes were open, watching him.

"What were you doing?" she asked quietly as he slid back into the sheets.

"Nothing. Thinking." He paused. "I couldn't sleep."

Looking down at the sleepy green eyes peering up at him from the pillow next to his, he felt a yearning deep in his gut. "I love you," he whispered, before he leaned down to kiss her softly, feeling slightly hesitant.

He wanted her, wanted to make love to her right then, but wasn't sure how she would respond. His hesitancy was forgotten as she kissed him back fervently, pushing him onto his back and climbing over him. They made love slowly, taking the time to discover each other all over again. Afterward, they curled together and Will finally dozed off. The relief coursing through his body was undeniably a very welcome feeling.

* * *

><p>A few hours later, he found himself with Richard in Christopher Columbus park, the very same place that Elizabeth had wandered to the night before, unbeknownst to him.<p>

"I'm the biggest asshole walking the planet. I know," Will said. They had been there for twenty minutes already, talking. Well, Will had done most of the talking, apologizing profusely and trying to explain his actions and his behavior to his more than irate cousin.

"You won't get any argument there from me."

"You couldn't say anything worse, or make me feel any worse, than Elizabeth already did."

Richard smirked. "I knew I liked that woman for a reason. She doesn't take your shit either, does she? Sees right through you, right? Sees the arrogant prick lurking under the tuxedo?"

Will remained silent, letting his cousin read him the riot act, knowing he deserved all of it. He vaguely wondered if they were nearing the end of their conversation.

"You have no fucking clue what my relationship with Lauren is like. And why should I tell you anything about it now?"

Silence.

"Thankfully, she missed your little show, and I was able to avoid telling her most of it. Like how you had the fucking _balls_ to ask me if that baby is mine. That baby _is_ mine, Darcy, there's no fucking question about that."

"I'm sorry I said that. I didn't mean it, and the words never should have left my mouth."

"You're damn fucking right they shouldn't have!" He looked Will straight in the eye. "I have been on top of the world about this," he paused for a moment, looking away from Will briefly, trying to get his composure. "You...you have no idea how happy I am. How happy we are. Yes, it was an accident, you're right. Chalk it up to a momentary lapse, whatever. Not that it's any of your fucking business."

"It's _not_ any of my fucking business," Will said seriously.

"Shut up. Don't patronize me." Richard sighed. "Lauren is in my life. Period. She's moving in with me as soon as we get back to California." He paused again. "My life...she has changed it. She has changed me, completely. For the better."

Will knew exactly what that felt like. "I'm happy for you, Richard."

Richard looked at him warily, and Will knew he didn't believe a word of what he just said. He still hadn't asked if Richard was really quitting RJD, but knew that he had to.

He cleared his throat. "Did you mean it when you said you quit?"

Richard looked at Will, then looked away again. "I meant it at the time." His eyes turned to Will's once more. "I'm not quitting. As much as my boss can be a complete fuck-up and deserves to get his ass kicked, _by me..._I'm not quitting."

Will sighed in relief.

"The thing is, Will...Lauren and I are together, that's not going to change. Before we came to Boston, we had already talked about her looking for another job. I don't even want her to work, for Christ's sake, but she insists."

"She can stay...for now...but I have to think this through more, Richard. Some changes might need to be made. Maybe we can find a compromise for the time being, maybe she can work somewhere else, instead of as your sec – assistant?" Will let the question hang.

Richard nodded. "I'll talk to her about it more when we get home." He glanced at his watch. "Speaking of which, I need to get back to the hotel. We're flying out in a little while. Where's your car?"

Will nodded his head toward the road. "I have the Range Rover. It's in the parking garage."

Will offered his hand, and Richard eyed him warily before clasping it firmly. "We'll talk this week."

"I'm sorry, again. More than you know."

Richard shook his head, clearly indicating the conversation was over, for now. "We'll talk this week, alright?"

Will nodded. "Alright. Have a safe flight back. Give my best...to Lauren. Tell Anne and Catherine I said goodbye."

"I will. Talk to you soon."

Will took a deep breath, relieved that things had gone decently, and headed out of the park.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth awoke with a start, and after blindly reaching across the mattress of Will's large bed, she realized she was alone. She didn't hear the shower running in the bathroom, so she assumed that he must be downstairs. After laying there for several more minutes, giving her brain time to wake up, she glanced at the alarm clock and saw it was just after ten. <em>Ten!<em> She jumped up and headed to the bathroom.

Thirty minutes later, she was showered, dressed, and feeling much more awake. She made her way downstairs, finding Georgiana alone in the kitchen, pouring some coffee.

"Good morning, Georgie," Elizabeth said quietly.

"Hey Lizzy," Georgiana replied, smiling brightly. "Want a cup?"

"Yes, please. Um, do you know where your brother is?"

Georgiana nodded as she poured the coffee. "He went to see Richard. To 'fix things', he said. What happened with them last night? And with the two of you?"

Elizabeth sighed, not sure how much she should say. "There was a...misunderstanding, between Richard and Will. And, between Will and me, too. We talked a lot last night, though. I think we're okay." She looked down into her coffee mug as she added cream. "I'm glad he went to see Richard."

"What, exactly, did they argue about?"

Before Elizabeth could answer, her cell phone rang. She pulled it from her pocket and saw it was Will.

"Hi," she said softly.

"Hi. Sorry I left you this morning, but I wanted you to get some sleep."

"That's okay. You saw Richard?"

"Yes."

"How did it go?"

"Honestly? Better than I thought. He didn't hit me, so that's a good thing."

"I'm glad he didn't."

"You and me both. I'll be home in a little bit, I'm just getting to my car now."

"Okay. See you soon."

They hung up, and when Elizabeth turned to face Georgiana again, she could easily read the expectant look on her face.

"Georgie, this is between your brother and Richard. They're working it out...if Will wants to tell you what's going on, that's up to him."

Georgiana shook her head. "You're right, it's none of my business, as long as they're taking care of it. They've always been more like brothers than cousins, you know? I'd hate to see something come between them."

"Me too." Elizabeth smiled and quickly changed the subject. "Tell me about you and Matt! You looked like you were having a very good time last night." She wiggled her eyebrows. "He's very handsome."

"Ohh, he is, isn't he? I had a _wonderful_ time. I think he did, too...we talked a little, when we got back here, about New Years, and everything that happened..." She looked at Elizabeth, smiling wistfully. "He told me that he had intended on asking me out that night, on a real date."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. "Really?"

"Yes, really! He wanted it to be...unexpected. A surprise to me, at midnight. But then he couldn't find me..." her voice trailed off, and Elizabeth noticed Georgiana's eyes filling with tears. "He really feels like he could have prevented it all from happening, if he had just asked me to the party, like he had originally planned...then I wouldn't have been talking to that guy, I would have been with him instead."

Elizabeth shrugged. "I can understand him feeling that way."

"I can too...but really, the last thing I want is for someone _else_ to feel responsible for what happened to me that night. Will is finally coming to terms with the fact that he wasn't responsible, I don't want Matt to feel that way too."

Elizabeth smiled. "They just want to protect you, and for that one night, they couldn't."

"I know."

"So...what's the next step for the two of you?"

Georgiana relayed the rest of their conversation.

"So just like that, you told him you were ready?" Elizabeth asked, half laughing.

Georgiana grinned. "Yes! I couldn't believe I was that bold...I mean, that's not me."

"Well, I'm glad you were. I'm sure Matt is too."

"He's coming to the Cape this weekend to visit."

"That's great...I'm really happy for you."

"I'm happy for me too!" Georgiana said, laughing and blushing all at once. "I just never thought...I never imagined that this would happen. Not in a million years!" She sighed. "We'll talk this week, I'm sure...but he said he's definitely coming on Saturday."

They had moved into the living room with their cups of coffee, and just as they were getting settled, Will came in, talking on his cell phone. Inexplicably, Elizabeth felt her cheeks warming when his eyes sought her out and settled on her.

She thought back to their interlude earlier in the morning, how intense it had been. The passion was there, naturally...it always would be, she knew...but there was an undercurrent of need, both physical _and_ emotional, that she felt coming from him, as if he had to assure himself that they really were okay. In response, she had wiped her mind clear of all thoughts but those of him, and did everything she could to reassure him that she was here, and she was his. _She_ had made love to _him_. _Quite thoroughly, and quite well_, she thought_. _The warmth in her face turned into a radiant heat, and she saw the curious look in Will's expression as he gazed at her. She smiled self-consciously as he ended his phone call.

He headed over to her and leaned down to kiss her. "Good morning," he murmured against her lips.

"Good morning."

"I would ask you what you're thinking about, but I'm pretty sure I already know," he whispered quietly to her.

Elizabeth bit her lip, saying nothing. Obviously, she didn't need to.

He sat down on the couch next to her. "I was just talking to Mrs. R...she'd love for us to stop by to see her if we have time today, before we head home." He turned to look at Elizabeth, taking her hand. "She wants to meet you."

"I'd love to meet her."

"Sounds good to me," Georgiana said. "I'd love to see her too, and I certainly don't have anything to rush back for."

Will smiled. "Good. Now, who's hungry?"

* * *

><p>George gazed at the pictures hanging from the drying line in Elizabeth's darkroom, trying to decide which ones he liked the best. <em>They're all good<em>, he thought. They always came out better when the model was willing and needed no...convincing. Lydia was willing, that was for sure.

He heard a knock at the door. "Are you almost done in there? I have no idea when Lizzy will be back, and we still have more cleaning to do."

He opened the door, letting her in. "I'm done, babe. Take a look...what do you think?"

He had developed most of the pictures last night, and did the last of them this morning.

"Wow," Lydia said, blushing brightly. "I can't believe...I can't believe I'm...in those pictures."

George instantly sensed that she was suddenly second guessing herself. "Babe, you look beautiful. So hot."

"But what...what are you going to do with them?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...what are you going to _do_ with them? You're not going to put them on the internet or anything, are you? Or sell them to some dirty magazine?"

George forced a laugh. "Of course not! Why would I do that? Do you think I want to share you? I don't want anyone looking at these pictures but me. Trust me, babe."

He could feel her eyes boring into him as he looked at the photos again. He turned to look at her. "I would never hurt you like that. What would I have to gain? These pictures are for me, for my eyes only. And yours. Looking at them gets me horny for you all over again." He reached out to grasp her hips, pulling her up against him. "One more round before we leave?"

She shook her head, giggling and pushing on his chest. "No, no more rounds, George! My God, you are insatiable."

He smirked. "Only for you."

"Well, save that thought for later. We have to finish up and get out of this house. You clean up the mess in here, it's your mess, after all. I'll take care of the bathroom and the kitchen." She gave him a quick kiss and left the dark room.

He looked over the pictures that Lydia had taken of him, and an idea came to his mind, making him smile. His eyes scanned the pictures on Elizabeth's wall...there were no bare spaces at all; the giant collage filled up every square inch. He very carefully began removing several of the pictures, opening up a small space. Looking over the photos of himself again, he selected one that was very explicit. He was completely naked, wearing nothing but a smile, leaning back against the headboard of Elizabeth's bed. One hand was behind his head, while the other was firmly grasped around his erect penis.

He tacked the picture to the wall, then very carefully tacked some pictures over it, leaving only certain...aspects...of the picture visible. He stood back to admire his handiwork. If you didn't already know the picture was there, you wouldn't even notice it, it blended so well with all the others. Smiling, he felt pleased; he was there, on her wall now.

Even though he still wanted Elizabeth Bennet desperately, he was angry at her too. She had messed everything up with Charlotte, which actually wasn't such a huge loss to him, but she had also tried to poison Lydia against him, too. Who was she to judge him like that? And now, he couldn't use her dark room? Uptight bitch. The least she deserved was a nice photo of him. If only Lydia hadn't insisted on using that damn blanket on her bed, he could have dirtied up her sheets as well.

Now, at least, he was happy to know that he had left her a little token. She'd find it eventually, when she rearranged pictures. He planned to be long gone by then, anyway; he was beyond ready to move on and get away from this place. His assignment for Boston Magazine was just about completed, and other opportunities had presented themselves in New York. He had already decided that he'd be out of here in a couple of weeks, maybe even sooner. The Cape was beautiful, but he was suffocating here. Stagnating. In the meantime, though, he'd keep having his fun with Lydia.

His thoughts traveled back to his token, and he smiled. _God, I'd love to see the look on her face when she finds that picture_. He walked back out into the living room, and began glancing around, another idea suddenly popping into his head. _What other little surprises can I leave for Lizzy?_

* * *

><p>The ride back to the Cape was mostly quiet. Elizabeth was happy to have finally met Mrs. Reynolds, knowing that she was like family to Will and Georgiana. The older woman was almost exactly how Elizabeth had pictured her in her head; grandmotherly, soft-spoken, and sweet. She obviously adored Will and Georgie, and doted on them openly.<p>

They hadn't stayed too long, about an hour, but left with boxes of homemade treats.

"I knew we'd go home with something!" Georgiana said, laughing. "We never go home empty-handed."

"What is all this?" Elizabeth asked, incredulous.

"Oh, knowing Mrs. R, it's all sweet stuff," Will replied. "Cookies, brownies, maybe even whoopie pies if we're lucky."

"Your favorite?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes, by far." He turned to flash her a quick smile.

Georgiana sat in the back seat, and the only sounds coming from her were her fingernails typing in texts on her phone, and the occasional quiet laugh or giggle.

Will had rolled his eyes and shook his head numerous times. Finally, Elizabeth had reached over to pinch his thigh, and gave him an "enough already" look, only to have him shake his head again, sighing loudly.

_A whole new big brother issue to deal wi__th_, she thought, smiling to herself. _God help Matt._

They pulled up outside of the house in New Seabury, and Georgiana immediately hopped out, grabbing her bag and heading to her house.

Elizabeth and Will climbed from the SUV, and Elizabeth sensed that Will was preoccupied, but with what, she could only guess.

"What's up?" she asked lightly, looking up at him.

"Hm?" He turned his eyes to hers as he picked up his bag.

"You're off somewhere, I think. Wool-gathering."

He shrugged. "I was just wondering about tonight. When do you want to go home? I mean, if you want to go home. You don't have to. I'm not trying to rush you, and of course you're welcome to stay here, but you have work-"

"Will." Elizabeth interrupted his babbling.

"Hm?"

"It's three o'clock in the afternoon. We haven't eaten since breakfast. Why don't we have some dinner in a little bit, and then you can take me home."

"Okay."

"I'd like you to stay with me tonight, though...if you want to."

He smiled, sighing. "Of course I want to stay with you."

"Were you actually worried about that?"

He pursed his lips, shrugging his eyebrows. "Maybe a little."

Elizabeth shook her head. "Look, we talked, we aired everything out...we had great morning make-up sex..." He smiled again at this. "I know we'll probably talk more about everything that happened, but for now, things are fine. This is not a deal-breaker of any kind, believe me."

He placed his bag down on the ground and pulled her into his arms, kissing the top of her head and hugging her tightly. They stood that way for a few minutes, just soaking each other in, his cheek resting on the top of her head. "Do you know what I think we need tonight?"

She laughed softly. "Hmm...loaded question."

He smiled and tilted her chin up to kiss her softly. "Iwas thinking that we need a trip to Smitty's and a sunset at Old Silver."

"Ohh, that sounds perfect, and you're right...it's exactly what we need."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Georgiana made a trip to the grocery store while Will stayed home to do some work. The three of them enjoyed a dinner of grilled chicken and salad on the deck, taking advantage of the perfect weather. Elizabeth was dying for a walk on the beach, and couldn't wait to get to Old Silver.<p>

They decided to stop at Elizabeth's house on their way to Smitty's to drop off her bag and switch the SUV for her Jeep. It was a perfect night to drive with the top down.

Elizabeth walked into the house and immediately headed into the bedroom. She placed her bag on the bed and reached into her closet to grab a lightweight jacket, in case it was breezy by the water. As she closed the door, she glanced around her room, and went to open a window to let some fresh air in.

Will stood in the doorway. "Ready to go?" he asked.

She smiled at him as she put her hair up into a ponytail. "I am. Let's go."

By seven o'clock, after a lengthy walk along the shoreline, they were settled on a blanket in the sand at Old Silver, eating the last of their ice cream cones. It was still fairly crowded, considering the time. Some people were slowly leaving, but others were just arriving, intent on enjoying what was certain to be a gorgeous sunset.

Elizabeth was contentedly digging her bare feet into the sand, loving the feel of the warm grains as they sifted between her toes. She gazed out at the ocean, wishing that she had slipped her bathing suit on when they had stopped at her house; she was dying to go for a swim. The ocean was flat calm, the only ripples coming from the kids playing on the sand bars that always appeared when the tide went out.

Will watched her, the way the soft smile played on her lips as she gazed out at the water. _She loves it here_. He still thought it amazing that it took so little to make one person so happy. Now, he considered himself to _be_ one of those people. He thought about what Caroline had said to him, about him someday growing tired of 'playing in the sand' with Elizabeth, and he knew, without a doubt, that it would never happen. Sitting on this blanket with her, enjoying an ice cream...he couldn't think of anything better. Well, maybe _one_ thing that was better...but this ran a close second.

"You're staring at me," she said, even though her eyes weren't turned to his.

"You should be used to it by now."

She smiled. "I am. But it usually means you're deep in thought about something."

"That could be dangerous. Consider yourself warned."

She laughed. "It could be, you're right." She popped the remainder of her cone into her mouth, licked her fingertips, then wiped her hands on a napkin. "Mmm, that was heaven." She looked up at him as he, too, finished off his cone. "Are you going to tell me, or do I have to guess?"

"I was just thinking that it's nice to be sitting here with you. Beautiful weather, beautiful beach...beautiful girl. There is absolutely nowhere else I'd rather be." He leaned down to kiss her, holding her face in his hands. "Mmm. Peppermint stick."

"One of my many favorites." She pulled back to look into his eyes. "There's nowhere else that I'd rather be either, you know." She smiled and kissed him again.

He leaned back on his elbows, stretching his legs out in front of him, and Elizabeth moved as close to him as she could, sitting up with her legs crossed under her, facing him. She could tell something was on his mind, suspected exactly what it was, actually, but was willing to wait until he made the first move.

"Caroline told me that I would get tired of this," he said after a few moments of silence, nodding out toward the ocean. "She said I'd get tired of playing in the sand with you."

Elizabeth bit her lip, feeling a small surge of anger go through her. "You didn't tell me that."

"No. I didn't tell you our whole conversation, word for word. I didn't think it was necessary, I just wanted to give you the gist of it."

She reached out to rest her hands on his stomach, playing with his shirt, picking at imaginary lint. "That's what I used to think, before. I told you that. I used to worry that you'd get bored with me, that you'd want to go running back home to Boston."

He leaned on one arm so he could reach with his other to cup her chin, making her look at him. "Being in that city this weekend completely confirmed something I already know; Boston is no longer my home. The Cape is my home. You're my home." He tugged on her chin, and she moved to kiss him, laying her upper body across his chest. Very quickly, he laid flat and pulled her partially on top of him.

He held her head in his hands and deepened the kiss, and she willingly responded, letting herself get lost in the sensations for a few moments. She slowly pulled away, realizing that the beach was still fairly full, and not wanting them to make a spectacle of themselves.

"Mmm," she said quietly. "Chocolate chip cookie dough."

He smiled up at her, and she sat up again, reaching to pull him up with her. She rested her head on his shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her. The sun was slowly sinking into the horizon, casting Cleveland Ledge, the 'floating' lighthouse that marked the entrance to the Cape Cod Canal, into shadow.

She heard him clear his throat. "I'm still not sure that everything is okay, with us. Why do I feel like there are still things that need to be said, things that_ I_ need to say?"

She shrugged. "You were up a lot last night, I know you didn't sleep much. I'm sure you were doing some thinking, some dissecting of things, right?" She felt his answering nod. "Did you come to any conclusions, anything that you hadn't thought about before?"

He laughed shortly. "I did, actually. I realized that I like to be in control of things. I like things to go my way. When things don't go as planned...important things...when they spiral out of control, it makes me feel...threatened, I guess. I don't know how else to explain it."

"You're doing fine."

He squeezed her tightly. "Then...when I feel threatened, I get angry."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Why do you feel like you need to control Richard?"

He sighed. "It's not that I want to control Richard...it's the whole situation, I've said it before. What if something happens to them? Right now, she's holding a tremendous amount of power in her hands." He shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know, maybe it's me, maybe I'm being paranoid." He paused. "RJD has never suffered any type of lawsuit before, at all. _Never_. Not one. What if he pisses her off, and she goes after him...and me...with some type of sexual harassment suit?"

"I completely understand the way you feel about them being together, I do. I'm not defending their actions and their choices, not at all. Still...that's a very big 'what if', Will. I saw you talking to her last night, and I talked to her as well. What were your impressions of her?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. She was perfectly nice, I guess. She seems very bright."

"She is very nice, and yes, she's definitely smart. I watched her, the way she interacted with Richard. She is completely in love with him, it's very obvious, and she didn't try to hide it. They were completely wrapped up in each other. She was even comfortable with Anne and Catherine...not an easy feat, especially with Catherine." She paused. "The only person she didn't seem to be comfortable with was you."

Will turned to look at her. "I tried to be relaxed, nonchalant, when I was talking to her, I really did."

"I know you did. But she knows how you feel about her, or rather about 'them', I'm sure."

"She does, Richard told me as much."

"She was nervous that you wouldn't accept her. The look on her face, her actions...I don't know. She seemed genuine. If she was after money, after anything but Richard's love...she wouldn't have been so nervous. Those looks and actions...she's a woman in love, who wants the acceptance of her love's family. Of you."

Will stared out at the ocean, not saying anything, feeling worse by the moment. _I fucked up badly_.

Elizabeth spoke again. "You said that you were pretty sure you fixed it. Another talk with Richard wouldn't hurt, you know. I'm sure that however you left it with him today, he's been stewing all day as well. You should call him. Soon. Tomorrow."

He nodded. "I have to call him anyway, to go over the L.A. contracts one last time."

"Talk to him again, it certainly couldn't hurt. Tell him how you feel."

"I will." He turned to look at her, nuzzling her temple. "I still feel awful that you heard me say all those things about Lauren's pregnancy. God, I don't even know where that came from. It all just spilled out of me...it was like once I got started, I couldn't stop."

"I won't lie, you scared the hell out of me. It...it was like a slap in the face. I was shocked. But...you said you didn't mean it." She turned to look in his eyes. "You said you didn't, and I believe you."

He leaned in to kiss her. "Thank you."

They were quiet as the sun dropped out of sight, almost enveloping them in darkness. The people on the beach clapped and whistled, as they always did when the sun slipped away, and then steadily began working their way to the parking lot. Will stood, holding his hands out to help Elizabeth up. They shook out the blanket, grabbed their shoes, and headed toward the Jeep.

* * *

><p>"What is this, techno or something? I feel like we're back on the Vineyard at that club."<p>

"I don't know what it is, honestly." Elizabeth shrugged in Will's arms. "I just liked the song, so I downloaded it. I don't have a seduction play-list, sorry." She heard and felt his answering chuckle.

At Will's insistence, they were dancing in Elizabeth's living room, listening to a random mix of songs from Elizabeth's iPod. 'Feel So Close' was currently playing, but they were dancing slowly. No matter what song came on, they just swayed together, pretty much ignoring the beat, choosing to create their own.

He sighed. "We didn't get to dance nearly enough Saturday night, you know."

"We didn't, you're right. You looked very handsome in your tuxedo, though. Edible."

He smiled as he pulled her tighter. "Hmm. I do regret not being able to take that dress off of you myself. That very quick glimpse of you in that black thong did a lot in the way of punishment. I had to stop myself from sobbing out loud."

Elizabeth laughed against his chest. "I guess we'll have to wait for the next black tie affair."

Will grunted. "No more black tie affairs. Not for a while, anyway, and only if they're absolutely unavoidable." He was quiet for a moment. "Wait, do you mean that I don't get to see that thong until the next black tie event?"

Elizabeth giggled. "They're not the most comfortable things to wear. Have you ever heard the term 'butt floss'?"

He burst out laughing. "No, not until now." The next song started, and he sighed. "Ahh, this is more like it. Are you a closet Dylan fan?"

"No, not really...but I like this song." He began singing along softly along, wrapping his arms completely around her, moving his body very slowly with hers. He was holding her so tightly, she could feel his voice vibrating through his chest.

_Lay lady lay  
><em>_Lay across my big brass bed.  
><em>_Lay lady lay  
><em>_Lay across my big brass bed.  
><em>_Whatever colors you have  
><em>_In your mind,  
><em>_I'll show them to you  
><em>_And you'll see them shine._

He stopped singing, just long enough to lean down to kiss her, tenderly but thoroughly, working his hands up into her hair, releasing her ponytail so he could run his fingers through the long waves. He broke away from her lips and continued singing.

_His clothes are dirty but his  
><em>_His hands are clean,  
><em>_And you're the best thing that he's  
><em>_Ever seen.  
><em>_Stay lady stay  
><em>_Stay with your man a while.  
><em>_Why wait any longer for the world to begin?  
><em>_You can have your cake and eat it too.  
><em>_Why wait any longer for the one you love,  
><em>_When he's standing  
><em>_In front of you.*_

"Will?"

"Mmm."

"Want to go for a swim?"

His eyes popped open, and he looked down at Elizabeth in disbelief. "You're not serious, are you?"

"Completely."

Her big green eyes stared up at him, and he could tell she was. Completely serious. He groaned and glanced at his watch. "It's almost ten o'clock. You have to be up early...wouldn't you rather just go to bed?" _Now? With me?_

"I just want to take a quick dip. I was kicking myself for not wearing my suit to the beach tonight. I haven't been swimming since my birthday."

"Suits or no suits?"

Her eyebrows flew up in disbelief. "You're basing your answer on that? Really? "

He remained silent, but his lips twitched.

"Fine, no suits."

"Okay. I'm in."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head, smiling. "Good grief."

Ten minutes later, they were walking toward the water, wrapped in towels. Elizabeth motioned to Will to be quiet, as they now had neighbors two doors down; the light from one of their windows was shining down onto the beach below their house. It was far enough away that they wouldn't be seen, especially since there was no moon tonight, but she didn't want to make any noise that would draw attention to the two of them.

Without hesitating, Elizabeth dropped her towel and strode confidently into the waves, until she was deep enough to dive. She surfaced after a few seconds, gasping at the feel of the cold water against her skin, but loving the way it felt just the same. She stood and turned toward the shore, expecting to see Will's silhouette, but he was gone. Just as she glanced around, she felt a hand trace up the back of one thigh and grab her bottom as he quietly swam up behind her. He stood and ran a hand through his wet hair.

"This water is ridiculously cold. Tell me again why we're not in bed?" he whispered, grabbing her legs to wrap them around his waist.

"You're indulging your girlfriend." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, clinging to him. In the water, in this position, they were eye to eye. "Come on, let's swim. You'll warm up."

He groaned. "How can you stand swimming in the dark? Doesn't it make you nervous?"

She gently pushed away from his body and began to swim out deeper. "It's not completely dark, there's a little light coming from the house. And no, it doesn't make me nervous. Why would it?"

He began to swim after her. "I don't know...you can't see anything around you."

"I already know what's around me...nothing but water. And you."

They swam a little further out and stopped, both treading water as neither could touch the ocean bottom now without going underwater.

"It's peaceful, isn't it?" Elizabeth whispered from right next to him. She shifted, letting the buoyancy lift her up to float on her back.

"Mmhm," Will replied. "Very peaceful." He sensed her movement in the water. "What are you doing?"

"Floating."

He did the same, floating next to her. Reaching for her, he let their clasped hands trail back and forth under the water.

Elizabeth laughed softly to herself. "When I lived here with my parents and sisters in the summer, Jane and I always swam at night, especially when we were teenagers. It was our way to end the day. We used to have the best talks out here, floating around..."

Will smiled at her, even though he knew she couldn't see him. "I can imagine what you two must have been talking about. Boys?"

She laughed again. "Usually. All those summer boys that came to Falmouth..."

"Chasing the Bennet sisters around?"

"Not really, no...Jane got far more attention than I did."

"Foolish, blind boys," Will said, squeezing her hand. "If I had known you back then, I definitely would have been chasing _you_ around."

Elizabeth squeezed his hand back and smiled, and they fell silent until she spoke again.

"When do you think you'll go into Boston this week?" she asked.

"I'm not sure. Why?"

"My last game is Thursday. The playoffs start after that, but we're too low in the standings to make it in this year. I'd like you to come to the game, though, if you can. We usually have a big cookout after."

"I'll make sure I'm there." Suddenly, a splash from his other side made him jump, and for a second, he was all arms and legs and splashing water.

Elizabeth was laughing, once again treading water. "What happened?"

"Something splashed next to me, something big."

"Ohhh, no...it could be...a fish!" She continued laughing.

He splashed water lightly into her face. "Ha ha. It surprised me, that's all."

"Oh, come on scaredy cat, we can swim in."

They both swam lazily toward the shore, and when they were close enough to touch the sandy bottom again, Will reached for her and pulled her to him, wrapping her legs and arms around him, once again making them an equal height.

Elizabeth knew, even without being able to see his eyes clearly, that they were completely focused on her. Without speaking, he lowered his mouth to cover hers, encircling her waist with his arms. Elizabeth wrapped her legs tighter around him, giving over to the hunger in his kiss, returning it equally. She moved her hands to his wet hair, gripping it tightly, holding his head so that he wouldn't move away from her, wouldn't stop kissing her.

Eventually he did break away, moving his lips to her neck, tasting the ocean salt on her skin. Moving his hands down to cup her bottom, he lightly stroked the undersides of her thighs as they held firmly to his hips. He walked a little closer to shore, until the water was even with their stomachs. The fact that there was barely any light, and that they were making no noise, except for that of their breathing mixing with the sounds of the water against their bodies, made the whole setting very erotic. Will felt his body coming to life, his blood pumping quickly, filling his groin with heat.

Elizabeth unwrapped her legs to stand in front of him, pressing their bodies together, lowering her mouth to tease a nipple, already hardened from the cool air against his wet skin. She licked it and tugged on it lightly with her teeth while her hands were busy under the water, stroking and caressing his growing length. His hands moved to tangle in her hair, and she smiled against his skin as her lips wandered to his other nipple.

"Not so cold now, I see...no shrinkage here."

He chuckled. "Mmmm. Amazingly, it has become as warm as bathwater." He tugged on her hair gently, raising her smiling face to his to kiss her again, moving his hands to stroke her cheeks. Slowly, his hands drifted down to cup her breasts, his thumbs moving in slow circles over her nipples, making her hips push against his. He bent to take one into his mouth, and let one hand drift below the water to stroke her center. One finger entered her, then immediately another, moving in and out of her at a maddeningly slow pace.

Elizabeth increased the strength of her grip on him, sliding her hand up and down slightly faster. He gasped lightly, then switched his attention to her other breast, his free hand splayed between her shoulder blades, keeping her pressed into his mouth. She felt the beginnings of that delicious heat building deep within her, causing her to breathe heavier. Her hips flexed again toward his, matching the rhythm of his hand.

Wrapping her arms once again around his shoulders, Elizabeth lifted her body and without hesitating, let it slide down onto his, taking in his entire length in one long motion. Her knees gripped his hips, and he quickly moved his hands to cup her bottom again, tightly holding her in place.

They both groaned loudly, simultaneously, as sensation rocketed through their bodies. The sound echoed off the water, and they both began laughing quietly.

"Shhh," Elizabeth whispered, still laughing.

"You shhhh," he whispered back, squeezing her tightly. "You need to warn me before you do something like that." He shifted his hips again, moving her with him, and this time, their collective groan was quieter. Their mouths met again and they kissed deeply, tongues dancing together. Elizabeth managed to find a way to use his hips for leverage, helping him to thrust into her at a steady pace. The water around them gently rolled against their bodies.

Breaking the kiss, Will lowered his forehead to hers, breathing heavily. "I love this," he whispered. "I love being inside you." He kissed her again. "I love you."

"I love you," Elizabeth replied breathlessly, kissing him hungrily and sinking down onto him over and over again. Propping her bottom with one arm, he reached down between them to stroke her, instantly pushing her over the edge. Her muscles clenched around him, and to stop herself from crying out, she kissed him harder, demanding the same from him. He held her again with both hands, thrusting one last time before completely losing himself in her.

After remaining like that for several long moments, Elizabeth slowly stretched her legs and Will pulled out of her, letting her feet settle into the sand. She leaned against him and kissed his chest, then stretched her arms up around his neck to pull his lips to hers. They kissed unhurriedly, softly, until Will felt Elizabeth shiver.

"You're cold. We should go in."

"Mmm. Just a little." She laid her head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat.

They slowly made their way toward shore, and by the time they reached the water's edge, both were chilled and grabbed for their towels quickly, running toward the house. Elizabeth turned on the hot water in the outdoor shower, and Will wrapped his arms around her from behind, rubbing her arms to keep her warm while they waited for the water to heat. Once it was ready, they quickly rinsed and dried off and ran up the stairs to the house.

Twenty minutes later they were snuggled in bed, the back of Elizabeth's body spooned against the front of Will's. Her eyelids were already drooping as the warmth and comfort of his body enveloped her.

"Thank you," she whispered, pulling one of his hands to her lips to give it a soft kiss.

"For what?"

She yawned quietly. "For swimming with me."

He smiled against her hair. "I have a new appreciation for swimming at night."

She grinned sleepily. "We should do it more often, don't you think?"

"Yes." He kissed the top of her head, then lifted himself up on one elbow so he could peer around to her face. She turned her face toward his, silently asking for, and receiving, a kiss. "Go to sleep," he whispered.

She pulled his arms tighter around her, tangling her legs in his. "Goodnight Will. I love you."

"Goodnight sweetheart. I love you too."

* * *

><p><em>Reviews are appreciated! Thanks ~<em>

_*Song: "Lay, Lady, Lay" by Bob Dylan_


	29. Chapter 29

_**Okay, for all you 'angst weenies' out there, the end of this chapter is where everything basically falls apart, and the real angst begins. Things really don't start to look up until around Chapter 40. Consider yourselves warned!** _

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 29<strong>

"You know, with everything that happened this weekend, you never did tell me what was bothering you before you came to Boston Friday night."

It was Monday, and Will was seated in his office at home, talking to Elizabeth while she was on her lunch break. His desk was covered with documents that he had just finished reviewing with Richard via telephone. Sitting back in his chair, he closed his eyes, trying to fight off a looming headache.

"I didn't tell you about Lydia?"

"No, you didn't...what did she do?"

"Ugh...it seems she took a liking to Charlotte's boyfriend when they were at Madness last Monday night. Sadly, he took a liking to her too..."

"Say no more. I hope Charlotte dumped him."

"She did. I tried to talk to Lydia about it, but we just ended up arguing, of course. She felt like she had nothing to feel badly about, and nothing I said was going to make her believe differently, so our conversation ended pretty abruptly." She sighed. "I just hope he doesn't hurt her like he hurt Charlotte."

"If he does, it's her own fault. Obviously, if he treated Charlotte like that, he'll eventually do the same thing to Lydia. You can't worry about it; she's a big girl, she has to look out for herself."

"You're right, I know. I just want to shake her sometimes! She's so self-absorbed...ugh, it makes me crazy."

"How's Charlotte?"

"She seems fine. Insists she wasn't in love, so she's moving on."

"Good for her."

"I hope so." She paused. "Did you talk to Richard this morning?"

"I did, we were on the phone for a while, actually."

"And...?"

Will blew out a long breath. "I told him everything I told you, pretty much. I also told him that things have to change…that the situation with Lauren has to change. He knows it, he understands why I reacted the way I did, and what I'm worried about. Although, he said it was no excuse for saying the things I did...I told him you said the same thing, and he laughed at me, of course. At least this time he didn't swear at me and call me every name in the book like he did yesterday. He was brutal."

"I'm sure he was."

"I told him we'd talk more about it when I'm in California. Maybe I'll get the chance to interact with Lauren more, get to know her better while I'm out there."

"When do you think you'll be going?"

"Well...I was thinking of trying to arrange it so that I'm there while you're in South Carolina. When are you going?"

"I'll find out this afternoon, Bill is firming things up as we speak. It looks like sooner, rather than later."

"How soon is sooner?"

"Umm...possibly the end of next week."

Will's eyebrows rose. "Wow, that is soon. I can't believe I won't see you for two weeks."

Elizabeth sighed. "It will actually be closer to two and a half...I'll have the middle weekend to myself, though...maybe you could come visit?"

He smiled. "I think that can be arranged."

"I hope so." She glanced at the clock. "I have to go, I need to be in Bill's office in ten minutes. I'll see you tonight?"

"See you tonight. Bye love."

"Bye Will."

* * *

><p>The meeting with Bill went well, and Elizabeth finally had the dates in place for her trip. She'd be leaving on the Wednesday, the 28th of July, and returning on August 14th. She knew the person from WHOI that was going, Megan Turner, but didn't know the person from NOAA. They were being put up in a house owned by the Ace Basin Reserve, which didn't surprise Elizabeth at all. WHOI and NOAA both owned a lot of homes in Falmouth and Woods Hole, specifically used to house scientists and their families, some for years at a time, others for just a few weeks. The scientific community was constantly changing.<p>

She decided to send Megan a quick email, asking if they could get together sometime before they left so that they could go over their plans and compare and review some data.

Bill came down the hall just as she sent the email and asked to see her again in his office. Elizabeth rose from her desk and followed him, assuming he needed to speak with her further about the trip. She was surprised when he shut the door behind her and went to sit on the edge of his desk, instead of in the chair behind it.

"Elizabeth, I'm just curious...I need to ask you about something. I've been made aware that George's...situation...with Charlotte has changed recently."

Elizabeth sighed. "I'm aware of that also, Bill." _Oh, here we go again._

"It's my understanding that he's been, um, seeing your younger sister, Lydia. Did you know that?"

"Yes."

"Oh...okay. I...they went away somewhere this weekend, George didn't say where they went...I didn't bother asking...I didn't even know, at first, that he was seeing her. He just told me last night. Charlotte broke his heart, he said...cheated on him with some rich doctor fellow at the hospital."

Elizabeth felt a flare of anger. "That's not exactly true...your cousin actually cheated on Charlotte. With my sister." As much as she hated admitting that fact about Lydia, she wouldn't let George malign Charlotte.

"Oh. Oh, well, he...he didn't say that. He made it seem like it was Char-"

Elizabeth interrupted, her patience running low. "What's the point of this, Bill?" She couldn't help but notice that whenever he talked about George, he got very nervous, very flustered, and it bothered her. It was obvious that something about George just wasn't right. Bill knew it, and Elizabeth sensed it, but unless Bill came right out and said exactly what it was, Elizabeth could only rely on her own instincts.

"I just wanted you to know that...that he's leaving. Soon."

Elizabeth was surprised. "George is leaving the Cape?"

"Yes. He's found other work opportunities, in New York, and he plans on leaving in the next couple of weeks."

"Oh."

"I thought you might want to know that."

"Honestly, Bill, I could care less about your cousin. I don't like him."

"I...I assumed as much. I just thought you'd want to know that he won't be around much longer. I hope your sister...she hasn't gotten too attached, has she?"

"I don't know, and if she has, she'll just have to deal with it, I guess. I don't know how she could be too attached, they've known each other for all of a week. I'm sure it's nothing serious. In any case, it's not really any of my business. Is there anything else you needed to talk to me about?"

"No...no, that was it. I'm sorry if I've made you uncomfortable, Elizabeth. It wasn't my intention. I just wanted to let you know."

She looked at him oddly. "Thanks Bill. I've got work to do, so I'm going to go..."

"Yes, of course. I'll see you later."

Elizabeth left his office in a daze, unsure exactly what that whole conversation was about, and why it had even occurred. Obviously, Bill must feel somewhat badly for Lydia. Maybe George isn't being honest with her, maybe she doesn't know he's leaving. _Oh well_, Elizabeth thought. She was finding it very hard to feel any sympathy for Lydia at this point. She thought of George leaving for New York. _Good riddance to bad rubbish._

* * *

><p>Elizabeth called Jane on her way home from work, wanting to catch up with her about the weekend. Everything had gone so awry on Saturday night, she felt as if she had barely spoken to Jane at all.<p>

Jane answered the phone quickly. "There's my celebrity sister."

"Hmm? What are you talking about?"

"Oh, I'm talking about you, Miss Elizabeth Bennet, the one who has '_captured the heart – and the lips – of Boston's most eligible bachelor_'. Your mug is splashed all over yesterday's society pages...the Herald actually has that very caption under your photo. You made the Globe, too. That was quite a kiss he laid on you...I do believe your hand was creeping towards his ass."

"Jane! It was not! I was _not _copping a feel on the dance floor."

"I'm just teasing. It's a very nice photo, actually...there are a few others, too, but the one of the kiss is front and center."

"Oh, God. Please tell me that dad does _not_ subscribe to either of those papers."

"Both, actually."

Elizabeth groaned, making Jane laugh. "They really are beautiful pictures, Lizzy. You make a dazzling couple."

"You and Charles should have been in the papers! You're the newly engaged couple!"

"Oh, Charles is just a _lawyer_. He doesn't have the old family name that Will does. Or the money!"

"Jane! Here I was calling you to apologize for how Saturday night basically fell apart, and you're teasing me." She paused for a moment. "I really am sorry, Janie. I want to make it up to you."

"Oh, please, Lizzy, you're being ridiculous. As much as I was concerned about you and Will and everything going on, nothing could have ruined my night, I told you that. Charles and I were in our own little world. We still are." She paused. "There is _one_ thing you could do for me, though, if you're willing..."

"Anything." Elizabeth was home, and eased the Jeep into the small driveway, parking it and turning off the engine.

"Will you please be my maid of honor?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Of course I will!" Tears sprang to her eyes.

"It will just be you and Will standing up with us. Charles hasn't asked him yet, but he plans on doing it soon."

"I won't say a word. Oh Jane, I'm so happy for you...we need to celebrate. Why don't you talk to Charles about coming to the Cape this weekend? I leave next week for South Carolina, so this is my last free weekend for a while."

"That sounds great, I'm sure Charles would be up for it. He's been working a lot lately, he could use a relaxing weekend. Oh, we picked a date, by the way."

"You did?"

"Yes. September 4th."

"September 4th? That's less than two months away." She thought for a moment. "That's Labor Day weekend!"

"I know. We spent most of Sunday talking about what we want, and neither of us wants a big to-do. We want a quiet ceremony, a small reception...just family and close friends."

"Mum is going to have a fit, you know. She'll want all the pomp and circumstance. Have you even told her and dad yet?"

Jane sighed. "No. I guess if we come to the Cape this weekend, we can stop by and make the announcement."

"I'm sure I'll hear mum's squeals of delight from here."

"Oh no...you're coming with me. Maybe the four of us could stop by. It will be your first duty as my maid of honor, so you can't say no."

"Oooh, nice job, using my new title to manipulate me. You have no shame." Elizabeth sighed and heard Jane laugh. "Fine, we'll go. But you owe me, big time. So, where is the wedding going to be?"

"We're hoping on the Cape, though we know what that particular weekend is like there...it will be chaotic, obviously. There's a small chapel, not too far from New Seabury...it would be perfect. We may have the reception right at Charles' house...hire a caterer, and be done with it. We want it casual and fun, not stuffy. Kind of like his Memorial Day party...something along those lines."

"It sounds wonderful."

Jane giggled. "It does, doesn't it? I'm so excited...I can't wait to get married, to make everything permanent. I never in a million years thought I'd fall in love with someone like I have with Charles. He's amazing."

Once again, tears of happiness filled Elizabeth's eyes. "_You're_ amazing, too, you know. I'm so happy for you both."

"Next will be you and Mr. Darcy."

"Oh, God, Jane...it's entirely too soon for that. We're still getting to know each other."

"I don't know...from the looks of that kiss, you know each other pretty damn well." She giggled.

Elizabeth smiled. "Very funny. Seriously...it's only been two months since we met. It's hard to believe."

"Doesn't it feel like longer, though? I feel like Charles and I have known each other forever."

"That's because you've met your soul mate." She smiled wistfully. "Sometimes it feels like that with Will, like we've spent years together already..." Her thoughts turned to the past weekend. "Other times I feel like I'm still tapping the eggshell, you know? We still have a lot to learn about each other, I think."

"Well, there's no rush anyway. Well, not unless you ask mum!"

"That's why I don't."

Jane laughed. "I'll call you later in the week to let you know about this weekend, okay?"

"Okay, sounds good. I'll talk to you soon. Bye Jane."

"Bye Lizzy."

* * *

><p>Bill sat up Monday night, waiting for his cousin to arrive home. <em>If he comes home<em>. His thoughts were answered by the sound of a motorcycle idling in the driveway. He heard the back door open, and the now familiar sounds of George's boots on the kitchen tile.

"Hey Bill," George said nonchalantly. He walked into the living room and sat down on the couch, removing his riding gloves. "Kind of late for you to be up, isn't it?"

Bill glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost midnight. "I wanted to speak with you."

"About?"

"About Lydia Bennet. About Charlotte."

George sighed. "What about them?"

"You told me Charlotte cheated on you. But you actually cheated on her, didn't you?"

George smirked. "A small oversight. Do you mind if I ask why you care, exactly?"

Bill hesitated. "Because...Lydia is...she's-"

"She's your darling Lizzy's sister, is that the problem?"

"I...well, it's not a problem, I just...I don't want either of them getting involved-"

"Too late, Billy. Lydia and I are most definitely involved. Hey, want to hear something funny? You'll appreciate this, I'm sure. You know how I told you that Lydia and I were away this weekend?"

Bill nodded.

"Well, guess where we were? A beautiful little cottage, right on the sea. Just down the road, in fact. We were at your lovely Lizzy's house. The kicker is, Lizzy doesn't even know we were there. She was in Boston with her rich boyfriend...and I was fucking her little sister on her bed."

Bill blanched and felt his stomach flip. "You...you what?"

"You heard me right, cousin. Oh, we had a helluva time in that house. I took some very nice photos, Lydia and I were just admiring them, in fact," he said, as he reached into his jacket to pull out a small folder. "Care to see them? Some of them were taken at just the right angle..." he shuffled through the photos slowly, his grin growing. "You'd almost swear they were Lizzy. Here, take a look..."

Bill looked away from George's outstretched hand. "No...no, I don't want to see them. Jesus Christ, George...I can't believe you would do something that...that..."

George laughed. "That what? Depraved? Crazy? Or maybe you were going to say 'ingenious'? Maybe you're jealous?" He laughed again as he watched Bill shake his head. "I tell you what I've learned, Billy. If you can't have what you want, you go after the next best thing."

"I'll tell Elizabeth. All of it, I swear to God, I'll tell her everything. You're sick, George. A sick bastard."

George laughed harder. "You won't tell Lizzy a fucking thing, my friend. Are you forgetting our New Years Eve party? Do you think I've tossed those photos?"

Bill watched as the expression on George's face changed. His smile had faded and now, his look was threatening, menacing.

"You, my dear cousin, will be in a world of _shit_ if you say anything to that bitch. How do you think she would feel when she found out that good old Bill Collins was responsible for the rape of her boyfriend's sweet, innocent sister?"

"I was not responsible! _You_ drugged her! _You_ raped her! I was drunk, too drunk...I didn't even know what I was doing."

"Maybe that's true...you tried though, didn't you?" He glanced down at Bill's crotch. "Couldn't get it up, though, remember Billy? Too much pressure to perform, maybe? Too much booze...maybe a little camera shy?" He chuckled. "Ultimately, it doesn't matter. You were there...and you've kept your mouth shut, _all this time_. If I go down, believe me, I will drag you down with me. Don't forget it."

Bill watched as George tucked the photos back into the folder. He rose to leave the room. "Goodnight Billy. Sweet dreams."

Bill sat back, his heart pounding. He had to keep quiet, he couldn't tell Elizabeth. It would ruin him, ruin his life and everything he had ever worked for.

No, he wouldn't say a thing.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth was on her way home from work Tuesday afternoon when her cell rang. She pulled off of the bike path to see who was calling, and saw her parent's number on her caller ID. Groaning, she decided to answer and get it over with.<p>

"Hello."

"Ohh Lizzy! Lizzy! What wonderful pictures! You are all over Sunday's papers, and your father waited until _today_ to tell me! Two days later!"

_Ugggghhhhhh. _"Hi mum. How are you? How's dad?"

"Oh, we're fine, your father is just fine. Tell me about the ball! Your Mr. Darcy looks quite impressive in his tuxedo, and look at you...look at those jewels around your neck! Ohhh, and your earrings, I can see them...a little...hang on."

Elizabeth sighed. Better that she let her mother get it all out now, instead of when she saw her this weekend, although she knew she was in danger of this entire scene being repeated in front of Will anyway. Cringing at the thought, she heard her mother fumbling around on the other end of the phone. _What the heck is she doing?_

"Oh, now, that's much better. I can see them with my magnifying glass. Yes, very pretty. Emeralds...oh, and diamonds too, in the necklace. Oh, beautiful jewels, Lizzy."

"Yes, they're very nice."

"Your hair though, good heavens, why didn't you put it up? It always looks such a mess, tangled around your shoulders like that. You could have shown off those earrings far better had you put it up in a nice chignon or something of the sort."

"I like it down. Will likes it down."

"Oh, well then, if he likes it down, you be sure to wear it down as much as possible. It wouldn't hurt to run a brush through it now and then, though, would it?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and decided to change the subject. "We had a nice weekend on the Vineyard too, when we went."

"I heard, I've talked to my brother, he said you had a lovely dinner together. I hope you don't feel the need to tell your young man all about our family history. We don't want to scare him away, do we? He's probably used to dating girls from well-to-do families, you're probably the first who isn't from a higher...well, just, not from his _circle_, I suppose."

Elizabeth pursed her lips. "He knows all about our family, mum. He knows he's slumming it." She regretted the words as soon as they slipped through her lips, but something in her felt like provoking her mother for some reason.

"Lizzy! I beg your pardon, that's _not_ what I was saying."

"Oh, mum, yes it is," she said on a sigh, losing the will to do battle as quickly as it came on. "Will knows very well where and what our family came from, believe me."

"Well, no need for you to prattle on and on to him about it. If he doesn't ask, you don't tell. Enough of that, tell me about the ball! Who else was there?"

"It wasn't a ball, mum, it was a dinner. A fundraiser. A lot of people were there...Jane and Charles went, did she tell you?"

"Yes, she did. She's coming to visit this weekend with her lovely Charles, she said they'd stop by. You and your William are going to visit as well?"

"We'll all stop by for a quick visit." _Very quick._

"Oh, that's nice. Your father will be pleased. Maybe Lydia will come by as well, she stopped here last week but was in and out rather quickly. She has a new boyfriend apparently, some George Whitman, or Wickland or some such."

Elizabeth played dumb. "Really? What happened to Denny?"

"Oh, heavens, I have no idea. Gone, I suppose. This new one has more potential for Lydia, so she says. More money, has a bit more adventure in his blood. He's just what she needs, someone who can appreciate her spirited nature."

"Oh, yeah, he's just what she needs," Elizabeth mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing. Anyway, I've got to go, I'm almost home, and I have plans with Will tonight."

"Oh, go then, go, don't keep him waiting. Do something with your hair, though, will you? Especially if you'll be leaving it down. I know you've been riding that bicycle back and forth to work, God only knows what it looks like when you get home."

Elizabeth ignored her. "Bye mum, see you this weekend."

"Bye Lizzy."

She got on her bike and began pedaling toward home, replaying the conversation in her head. The urge to laugh came over her, and she let it take over. She must have looked ridiculous, riding her bike and laughing, but she didn't care. The whole conversation was just insane...her mother was never going to change.

* * *

><p>"They want me for a second interview!"<p>

Georgiana came rushing through the slider into Will's living room, causing Will and Elizabeth to jump and pull away from each other.

"Oh...oops...sorry!" Georgiana started to giggle. "I guess I have to get used to knocking."

Will sighed and very calmly sat back, buttoning up his shirt, while Elizabeth smoothed her hair and very discreetly buttoned hers.

Will cleared his throat. "Knocking is good. Though, I guess I should start locking the doors, just in case you forget. What are you yelling about?"

"Who wants you for a second interview?" Elizabeth asked.

"Falmouth! They're narrowing down their choices, and they called me today to ask me to come back in next week. I can't believe it!"

"That's great Georgie. Congratulations," Will said, smiling.

"Oh, don't congratulate me yet, please. It doesn't mean I've got the job, but at least I know that they're seriously considering me."

"Of course they are!" Elizabeth said, "Why wouldn't they? I have a good feeling about this."

"I hope you're right," Georgiana said. "Umm, anyway, I just wanted to let you know. I'll leave you two alone, sorry for...barging in." She smiled. "I have to call Matt! See you later."

"Bye Georgie," Will and Elizabeth said in unison, and just like that, she was out the door.

"Wow. I haven't seen her that excited about anything in a while," Will said, smiling. He slid closer to Elizabeth, leaning in to kiss her neck, and started unbuttoning her shirt again. She playfully batted at his hands and leaned away from him.

"Are you talking about the teaching job, or Matt?"

He sighed. "I was talking about the job. Why? What about Matt?"

"Oh...nothing."

"Elizabeth..."

"It's not my place to say anything. Georgie should tell you."

"Tell me what? What is there to tell?" He squinted his eyes at her. "Oh, what, are they dating now? Are they a couple?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "I'm not sure...but it sounds as though it's definitely headed in that direction. He's coming to visit this weekend."

"He is? When? For how long?"

Elizabeth bit her lip to stop herself from smiling. The look on his face was priceless. "I don't know, you'll have to talk to her. I'm sure she'll tell you."

He grunted.

"Matt's a nice guy, and she's been crazy about him for a long time."

Will looked incredulous. "She has?"

"Yes, she has! Couldn't you tell?"

He shrugged, then remembered how she blushed every time she mentioned Matt's name. "I guess I could see it, yeah."

"Apparently, those feelings may not have been all one-sided."

"I hope he doesn't think he's staying overnight."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "William! Georgiana is twenty-six years old, almost twenty-seven! I think she can make that decision herself, don't you?"

He grunted again.

She laughed openly, unable to stop it this time. "You're a mess."

"And you're laughing at me."

"I'm sorry," she said, and made herself stop. "I shouldn't laugh, you're right. Even though you're her brother, you're like her father too, I know that. You have to trust her judgment, though. Matt isn't some guy she just met, remember. She's known him for a very long time, and she's had these feelings for a very long time. She'll figure it out."

"Does she...tell you things? Confide in you?"

"She has, a little. She knows she can, that's the important thing. She knows I'll be there for her if she needs me."

He smiled at her softly, reaching out to stroke her cheek. "You're amazing, you know that? Georgie is so different from the person she was a few months ago...a lot of those changes are because of you."

"Most of them are because of her. She's a strong girl, she was determined to get past everything that happened and start living her life again. That's all her, that has nothing to do with me."

"Hmm. You can say that, but I know it's because of you too." Will got up and walked to the slider, turning the lock and pressing down on the floor bolt.

Elizabeth smiled as he walked back toward the couch, not taking her eyes from his. _There's that look I __love_. Her stomach flipped in anticipation.

He sat down next to her, lying back against the pillows at the end of the couch and reaching to pull her over him. His hands went to the buttons on her shirt again, and this time, she didn't push them away. He raised his lips to kiss the hollow at the base of her throat. "Now...where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?"

* * *

><p>"Hey sunshine."<p>

"Hi Matt," Georgiana said, smiling at his nickname for her. "How are you?"

"Great. What's up? Didn't we just talk an hour ago?"

She laughed. "We did, but I wanted to tell you...I just checked my email, I've been asked to go for a second interview in Falmouth."

"Georgie, that's great! When are you going?"

"Next week. I'm so excited, but I still don't want to get my hopes up. I'm sure they've called back a few people."

"Possibly, but maybe not. It could be that they've already decided on you, and they just want to talk to you one more time before they make it official."

"Oh, you think so? I would be thrilled."

"You just have to go in there and be yourself. You love teaching, it shows when you talk about it. You light up. Just...just be yourself. You'll nail it."

She smiled brightly. "Thanks, Matt." She sighed softly. "I can't wait to see you this weekend."

"I can't wait to see you too. What do you have planned for us?"

"I don't know, what do you feel like doing? It's supposed to be nice out, I think. We could spend some time at the beach, and maybe go out to dinner or something. Why don't we decide once you get here?"

"Okay, we can do that. I'll probably leave Boston around nine...is that too early?"

She smiled, hoping that he would come on the earlier side. "No, that's perfect. Well, anyway…I'm sure we'll talk tomorrow."

"I'm sure we will too."

"Okay then...goodnight Matt."

"Goodnight sunshine."

* * *

><p>"Bye."<p>

"Bye. I _really_ have to go this time."

"One more kiss, please?"

"You said that about six kisses ago," Elizabeth said breathlessly as Will leaned in for another kiss, each one deeper and more intoxicating than the one before it. They were standing in his driveway; she was leaving for work, or trying to anyway, and he was leaving for his overnight trip to Boston.

"I'm going to be late, it's almost seven-thirty already," she said, inhaling sharply as his lips traveled down her neck. Her body was tingling and she was ready to turn around and pull him by his tie back into the house, but she couldn't be late again. _Could I?_

"We have time for a quickie in the car..."

Elizabeth glanced at her Jeep, then at the Range Rover, then at the devilish gleam in his eye. She shook her head to stop the wayward thoughts that instantly began traveling through her mind. "Will..."

"Lizzy..." Lowering his head slightly, he looked into her eyes, bright green with desire. He leaned back against his car, bringing her with him to press up against him. "Okay, okay, no quickies. Not this time." He winked at her and leaned down to kiss her again, holding her hips firmly against his, letting his hands drift up her sides to gently cup her breasts, his thumbs brushing their hardened peaks over and over again.

She groaned softly into his mouth and slowly broke away. Her entire body was on fire. "Okay, I _really_ have to go, and now I'm a mess. A frustrated mess." She sighed as a smile grew on his lips. Her eyes drifted to the bulge below his waist. "At least I'm not the only one." She reached down to stroke him through his suit pants.

Will's eyes closed and he dropped his head onto her shoulder. Turning his head, he nipped at her neck, then kissed it lovingly as his breathing became heavier. His hands continued to stroke her breasts relentlessly.

"Will…"

He lifted his head to look at her eyes, inches away, burning into his.

"Open the door," she whispered.

Without a second thought, he stood away from the Range Rover and opened the rear door. Climbing in first, he helped her in then shut the door behind them. Immediately, her hands were at his belt, then the button on his pants, fumbling with it before unfastening it and carefully lowering the zipper. She shoved his pants low on his hips and reached into his briefs, releasing his erection. Her hands were immediately on him, stroking him aggressively as her mouth lowered to his and they kissed urgently, hungrily, seeking gratification.

In the meantime, Will was lifting her skirt, giving silent thanks that she had decided to wear one today, pushing it up to her hips while simultaneously lowering her panties. She pulled her legs out of them and in a second she was over him, straddling him, sliding down while he was thrusting up, until he was completely buried inside of her.

Their movements were hurried and all about_ right now_, completely lacking finesse, but their goal was the same; attaining satisfaction as quickly as possible. They both moaned into their kiss, until they broke away from each other gasping for breath. Will's hands were at her waist, guiding her into his rhythm, until one hand stole away and reached under her skirt, finding her center, stroking the swollen flesh there. Shifting his hips lower in the seat, he surged up into her further, watching as her lips parted and her eyes drifted shut. He leaned his head forward and latched onto one nipple with his lips, grazing it with his teeth before suckling it greedily through the thin material of her blouse.

Elizabeth reached up, grasping his hair as she came hard, pulling his mouth up to hers, kissing him roughly as her body clenched around his. With one last thrust, Will emptied into her, groaning loudly as his tongue tangled with hers. They sat there joined together for a few moments, completely sated, their hearts pounding in unison. The only sound was that of their kissing and heavy breathing.

Will spoke first, still trying to catch his breath. "Oh...my God. That was-"

"Awesome," Elizabeth interrupted him, leaning in to kiss his neck before nibbling his earlobe. "Unbelievably awesome."

Will started to chuckle, lowering his hands to trace over her bare bottom. "Agreed. Awesome." He gazed into her eyes, smiling. "I love when you want me like that."

"I always want you like that. I want you any way I can get you."

His eyebrows rose and he laughed again. "I may take advantage of that."

"I think you just did."

"Mmmm. Thank God I have this beast of a car and not the Porsche."

They both laughed at that, and Elizabeth sighed as she kissed him again. "I am going to be so late." She looked down at her skirt and blouse. "And so wrinkled...and so..." Her voice trailed off as she looked back up at him and scrunched her nose. "Can we go into the house before we leave?"

He smiled, showing his dimples. "I may not let you back out."

Reaching up, he smoothed her hair away from her face, and his gaze traveled over her, taking in the glow on her cheeks and the redness of her lips, then returning to look in her eyes. He tilted his head and smiled softly at her as his hands continued to play with her hair, and he watched as it slipped through his fingers, cascading down around her shoulders.

His skin was flushed too, and Elizabeth watched as his emotions played out through the expressions on his face. "What are you thinking?" she asked quietly, finally breathing normally.

He didn't say anything right away, just continued to let his gaze travel over her features, his hands still tangled in her hair. His voice was slightly hoarse when he finally spoke "I'm thinking about how much I love you. How much you...affect me. How, when I look at you, my heart pounds...and I want to tell you how beautiful you are, but I can't, because there aren't enough words."

A blush began to creep up her neck, and he smiled at the sight of it. "But it's not just...when you're like _this_." His gaze traveled down to where they were joined, then moved slowly back up to her face. "Although, you are especially beautiful like this." He gave her a gentle kiss. "It's all the time. You make me feel like that _all the time_. You, Miss Bennet, have captured me, heart and soul."

Elizabeth felt tears sting her eyes, and she leaned forward to kiss him softly. "You make me feel the same way," she whispered, and a sound escaped her, something between a laugh and a sigh. "God, I feel like anything I say to you right now will be so...inadequate. You always say that you don't have a way with words, but believe me...you do." She leaned in to kiss him again before sniffling softly. "I am yours. My heart and soul are yours, too."

* * *

><p>Thursday afternoon arrived quickly, which Will was thankful for. His trip to Boston had been so heavily laden with work that it flew by. He made his arrangements to go to California, and would be leaving the same day that Elizabeth left for South Carolina.<p>

Being in California while she was gone would make her absence more bearable, and would give him a chance to further rectify the situation with Richard. When he spoke with Richard on the phone again today, he had mentioned that there were two people leaving the company from different departments, and that Lauren was looking to possibly transfer into one of the jobs. Will thought it was a step in the right direction, but still couldn't get rid of the fears that lurked at the back of his mind. He needed time, and more of a chance to get to know Lauren. This trip was that chance.

He pulled up to the Bell Tower Park in his Porsche. He parked and got out, his eyes immediately lighting on Elizabeth as she stretched while chatting with a few of her teammates. His mind traveled back to yesterday morning and their...extended goodbye in his driveway, and his heart pounded. His gaze lingered on her legs, and he let his eyes travel slowly up to her face, smiling when he realized she was watching him. She arched a brow at him provocatively, making him laugh.

He began walking toward her, and she did the same, meeting him halfway. Her arms immediately slipped around his neck as she kissed him.

"Hi," she said softly.

"Hi."

"I missed you."

"I missed you too." He grinned, shaking his head. "What are we going to do when you're in South Carolina and I'm in California?"

"Have lots of phone sex."

He wiggled his eyebrows. "I'm game if you are." He kissed her again, then nodded toward the field. "Off you go. It's your last game, make it a good one." She began walking backward toward the field, smiling at him and blowing a kiss before turning around to jog toward the pitcher's mound.

Elizabeth threw a few practice pitches before the first batter came up. He grinned at her. "Show me what you got, Bennet!" Elizabeth wound up and delivered a blistering pitch. The batter swung and connected soundly with the ball.

* * *

><p>When Will looked back at that moment, he would consider it extremely lucky that the Reserve team was playing the Fire Department team. Who better to have around than a dozen EMTs and Paramedics, when the woman you love takes a line drive to the head?<p>

* * *

><p>The sound of the (not so soft) softball connecting with Elizabeth's skull was fairly loud, much louder than the sound of her body hitting the ground. For a moment, Will just stared, almost as if his mind was unable to process what was happening. Instantly, there was a swarm of people around her, and Will snapped out of his brief trance, running over to her.<p>

"Back up, give her space," one of the firefighters said. "Anyone who isn't on the FD needs to _back up_."

"Elizabeth," Will said as he approached. She was out cold, and his heart dropped into his stomach.

Someone said that they had already called 911, and an ambulance from the Woods Hole station would probably be there in minutes.

Trying to stay out of the way, Will knelt as close to her as he could, reaching out to take her hand, grasping it tightly while the paramedic examined her.

_Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit._

Another firefighter turned to glance at him, and must have noticed the panicked look on his face.

"Hey man, don't worry, she's breathing fine. The rescue will be here in a few minutes, we just need to get her to the hospital."

"Okay. Okay," Will said, nodding nervously. He could hear the sirens coming closer, and moments later, the ambulance pulled into the parking lot.

Elizabeth's eyes suddenly opened, and she looked around at the people hovering over her. Her eyes looked dazed, but they finally came to rest on Will, and he squeezed her hand gently.

"What's...what's..." she said quietly, obviously confused.

"Shhh. No talking."

She stared at him, her mouth moving as if she was trying to talk, but no sound was coming out. Suddenly, her face looked panicked. She turned her head and vomited into the grass, then turned back to look at him, her eyes filled with confusion.

"Oh Jesus. Is she okay?" Will felt fear gripping his heart, and his stomach was rolling.

Instantly, the ambulance crew was there, and began getting ready to put her on a stretcher, pulling out a backboard and a neck immobilizer. "We'll get her right to the hospital," one of the paramedics said. "It's probably a concussion. Why don't you get your car and follow us there?"

Will didn't need to be told twice. Mary handed him Elizabeth's bag. "Thanks. Oh, um, her bike? Does anyone know...did she ride her bike today?"

"I've got it, don't worry about it," one of her co-workers, whose name escaped Will at the moment, called out to him. "I'll take care of it. Go."

"Okay...thanks." With that, he jogged to his car, and followed the ambulance out to the street.

* * *

><p>Will roared into a parking space at the hospital and ran over to the ambulance. The paramedics were in the middle of taking Elizabeth out of the back. She was still disorientated and confused, which made him extremely nervous.<p>

Two long hours later, after having a CT scan of her head, it was finally determined that Elizabeth did have a concussion. Eventually, she had begun to come around, and although still nauseous and dealing with a headache, she was back to sounding like herself. They talked quietly in her little bay in the ER, surrounded by curtains and beeping machines that were monitoring her blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen level.

"Not a great way to end the season, huh?" she said, smiling weakly at him.

"An injury-free game would have been preferable," he said in a lighthearted tone, leaning on her bedside railing.

"What a mess this is...I'm sorry."

He reached down to stroke her face, pushing the curls that had come loose from her ponytail to the side, careful to avoid the tender area where the ball had struck her.

"Sorry for what? I'm just glad you're okay. That really did scare the hell out of me."

She gazed at him, and noticed for the first time that he did look a bit stressed. "I would say it scared the hell out of me too, but I don't remember if it did or not."

He smiled and leaned down to kiss her. "I was scared enough for the both of us, believe me." He stood up straight and stretched, peeking outside the curtain to see who was around. "We need to find out what's going on...do you think they'll keep you here tonight?"

"Oh, I hope not."

They continued to talk quietly until the doctor came in about twenty minutes later.

"Hi there, I'm Dr. Simmons. How are you feeling, Miss Bennet?"

"Um, okay I guess. My head hurts, and I feel a little sick to my stomach, but not as bad as I did when I got here. It's gotten a little better."

"You took a nasty shot to the head. The guys on the ambulance said you're one heck of a pitcher."

She attempted a smile. "My reflexes need a little work, apparently."

He laughed. "Not many people are that quick, trust me."

"Can I go home?"

He sighed. "I'm inclined to keep you here, at least overnight, for observation."

Elizabeth sighed, shaking her head. Will latched on to her hand and squeezed.

"We don't have to send you to a room on one of the floors, though. We have a Clinical Decision Unit here, for people like you who just need to be watched for a bit. It's quiet in there, you'll have a television and your own phone to use."

"Can I stay with her?" Will asked.

The doctor looked skeptical. "Probably not overnight, there's not much room in those bays. We'll see, though...she might get lucky and have an accommodating nurse. We'll get you squared away and move you over there shortly, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you."

The doctor walked out, and Elizabeth frowned. "I don't want to stay here."

"I know you don't," Will said, squeezing her hand again, "but it's just one night. Indulge me, will you? I'd feel better if you were here." He leaned down to kiss her softly.

"I know." She sighed, then shivered.

"Are you cold?"

She nodded. "A little. These hospital gowns don't provide much warmth."

"Sexy though."

She laughed, then grimaced. "Ouch."

"Sorry," Will said. "Do you want me to go home and get you some of your own clothes? Maybe some sweats?"

"I don't want you to go through the trouble."

"Lizzy, it's no trouble, it's just down the road. If you're going to be stuck here, I want you to be comfortable."

She smiled at him. "Okay. My keys are in...oh, my bag...my bike!"

"I have your bag in my car. One of your co-workers...I can't remember his name...he said he'd take care of your bike."

"Oh...good. My keys are in my bag. I should have some sweatpants and sweatshirts on the shelf in my closet. Just grab anything."

He smiled and kissed her. "I'll get changed while I'm there. I'll be back soon."

"Okay. Thanks Will."

"Rest while I'm gone."

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, Will pulled up in front of Elizabeth's house. He jogged up the stairs and let himself in, turning on lights as he went. He tossed his bag on the bed, figuring that if the nurse kicked him out of her room tonight, he'd just come and sleep here, so he could be at the hospital first thing in the morning. He had called Georgiana on the way to Elizabeth's house, filling her in on what had happened. She had promised to call Charles so he could let Jane know.<p>

He freshened up and got changed quickly, then set about looking for Elizabeth's things. He grabbed her toothbrush, toothpaste, and hairbrush, throwing them into a small, empty dufflebag, then headed back to the bedroom. Just in case, he grabbed a pair of panties and a thick pair of socks from the top drawer of her dresser.

_Shelf in the closet._

He opened the closet and reached for a pair of gray sweatpants sitting up on the shelf. He looked around more, but didn't see any sweatshirts, only more sweatpants. _Hmmm. _Returning to her dresser, he began opening the drawers again, one by one.

When he opened the bottom one, he smiled. There it was, his old Harvard sweatshirt, stuffed in the drawer with a few other sweatshirts. He lifted it, and as he did, he noticed some photos that had been tucked underneath it. Curious, he bent over to lift them up, holding them to the light so he could see them better.

He stared at them as his breath froze in his lungs and bile rose in his throat. He squeezed his eyes shut, praying that his mind was playing tricks on him. Opening them again slowly, they locked on the smirking face in the photo, then scanned lower. His hands immediately began to shake uncontrollably.

_No no no no no no. It isn't. It can't be._ But it was...it was him.

Will sank onto the bed, feeling as if he was about to vomit. He made himself look at the photo again, focusing on anything but that face, which was even worse. He was naked...fondling himself. Will looked at the bed in the picture, and knew, without even turning to look at Elizabeth's bed, that they were one and the same.

He dropped the photo on the floor, and made himself look at the second one. Same man...in the same position..._on the same bed_...but this time, you could just barely see the top of a woman's head leaning over him...a woman with chestnut curls. It was obvious what she was doing, but his mind refused to say the words. The camera had been aimed poorly, he couldn't see her face, only part of her head, really, but he didn't need to. The hair...seeing the hair was enough.

A loud roaring filled his ears as another wave of nausea overtook him. He bolted off the bed and ran outside to the deck, taking huge gulps of air, trying to steady himself. After a few minutes, he sank down to the deck and leaned back against the railing, breathing heavily. Everything seemed to be spinning around him. Slowly, he rose and went back into the house, back into her bedroom. Moving as if he was on autopilot, he took the photos and put them back into the drawer, under her South Beach sweatshirt, and closed it tightly. He stuffed the Harvard sweatshirt and her sweatpants into the dufflebag and turned and walked out of the bedroom, then out of the house, shutting off lights as he went.

When he pulled back up to the hospital, he didn't bother parking. He left his car idling in front of the entrance and wandered into the ER waiting room. He spotted a nurse in the triage area and approached her.

"Excuse me."

She looked up and smiled. "Can I help you?"

He swallowed heavily. "Yes...could you...could you give these to Elizabeth Bennet, please? She's...she's a patient in the emergency room. She's staying overnight. It's just some clothes...some things she needs."

The nurse's brows furrowed. "Do you want to take them to her yourself?"

"No, no...I just need to leave them here. Will you...can you just make sure she gets them?"

She nodded, but still looked confused. "Sure thing. Want me to give her a message?"

He shook his head. "No. No message. Thank you." And with that, he turned on his heel and walked out.

* * *

><p><em>Don't say I didn't warn you! Reviews are appreciated. Thanks!<em>


	30. Chapter 30

_So, I realize that it's unusual for me to post 2 days in a row, but I thought I left you all hanging a little, so I figured I'd put the next chapter up now. I'm also posting again tomorrow, then that will be it for a week or so, since I'll be away on vacation. Sorry! Anyway, I warned you about the angst, and it's not anything that's getting resolved quickly...they will have a fairly lengthy separation. Will has issues, that will become obvious, and I believe that quite a few of you will be upset with him for the next...oh, 10 chapters or so! Eventually, he will redeem himself, and ultimately, this story does have a happy ending, so you just have to ride out the storm! Thanks for sticking with me!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 30<strong>

_Seventy-five...eighty...ninety...one hundred...one ten..._

Will watched the needle on the speedometer of the Porsche steadily climb as he barreled down Route 3 toward Boston. The music blaring from the stereo was so loud, he couldn't hear himself think, which was just as well. He tried to shut off his thoughts and drive, just _drive_, just get to where he needed to be.

_Away._

* * *

><p>Elizabeth looked at the nurse in confusion. "Are you sure he was leaving? He didn't just go...park the car or something?"<p>

The nurse shrugged, looking baffled. "I don't think so."

"And...he was tall...dark hair, nice looking?"

The nurse smiled slightly. "Um, yes, he was nice looking. I'm pretty sure we're talking about the same man."

"And he said there was no message?"

"That's what he said. He wanted me to make sure you got the bag, but there was no message."

Elizabeth's stomach was churning. _What happened? _She didn't have her cell phone, it was in her bag, so she had no way of calling him. "Do you have a phone I could use?"

"Once you're in the CDU, you'll have your own phone. You'll be moved soon."

_Ugggh, not good enough_, Elizabeth thought. _What could have happened that he wouldn't come in __here and tell me himself? Something with Georgie?_ Her thoughts ran wild, and by the time they came to move her to the CDU half an hour later, her head was throbbing and she was a wreck, very near tears.

The nurse from the CDU looked at her with concern. "Are you feeling okay, sweetie? You look pale. Is your head bothering you? Do you need something for pain?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, I just...I just need a phone, as soon as possible."

Finally, she was in her new bay, and the nurse, Katie, handed her the phone right away. She dialed Will's number, but it went to voice mail. "Will, it's me...where are you? What happened? Please come to the hospital when you can, I'm worried. Or call me, at least, to tell me what's going on. My cell is in my bag..." she paused to ask the nurse for the phone number, and repeated it into the phone. "Please call me."

She hung up and looked at the clock, trying to remember what time he had left the hospital to go to her house. _It had to have been at least ninety minutes ag__o. _She wished she could remember Georgiana's number, but she couldn't. It was stored in her phone, and she had never memorized it. She picked up the phone and dialed Jane's number.

"Hello?"

"Jane, it's me."

"Elizabeth! Are you okay? Charles got a call from Georgie, she said you were hurt at softball and had to go to the hospital."

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I have a concussion, so they're keeping me overnight. Georgie called Charles?"

"Yes, Will called her, I think he said he was on his way to your house. He asked Georgie to call Charles so he could let me know. He couldn't remember my number."

Elizabeth sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Does Charles have Georgie's number? I need to call her. Something's going on with Will, I don't...I don't know where he is."

"What do you mean, you don't know where he is?"

"He went to my house to get me some clothes, but then he just dropped them off with the nurse and left. He said there was no message...he just left. I tried to call him, but he didn't answer his phone."

"Maybe there was some kind of emergency," Jane offered.

Elizabeth sighed. "That's what I was thinking...but why wouldn't he come in to tell me himself? Why would he just drop off the clothes and not leave a message or a note?"

Jane was puzzled herself. "I don't know, Lizzy. But listen, don't worry about Will, we'll find out what's going on. You need to rest. Do you want me to come to the Cape early? We were planning on being there tomorrow night, but I can certainly drive down in the morning."

"No, Jane, you have to work."

"I'll call in sick."

"No, I don't want you to do that. I'll be fine. I just...I wish I knew what was going on."

"Here's Georgie's cell number. Why don't you call her, I'm sure she must know what's up. In the meantime, don't worry...I'll have Charles try to reach Will, okay? "

"Okay." She asked the nurse for a paper and pen to write down Georgiana's number, then gave Jane the number for the hospital, and they said their goodbyes. Once again she dialed Will's cell, and once again she reached his voice mail. _Something is wrong, I know it. Where is he?_

She called Georgiana, and the phone was answered immediately.

"Hi Georgie."

"Hey Elizabeth, how are you? Will told me what happened."

"I feel okay. I'm a little worried about Will, though."

"About Will? Why?"

"When did you talk to him?"

"Oh, um, not that long ago...an hour or so, maybe? I'm not sure."

"Where was he?"

"He said he was on his way to your house to get some things for you. He said he'd either be sleeping at the hospital or at your house, and he'd call me tomorrow. Oh, and he asked me to call Charles, which I did."

"Yes, I already talked to Jane, thanks for doing that. So that's all he said to you?"

"Yes. Why are you worried about him?"

"Well, he never came back. I mean he did, he dropped off my clothes with a nurse, but then he left again."

"Oh...really? Hmm. Well, you know, he was pretty rattled when he called me...he said that the whole thing nearly put him over the edge. Maybe he just needs to get his wits together."

"Mmm. Maybe." Outwardly, Elizabeth quietly agreed with Georgiana, but inside, she knew his disappearance had nothing to do with her injury. He had been here, with her, since it happened, and though he had been frightened initially, he had calmed down once he saw that she was fine. "I wish he would answer his phone."

Georgiana was a little concerned, but tried not to let it show, for Elizabeth's sake. There wasn't much that would pull her brother away from his girlfriend, especially at a time like this. "I'll find him, and I'll tell him to get his butt back to the hospital. Please don't worry about it, I'm sure he's fine, probably just a little freaked out."

Elizabeth shook her head and sighed. "Okay Georgie. Thanks for your help."

"No thanks necessary. I'll check up on you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay. Bye."

"Bye Lizzy."

* * *

><p>Will walked into the townhouse and threw his keys on the small table in the foyer. He continued up the stairs to the second floor without breaking stride, heading straight to his office. Once there, he walked to the small wet bar, pulled out a bottle of whiskey, and poured himself a drink. He tossed it back quickly and immediately poured another, downing the second just as quickly as the first. He took a deep breath as he felt a slow warmth spread through his body. After pouring the third, he walked to his desk and sat down heavily behind it, leaning his head back against the chair and closing his eyes.<p>

Images of the photos he had found in Elizabeth's dresser came crashing into his head again, and he pinched the bridge of his nose to try to force them away. He opened his eyes, and they came to rest on the photo that he kept of Elizabeth on his desk, her face bright and sunny, her green eyes smiling at him. _This_ is what he wanted to see when he closed his eyes, not those pictures he had seen at her house.

It was gone though, that laughing, happy, beautiful face. Completely gone, replaced by that bastard's face, his smirk as he seemed to taunt Will from the photos. There was no mistaking it; it was him. _In her bed._ He lifted the glass to his lips, downing whiskey number three, breathing in deeply through his nose as the liquid burned its way down to his stomach. He rose and walked to the bar, grabbed the bottle, and returned to his desk, quickly pouring another drink.

Turning to alcohol was not his style, not at all. Hell, even when everything had happened with Georgiana, he didn't drink. Instead, he bought a heavy bag, hung it in the basement of the house in New Seabury, and frequently punched the shit out of it. Either that, or he'd get on the treadmill and run for miles, until he was too exhausted to think. This time, he knew, no amount of exhaustion would stop the thoughts from running rampant through his head. No, this time, it was going to take a good solid whiskey binge; a good drunken stupor to obliterate his thoughts. He just wanted to close his eyes and not see that face anymore.

At some point, his mind began mixing in the photos of Georgie that he had seen so long ago, with the photos he had just seen tonight. Once again, he had to quell the urge to vomit. Elizabeth had been _with_ him...the man who hurt his sister, defiled her. He reached up to rub both eyes, as if trying to erase the images from his mind.

His cell phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket, his actions already feeling slightly sluggish, his body reacting to the rapid onslaught of liquor. Seeing Charles' name on the caller ID, he ignored the ringing. He knew, by now, that Elizabeth would be wondering where he was and would be trying to reach him. Automatically, his thought was to call her. He was suddenly overwhelmed with guilt that he had left her there, at the hospital, alone...but as quickly as the thought appeared, he forced himself to push it away.

After the ringing stopped, he glanced at the phone and saw that he had missed nine calls. Four were from the same number...the hospital, he assumed. Two were from Georgiana, and the last three were from Charles. He'd had the music up so loud in the car, he'd never heard his phone ringing. It didn't matter, he wouldn't have answered it anyway.

Georgiana was a concern...he didn't want her to worry about him. He would definitely have to call her, and better now than when he was completely hammered. The fourth whiskey went down like water, and he waited a minute or so before picking up his phone and calling his sister.

"Will?"

"Hi Georgiana," he said calmly.

"Where are you? Elizabeth is worried to death about you, and so am I. What's going on?"

He closed his eyes, feeling the pleasant buzz of the alcohol taking over. "I had to get the hell out of there, Georgie."

"What do you mean? Where are you?"

"I just went for a drive." His words, though not slurred, were a little harder to form, and were taking a bit longer than normal to get out.

"Are you drunk?" Georgiana asked, disbelief in her voice.

"No, I'm not _drunk_," Will said. "Not yet anyway."

"Will, you need to tell me what's going on."

He closed his eyes again, and when he spoke, it was with barely controlled emotion. The booze was soaking in, taking control of his tongue.

"Oh, if I only knew, Georgie. If I only fucking knew. You think you know what's going on, you think...you think you have things squared away...a piece of your life squared, you know? It's not perfect, but it's damn near it. You think you know someone..." His voice trailed off.

Georgiana was beyond confused, and now deeply concerned. He rarely cursed when he spoke to her, another sign that he was definitely drinking. "You're not making any sense. Where are you? Are you in Boston?"

"No. No, I'm not in Boston," Will lied. The last thing he wanted was Charles at his door, and if Georgie knew he was in Boston, that's exactly what would happen. He began to pour himself another drink, holding the bottle up to examine how much he had left.

"Will, I'm seriously worried about you. You need to tell me what's going on."

"What's going on, Georgiana, is that people aren't always who they claim to be. That's what's going on." His voice had grown louder. "She...she is not who she appears to be. Or maybe she is _now_, but she wasn't always."

Georgiana sighed, exasperated that he was speaking in riddles. "Who? Elizabeth? Are you...are you concerned about her getting hurt? Is that why you left?"

He laughed. "You think I left because she got hit in the head by a stupid fucking ball? Jesus Christ, Georgie. If it were only that simple."

"Make it simple for me, Will. Explain it to me."

"Elizabeth. Elizabeth is not who I thought she was. She is not who _you_ think she is. She's a liar." The images came crashing in again, making his head feel as though it was about to split in two. "Whatever you think of her...whoever you think she is? It's all wrong. It's...it's wrong. I had to leave, I had to go."

"Will, _wh__at happened?_ Tell me _exactly what happened_."

"I can't, Georgiana. I can't." There was no way he could tell her. "I'll...I'll call you tomorrow, alright? I have to go."

"Where are you? Will?" She looked at her phone in shock when she realized he had hung up. Her heart was pounding as she tried to make sense of what he had said to her. _What happened with Elizabeth? _She was at a complete loss. Until she knew more of what was going on, she didn't want to call Elizabeth, especially since she had no answers. At the same time, it wasn't fair to leave her in the dark either. He said he wasn't in Boston. _Where did he go?_ _What should I do?_

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stared at the clock on the wall in the CDU, noting that it was close to two in the morning. It was quiet, with only the occasional beeping of a machine, or the soft voices of the nurses breaking the silence. She had never felt more alone, ever, than she did right now. Jane had called back, but only to say that Charles couldn't reach Will. Georgiana never did call back, which struck Elizabeth as odd. Why wouldn't she call to at least tell her that she hadn't reached him? Sighing, she assumed that maybe she didn't want to call unless she had something to tell her, which led her to the same conclusion; Georgie couldn't reach Will either.<p>

The throbbing in her head was horrible, and the nausea had gotten worse. Of course, the tears hadn't helped; they seemed to be continuously leaking from her eyes. Finally, she decided she had to ask for something. She needed to relieve the pain, and more importantly, needed to sleep. She couldn't face a new day without sleep; facing it with a head injury would be hard enough.

The nurse, Katie, was clearly concerned about her, and pushed her to take some pain medication. "It won't do you any good to try to fight it on your own. You need to sleep, and the only way I see that happening right now is for you to take something. Those tears won't help either, that's for sure."

Elizabeth sniffled. "I know. I need something, it's throbbing...and I feel sick to my stomach."

The nurse walked over and handed her two pills. "Take these, but try not to drink too much water. No allergies, right? I'm just double-checking."

"No allergies." She swallowed the pills with a sip of water and lay back on her pillow again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now try to sleep, okay? Use your call button if you need me."

"Okay. Thanks Katie."

Within minutes, it seemed, Elizabeth's thoughts started to feel like more of a dream. Everything was jumbled; memories from her first introductions to Will were juxtaposed with newer, fresher ones. Before too long, she was asleep.

* * *

><p>Will woke to the sounds of an incessant banging and the ringing of a bell. He tried to ignore it.<p>

_If I ignore it, it will go away._

It didn't work. He opened one eye, then the other, and looked around from his position on...the couch. That's where he was, face down on the couch in the living room. In Boston. The pounding and the ringing continued, and added to it was the sound of his cell phone, apparently buried deep between the cushions underneath him.

He shifted his body and sat up. Immediately, an overwhelming _thud _echoed through his brain, and he groaned.

_Fuck_.

Suddenly, everything that happened the day before came violently thundering into his head. He saw Elizabeth falling to the ground, and his breath caught in his throat. The ambulance, the hospital, the trip to her house...it all came back to him, clawing its way back into his brain.

His cell phone had stopped ringing, but immediately started up again. Digging around for it, he finally pulled it from under him and looked at the caller ID. _Charles_. Knowing how relentless his best friend could be, he decided to answer it.

"What?"

"What? _What_? What the _fuck_ is more like it! Open the damn door and let me in."

Will hung up and walked out into the foyer, unlocking the door and opening it for Charles. He stepped back and swung his arm out, wordlessly telling him to enter.

Charles stepped in, closed the door, and took a good look at his friend. "You look like shit."

"Thanks. I feel like shit, so I'm not surprised. What brings you to my door so..." he looked at his watch, and saw that it was almost 8:30. "...early?"

Charles grunted. "You do know that Elizabeth, Georgie, and I have been trying to get in touch with you for, oh, the past thirteen hours or so. Do you mind telling me what's going on?"

Will sighed. "I do mind, actually."

Charles' eyes opened wide. "You _do_ mind? Oh really? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Why are you assuming something is wrong with me?" Will asked, closing his eyes as a wave of nausea came over him. "Maybe nothing is wrong with me."

"Look, I didn't come over here, and make myself late for work, to play fucking mind games with you. You smell like a bar, and you look like you slept in one. Talk. Now."

Will reached up to cover his face with his hands. Suddenly, the will to be tough, and the energy being expended to appear fine, completely left him. "I can't talk about it," he whispered from behind his hands. He finally lowered them, crossed his arms over his chest, and hung his head. "I can't, Charles. I'm sorry you were worried, and I'll call Georgie, I promise. But I can't talk about it."

"What about Elizabeth?" Charles had lowered his voice as well, and tried to remain calm. "You should call her. Jane is on her way to the Cape now, to help her. You left her in the hospital, Will...she deserves an explanation."

"Is she...is she okay?"

Charles sighed in exasperation. "Oh, so suddenly you _care_? You took off without a word. You _owe_ her an explanation!"

Will shook his head but said nothing.

"Go get in the shower," Charles said. He took off his suit jacket and threw it on the coat rack in the foyer. "I'll make a pot of coffee."

"Charles...I told you, I don't want to talk about it. Go to work."

Charles paused for a minute, looking at his friend. "You know, when all that shit happened with Georgie in January, I let you get away with all the 'I don't want to talk about it' crap that you kept feeding me. I watched it eat at you, and I never did a damn thing about it."

"I talked to you about everything that happened-"

Charles interrupted. "You talked about everything that _happened_, everything _Georgie_ went through, but you never talked about _you_. What it did to _y__ou_. I knew you were angry, but...I just sat back and let it tear you up. I'm not doing that this time."

Will looked at him long and hard, and realized that he wasn't going to win. What made Charles a damn good lawyer was his tenacity, and Will knew that right now, he was seeing it firsthand.

"Fine. I'll take a shower. Make the coffee strong please."

He walked upstairs to his bedroom, the one room he wanted to avoid the most. He walked straight through it into the bathroom, stripped off his clothes and stepped under the piping hot spray of the shower. Standing there, letting the water beat down on his head and trickle over his face, he silently hoped that it would just wash away everything that had happened.

* * *

><p>"He's here, in Boston. I'm with him."<p>

"Oh, thank God. Have you had a chance to talk to him?" Georgiana was relieved, but still concerned.

"Not really, no. He definitely tied one on last night...he reeked of booze. I sent him up to shower."

"I could tell he had been drinking when I talked to him. I can't believe he got drunk."

"Umm, very drunk, from the looks of things." He lifted the empty whiskey bottle from the coffee table and carried it into the kitchen, tossing it into the trash. "Listen, I'll make sure he calls you later, but I have to go. I want to call Jane before he gets back downstairs."

"Please make him talk to you, okay?"

He could hear the worry in her voice. "I will Georgie, I'll take care of him. Don't worry."

"Okay. Thanks Charles."

As he hung up, Charles sighed, and tried to get his thoughts in order. _What the hell is eating at him?_

He called Jane next. She was almost to Falmouth, and was relieved to hear from him. He repeated his conversation with Will to her, and Jane was just as confused about it as him.

"Did they fight?" Charles asked her.

"Something happened at the benefit, I'm still not sure exactly what, but I got the impression that things were okay now. According to her, he was fine when he was at the hospital with her."

"Well, I'll try to get to the bottom of it. Don't be surprised if you don't hear from me for a while." He heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "I have to go, I'll call you later."

He shoved his phone in his pocket just as Will entered the room. They eyed each other, and Charles was the first to speak. "So. You ready to talk?"

* * *

><p>Elizabeth entered her house late Friday morning, Jane right behind her. She had been anxious to get home, anxious to see if there were any clues to what caused Will's sudden departure. As the morning wore on, while she waited patiently for Jane at the hospital, she had begun to feel more and more agitated. She was upset, nervous, apprehensive...and now, a little annoyed.<p>

"Go lay down," Jane ordered, placing Elizabeth's bag on the overstuffed chair in the living room.

Elizabeth was pacing. "I don't _want_ to lay down."

"You have to rest, Lizzy. You can think about things just as well from a horizontal position as you can from a vertical one."

Jane had a point, and Elizabeth's head _was_ throbbing. She still felt foggy from the painkillers she had taken during the night. They had stopped at a pharmacy to fill a prescription for more, although Elizabeth had already decided she wouldn't take them. She needed to keep her wits about her.

"Tell me again what Charles said."

Jane sighed. "All he said was that Will appeared to be slightly...hung over, and that whatever was bothering him, he refused to talk about it."

Elizabeth finally gave in to her fatigue and sat on the couch. Jane immediately rose and grabbed Elizabeth's legs, lifting and pivoting them so that she was stretched out on the cushions. She disappeared into the bedroom, and reappeared with a pillow from the bed. Elizabeth raised her head obediently as Jane placed it behind her. As she lowered her head into the softness, the faint scent of Will's cologne wafted through the air, and that was all it took for tears to cloud her eyes again.

Reaching up to cover her face with her hands, she struggled to hold them in, refusing to give in to them. "What did I do, Jane?" She lowered her hands. "What does he _think_ I did? What is it that is so big, so awful, that he won't talk to me? That he won't talk to Charles? Or Georgie?" Her annoyance was changing to anger, building up inside of her. "Maybe he's just suddenly changed his mind about me. God, he just left me there, Jane! Who is he?"

Jane just shrugged and shook her head, not knowing how to respond. For once, she had no idea what to say to appease her sister, to make her feel better. She was at a loss.

"Remember when you asked me the other day if it felt like Will and I had known each other longer than two months? I told you that sometimes it felt like we've known each other for years...and other times..." her voice drifted off and she shook her head. "This is one of those other times. I have _no clue_ what is going through his mind. No idea. Right now, I can honestly say that I feel like I don't know him at all."

* * *

><p>Charles' mouth was hanging open, and he couldn't seem to clamp it shut. "Are you sure it was her? Are you sure it was him?"<p>

Will nodded quietly. He had told Charles, with as much indifference as he could muster, about what he had discovered in Elizabeth's house. Now, he sat patiently waiting for his friend to tell him exactly how to handle the situation, because he was at a complete loss. He had absolutely no idea what to do next.

"There has to be an explanation. Think about it, Will...that asshole Wickham made you believe that Georgiana was...was compliant in those pictures he took of her. You said it yourself; you believed something that went against your very nature, about your sister, no less. What if this is the same type of situation?"

"If this was the same type of situation, and Elizabeth was...victimized by him, why would she keep those photos? They were in _her_ possession...tucked away in a drawer, like some kind of fucked up keepsake. It's not like they were mailed to someone else..." Will shook his head. "No, Charles. I've thought about it, believe me. It's all I thought about last night...why do you think I drank so much?"

"Well...maybe the whole thing is a coincidence. She may not even know that there's a connection between him and everything that happened with Georgie. Maybe she doesn't know that he's…he's the one that did that to her."

Will nodded. "I thought of that...I'd like to believe at least _that_ much is true. When she found out about what happened to Georgiana, she was genuinely shocked. I thought back to when we talked about it, and I don't remember ever mentioning his name to her...though I don't know if Georgie did or not. So, it's very possible that she doesn't know his entire…history. Still, the rest of it being coincidental…she just happens to run into me on the beach, with a camera? Just happens to know him?" _Just __happened__ to sleep with him?_ "It's too far-fetched."

Charles thought for a minute, closing his eyes, trying to keep his thoughts straight. Everything was so confusing. If _he_ was this confused, he could only imagine how Will felt.

Will continued, speaking slowly. "Those pictures I saw," he swallowed hard as the grainy images came into his mind again, "they were different. With Georgiana, it was obvious it was her, she was plainly visible. Even though I couldn't see Elizabeth's face…it was her bed. Definitely her bed. And her hair…" he said quietly, his voice trailing off. He cleared his throat, and his voice was hoarse again when he spoke. "There's no way to tell exactly how old the pictures are, I guess...but it was him. In her bed."

"God, I can't believe it." A wave of sadness for his friend swept over him.

"Neither can I. I've tried and tried to think of some way to explain it, but I can't."

Charles sighed, frowning. Despite everything Will had said, he was having a hard time believing that Elizabeth was connected in any way to George Wickham. "Maybe he's blackmailing Elizabeth."

Will shook his head. "There's no logical reason for that. I mean, what does he have to gain by blackmailing her? She doesn't have money to pay him off, and she certainly hasn't asked me for any. It doesn't make sense."

Charles stared into his coffee, pursing his lips. "Do you really think she's been cheating on you? That she's been seeing him behind your back?"

"No, I don't. I think that whatever was going on with them has ended."

"Do you think that she started out...working with him?"

Will shrugged. "It's possible. That's what I've been thinking. Maybe Wickham was stupid enough to try to come after me again. Maybe he asked her to get some photos of me, or Georgiana...she agreed...then she meets me again at your house, and realizes she has an even better in with me."

"But how would they have met? What are the chances?"

Will threw up his hands. "I don't know...at some photography thing? A show of some sort? Who knows?" He ran both hands through his hair. "I have so many different scenarios flying through my head...I can't keep anything straight anymore."

"Whatever happened back then, Will...her feelings for you now are real. It's obvious she loves you."

Will nodded. "She does. I know she does," he said softly.

They were quiet for a while, both of their minds going over everything that had been discussed. Finally, Charles cleared his throat and spoke. "So why are you giving everything up?"

Will raised his eyebrows. "Are you serious? _Why_ am I giving everything up?" He rubbed one hand down his face. "Charles...my entire relationship with her was built on a_ lie_. A falsehood. Am I just supposed to forget about all of this, pretend it didn't happen? Am I just supposed to say, 'oh that's okay honey, it's in the past'?"

"Will, hold on, hold on. Everything you just told me is pure conjecture on your part. You have no idea if your story is the real story or not. You said it yourself...you have all these different scenarios-"

Will interrupted. "Can you come up with something better? Something that explains why my girlfriend has pictures of George Wickham in her bed? Why she's in that bed with him? Do you still think it's just _coincidence_?" He paused. "Think about this: she told me that until she met me, she hadn't been with _anyone_ since her college boyfriend. The funny thing is, she didn't move into that house until _after_ she finished college. You're a bright man, Charles...do the math. Figure it out."

"Still...you have to talk to her, Will. You can't just assume that you're right. You can't. You owe it to her to talk to her, to hear her out, to let her explain."

"There is no explanation! He was in her bed! That man...that fucking perverted bastard was _in her bed_. How can I talk to her about that? I can't do it. I can't talk to her."

"Yes you can! You have to!"

"I can't. And do you want to know why I can't?" He paused, looking down at his hands, and his voice was quiet, almost a whisper. "I'm terrified that I'm right. I'm afraid that she'll admit to it, all of it."

"But that will be a good thing, won't it?" Charles responded quietly. "Then you can work to move past it." Even as the words came out of his mouth, Charles knew that this was something that Will would never move past. Realistically, Charles knew that given the same situation, he would walk away without a second thought as well.

"Move past it?" Will gave a short laugh. "There_ is _no moving past it. Either way...it's done. We're done. And you know what? It's easier with her on the Cape and me here. It won't be as easy if I have to see her. I can't see her, can't talk to her." _I can't look at her face, can't see her eyes, can't be close enough to touch her._

Will closed his eyes, and for a moment, the pictures he had found were forgotten, and instead, the image of Elizabeth's face as he had seen it Wednesday morning in the Range Rover, flushed pink and full of love, was floating through his mind. He squeezed his eyes closed tight as his emotions threatened to take over.

His cell phone rang, and he sighed as he saw the name on the caller ID. _Elizabeth_. He let it ring.

"I can't," he whispered. "I can't talk to her."

Charles stared at his friend and felt utterly helpless. Will's world was falling down around him, and he hadn't the slightest idea what to do to ease his pain. _No wonder why he ran away and got drunk_, he thought. _I probably would have done the same. _His cell phone chirped, alerting him to a text message. He pulled out his phone and saw it was from Jane.

_No amount of begging will stop her. We're on our way to Boston._

He lifted his eyes and looked at Will. "She's not giving you a choice."

* * *

><p>"You can't go, absolutely not. You have to stay in bed. I promised the doctor that I would make you rest!"<p>

"I'm not sitting here, Jane, I'm sorry."

"You're mad, I get that."

"You're damn right I'm mad!" Her head pounded and she grimaced.

"See! This is what I'm talking about. You have a head injury, Lizzy! You can't go chasing after him."

"I can, and I am. I don't deserve this. He won't even answer his fucking phone, Jane!" Suddenly, the dam broke, and she burst into tears. "Why won't he answer his phone? Why won't he talk to me?"

Jane pulled Elizabeth into her arms, shushing her as she held her. "Come on Lizzy, stop crying. You're going to feel so much worse if you cry, you know you will." Anger welled up inside of her, anger directed at Will, at how he was handling this entire thing...whatever this entire thing was! The fact that he was leaving Elizabeth in the dark was infuriating.

Elizabeth made herself stop, mainly because the crying did make the pain in her head even more horrible. She sniffled, then went into the bathroom to grab a box of tissues. She sat back down on the couch. "I'm going, Jane. You can stay here, you can go with me...it's up to you. But I'm going to Boston."

Jane sighed, knowing the battle was lost. There was no talking her sister out of something when she set her mind to it. "Fine, I'll go. I'll drive, you can recline the passenger's seat and rest. Deal?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Deal."

She rose from the couch to walk into the bedroom. Moving slowly, she pulled off Will's Harvard sweatshirt, holding it for a moment before pushing her face into it and inhaling deeply. His scent was gone from it completely, but the simple act brought her comfort anyway. She removed her sweatpants, bra, and panties, and grabbed her robe from behind her door.

"I need a shower before we go," she said when she walked back into the living room.

Jane nodded. "Okay. Outside?"

"Yes. I need some fresh air."

"I'll sit on the deck in case you need me." They walked out together, and Jane helped Elizabeth down the stairs, walking slowly. "I can't believe you're doing this. You should be laying down. Why don't you give it a day, and go to Boston tomorrow?"

Elizabeth shot Jane a very determined look. "Jane, please. I'm going today, with or without you. End of discussion."

Jane sighed. "Okay, okay. I can't let you drive. I'd never forgive myself if you got into an accident."

The shower felt wonderful, the hot water pounding over Elizabeth's body. Her neck and left shoulder were sore, and she imagined it was probably from falling. She had to be careful washing her hair, as her head was incredibly tender where the ball struck.

Jane texted Charles while Elizabeth was showering.

_No amount of begging will stop her. We're on our way to Boston._

He replied immediately.

_Not a good idea. Stay in Falmouth._

_Other than locking her up, that will be impossible. If I don't drive her, she'll drive herself. I can't talk her out of it, and believe me, I've tried._

_Okay. I guess we'll deal with whatever happens when it happens. See you soon. Drive slowly._

After spending fifteen minutes under the spray, Elizabeth finally shut off the shower and dried off. Jane met her as she walked out of the stall and helped her back up the stairs.

"Feel a little better?"

Elizabeth nodded. "At least I don't smell like a hospital anymore."

She looked her body over in the mirror before dressing, and for a moment, her mind flashed back to Will making love to her in front of this mirror, asking her to look at them, to watch them together. Forcing her thoughts away from that memory, she looked at the bruises coloring her skin. The left side of her head, just above her ear, was swollen and bruised, and it was spreading to her left eye. Opening and closing her jaw hurt like hell. Her left arm and left leg were both bruised as well, and the crook of her right elbow had a small purple bruise from where the nurse had drawn her blood. The top of her right hand was also purple, from the IV that they had given her. She sighed. _My appearance is the least of my worries_, she thought.

She changed into capris and a blouse, then walked back to the bathroom to brush her teeth. After drying her hair a little more, she pulled it up into a ponytail. Jane was sitting on the couch, waiting patiently, when Elizabeth came out of the bathroom.

"I'm ready," Elizabeth said, pushing the nausea down that was suddenly rearing its ugly head.

"You're very pale. I'm going to ask you one more time – are you sure you want to do this today? I'll stay here with you tonight, and we can go tomorrow."

Elizabeth shook her head, closing her eyes. "No, Jane. Today. I'm not going through the rest of the day like this. I can't stand it, don't you see? I have to go today." Tears threatened again.

Jane walked over to give her sister a hug. "Okay. Let's go."

They had just reached the bottom of the stairs when Elizabeth's phone rang. She looked at the phone, then at Jane.

"It's Will."

* * *

><p>"I don't want her to come here, Charles! Tell Jane not to come."<p>

"If Jane doesn't go with her, Lizzy will just show up on her own, and I'm sure she's in no shape to drive."

A bolt of worry shot through Will. Unwelcome, but there just the same. "I'll leave then. I'll go visit Mrs. Reynolds."

Charles furrowed his brows. "If she's driving all the way up here, you damn well better _not_ leave." He shook his head. "You're not running away from this. You have to face it, and now is as good a time as any."

"It will just turn into me yelling and saying things I don't want to say. Or maybe, things I do want to say, but don't necessarily want her to hear." He shook his head in frustration. "We just talked the other day about how I let my temper get the best of me...I did it to Richard just last weekend..."

"You did?"

"Yes, I did." He rubbed his eyes. "If she's here, in front of me...I'll lose it, I know I will. I don't want to do that to her." _And I don__'t want to look into those eyes. _"I need time."

"Fine. If you don't want to see her now, then _you_ call her and tell her yourself. I'm not being the go-between, not this time."

Will stared at Charles, waiting for him to change his mind. After a minute or so, it was clear that he wasn't going to. He grabbed his cell phone and stood up. "I'm going to my office." He needed privacy.

Charles gave a short nod, but remained silent.

Once in his office, Will paced back and forth before sitting down behind his desk. He stared at the picture of Elizabeth there, then at the one that she had taken of him and Georgiana on the jetty, on that fateful day that they met. It seemed to fuel him, to fuel his anger slightly. He gave a sharp laugh. _No,_ _probably_ _not fate after all_.

He took a deep breath and called Elizabeth. She answered on the first ring.

"Will?"

Her voice was soft and low, almost timid, and despite himself and all the thoughts flying through his mind, his stomach lurched.

"Yes, it's me."

She hesitated. "How are you? I've...I've been-"

"Don't come to Boston, Elizabeth. Don't," he said quietly but firmly. His words were met with silence. "Did you hear me?"

After a moment, she answered quietly. "Yes."

He heard her sharp intake of breath, and knew that she was on the verge of tears, if not crying already, and his stomach lurched again, ten times harder than it had before.

"Why...why don't you-"

"I don't want to see you. I don't want to talk to you. Not...not now. Just let it be...let me be."

He waited for her reply, and was surprised that her voice sounded stronger.

"Let you be? How can I just _let you be_? You need to tell me what happened. I want to know why you left. I _deserve_ to know why you left. Why won't you tell me?" Her emotions were running at full tilt, and the adrenaline coursing through her body was raising her voice.

"I can't… I can't." His voice became stronger too, and he could feel prickles of anger mixed with unbearable pain running along his skin. "If I start now, I won't stop, and I'll say too much, too many things..."

Elizabeth had no idea what to say to him to make him talk to her. Tears rolled down her face in a steady stream. "How can you do this to me? To us? I love you, William."

Her voice was soft but pleading…he could tell, now, that she was crying, and could feel himself precariously close to doing the same. _I love you too, I do_. Will swallowed roughly and closed his eyes, forcing the wetness there to remain at bay. He took a deep breath, and his voice was hoarse when he spoke. "I'm sorry, Elizabeth." He hung up the phone, dropped his head into his hands, and finally gave in to his tears.

* * *

><p><em>So, there you have it...a little more of what's behind Will's reasoning...next chapter will be up tomorrow afternoon. Reviews are welcome!<em>


	31. Chapter 31

_Hello again! For those of you trying to keep up, this is the 3rd day in a row that I've posted, so make sure you've read everything in order! I'll be away on vacation for a week, so I won't post again until next Saturday. Unfortunately, this chapter ends with a bit of a cliffhanger, so I apologize for that in advance! This chapter also ends Part 4 of the story. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it. Have a great week!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 31<strong>

_Days apart: 6_

Elizabeth finished packing, placing the last of her necessities into a suitcase. Megan would be along shortly to pick her up, and they would head to Logan Airport together. She glanced around at her small home, making sure everything was in order. Her father would stop by a few times while she was gone to make sure everything was okay. She'd had to make him another key, as he couldn't find the one she had given him a couple of years ago. Snippets of their somber conversation drifted back to her.

"Is William going to keep an eye on the house for you too?"

"No, dad. Charlotte will come by occasionally though, she'll just do a drive-by to make sure everything looks okay."

Her father didn't say anything right away, and she knew from the silence that he was trying to puzzle out what was wrong with his uncharacteristically subdued daughter.

"Are you nervous, Lizzy, about this trip?"

"Not at all, I'm looking forward to it. You know I've always wanted to see the Ace Basin. It's a dream come true that I'll actually be able to do some research there, even if it is only for a couple of weeks."

Her father paused for a moment. "Is there a problem with you and William?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that you're talking about this trip to the Basin as if it's a trip to the dentist for a root canal. You're saying that you're excited, and well you should be, but I don't hear it."

"William and I are no longer, dad. He's gone his way, and I'm going mine."

Mr. Bennet was quiet for a moment. "It's just as well, don't you think? This trip could open up all sorts of avenues for you, provide you with more opportunities to further yourself. Perhaps it's not such a good time to be tied down."

Elizabeth closed her eyes and sighed. "Perhaps."

He could hear the sadness in his daughter's voice. "Once you're down in South Carolina, you'll forget all about William Darcy. He wasn't your boyfriend for too long anyway, right? I'm sure you weren't too attached. Don't let thoughts of him trouble you."

Elizabeth squeezed her eyes tighter, willing the tears to stay away. "I won't, dad. Could you do me a favor though? Could you not say anything to mum? The last thing I want is a phone call from her."

Mr. Bennet chuckled. "It's our little secret."

"Thanks. Umm, Megan is going to be here soon, I have to go."

"Okay. You give a call when you have time, and make sure you take those cameras of yours to get plenty of pictures. Take care of yourself."

"My cameras are already packed. And don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I love you dad."

"I love you too, Lizzy. Bye now."

"Bye dad."

Her chest constricted as she thought about the conversation with her father. It had made her sad, but she didn't cry. Today, Wednesday, was a milestone; it was the first day that Elizabeth hadn't burst into tears immediately upon waking up. Her heart still felt heavy, her mind was weighed down with thoughts of him, but she didn't give in to the pain. He had been 'gone,' for lack of a better word, for six days now, and they had been the six longest days of her life.

She hadn't gone to work at all, Bill wouldn't let her. He wanted her home, recovering and resting up, so that she could make the trip to South Carolina as planned. Mary had been kind enough to gather all of Elizabeth's work and drop it off to her on Monday, so she'd had a couple of days to review things and prep.

Her headaches were now few and far between, and there was no more nausea. The bruising on her face had faded and was barely noticeable. She was cleared by her doctor for the trip, though he wasn't at all thrilled about her traveling yet.

Jane had stayed the weekend with her, not leaving to go back to Boston until late Sunday night. Once again, she had been by Elizabeth's side, picking up the pieces. Elizabeth knew that Jane had talked to Charles over the weekend, and that he had only spent time with Will on Friday. She had also overheard Jane arguing with Charles on the phone on Saturday, which alarmed her; the last thing she wanted was for her problems with Will to come between Jane and Charles.

When Elizabeth had asked if everything was okay, Jane had shrugged her off. "We're not arguing about anything to do with you guys...it's other stuff." Unfortunately, Jane was not a very good liar, and Elizabeth could see right through her.

"Jane...if your being here is causing any kind of problem with Charles, I want you to leave, go back to Boston. You can't make my problems your own."

"I'm not, Lizzy. Charles knows I'm staying until tomorrow, and he's fine with it, he wants me to be here for you. He understands completely."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "That's not what it sounds like to me."

"Look, you let me worry about Charles, okay? We're fine."

Jane had played nursemaid, cooking them small meals, doing dishes, and cleaning while Elizabeth rested. Oh, she couldn't wait to get outside and get moving again! Being closeted up in the house was driving her crazy. She had sat outside in the sun a few times, but the heat made her head pound, and she didn't feel much like swimming. _I'm in for some serious headaches in South Carolina if this keeps up. _By Tuesday, however, the headaches had let up considerably, and she was feeling much better.

It was hard to believe that they were all supposed to have spent the past weekend hanging around together, the four of them. How quickly and unexpectedly things had changed, and right now, she still had no idea why. She had remained true to her word; she had told Will she wouldn't contact him, and she hadn't. Not since she talked to him Friday morning, when she was ready to impulsively dash to Boston.

His tone of voice, the words he said...there was no way she was going to push it and chase him down. But God, she missed him! Missed his voice, his smell, his smile. She missed the way he looked at her, missed the feel of his hands on her body, his lips on hers...she missed his entire _presence_. She fell asleep each night clutching the pillow that he had slept on, holding it to her nose, breathing in those last subtle traces of him still attached to the pillowcase.

She was in limbo. When he said he didn't want to talk to her, he had said '_not now'_. Did that mean he would talk to her at some point later? And if that's what he meant, was she supposed to just _wait_ until he was ready, bide her time until he decided _he_ was ready to speak? She had no idea what his expectations were, and she was getting tired of trying to figure them out on her own.

Yes, today was a milestone day. Today, there were no tears. Today there was anger.

* * *

><p>Will sat back, stretching his legs out in front of him. It was this reason, primarily, that he always chose to fly first class; room to stretch. He had boarded the flight from Logan at eight a.m., and was headed to LAX. Richard would meet him at the airport, and from there they would head to the hotel they were both staying at.<p>

He turned and looked out the small window as the plane taxied down the runway, felt the sudden pull in his stomach as it left the ground and steadily climbed into the cloudless sky. Sighing, he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the seat, finally realizing how relieved he felt to be leaving Boston. No, not just Boston; Massachusetts. Better yet, the east coast. The proximity of Boston to the Cape had been a constant problem for the past five days. How easy it would have been to hop in his car and zip down the highway, cross the canal, and pull up at her doorstep. Too easy, and very tempting.

The past five days, today being the sixth, had given him ample time to think, to weigh everything in his mind. He had spent the day with Charles on Friday, and the two of them had wracked their brains, trying to come up with possible scenarios that could have resulted in those photos being in Elizabeth's dresser drawer. It was an exercise in futility; even Charles' sharp mind, much sharper than Will's at the moment, couldn't come up with any reasons why they would be in her possession. No reasons other than the obvious, that is.

By the end of that day, Charles too was in reluctant agreement that something must have occurred at some point between Elizabeth and Wickham. For the rest of the weekend, Will never left the townhouse. He asked Charles not to call him or come by; he needed the time to think.

He had called Georgiana on Saturday morning, only to reassure her that he was fine, and to apologize to her for his behavior on the phone Thursday night. He knew he probably hadn't made a shred of sense, and was embarrassed that he had spouted off like he did. She was understanding, but wanted more of an explanation, and he just couldn't give her one. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her again, and that's just what would happen if he told her about what he had discovered in Elizabeth's house. No, she would never know. God forgive him, but he would lie through his teeth before he ever told her about those pictures, before that bastard's name would ever pass from his lips to her ears again.

He had asked Georgie if Elizabeth had contacted her, and he was relieved to know that she hadn't. Perhaps it was unfair to expect that his sister's friendship with her would end, but under the circumstances, he thought it was best. He imparted as much to Georgie, asking her to trust him, and even over the phone, he could feel her hesitation.

"Why can't you just tell me what happened, William?"

"I can't, Georgie." He forced the next few words out, almost feeling as though he was lying to his sister. "You just have to believe me when I say that Elizabeth...she may be a good friend to you, and I...I believe that she probably does care about you-"

"_Probably_?"

He had sighed heavily, not knowing what to say to make her understand. "Georgie, you have to trust me. The person she is, the person she appears to be...my relationship with her, your relationship with her...they were built on deception. I won't say any more than that. You're a grown woman, I can't stop you if you want to talk to her, but I'm asking you not to."

They hadn't said much more after that. Georgiana had reassured him that she was there for him if he needed to talk, and he thanked her, but truthfully, he knew he would never confide in her, not about this. He could tell she was sad, and thought she may have been crying, but he wasn't sure. Remembering that Matt was due to visit her that day, he had told her to forget about everything going on with her older brother, and just enjoy her time with Matt. She seemed to brighten a little bit then, but he could tell she was not quite herself. He had promised to call her Monday, and they said their goodbyes.

After hanging up with her, he stared at his phone for a long while, part of him wishing that Elizabeth would call. He was at war with himself, and Saturday night, under the influence of another bottle, he had actually picked up the phone and stared at her number on the screen, his thumb hovering for endless minutes over the button that would send the call through. Eventually, he ended up putting his phone in a desk drawer and walking away from it.

Misery had enveloped him completely. Trying to sleep in his bed was a lost cause; she had only spent two nights with him there, but it may as well have been two hundred. He moved down to one of the bedrooms on the second floor, but it didn't really help. Sleep eluded him, unless it was coaxed along with a bottle of booze. After his repeat binge on Saturday night, and waking up with a monstrous hangover on Sunday, he decided he was just going to have to deal with his insomnia. The last thing he wanted was to rely on liquor to get him through this.

It was obvious by Monday that she wasn't going to call. He had asked her not to, and it was clear that she had taken his request seriously. Charles had encouraged him to call her, but he couldn't, not yet. Everything was still too fresh. He knew he owed her some type of explanation, and eventually, he would give one to her; whether it was sooner or later didn't really matter. Either way, there was no possibility of them continuing on. How could he build any type of honest relationship with her? The beginning of it, the very _foundation_ of it, was built on a falsehood.

He sighed, and although it would only cause him grief, he let his mind wander back to the first weeks of their acquaintance, when she professed to dislike him, calling him on his arrogance, and he had supposed her nothing more than a nosy beach bum. He had actually courted her, for lack of a better term. He had been determined to show her that he was not an arrogant, rich prick. For the first time, he had wanted to _romance_ a woman. No one else had ever brought that side out of him, ever. She made him want to sing for her, dance with her, laugh and play with her. She made him feel alive.

Now he just felt dead.

* * *

><p>Georgiana felt like she was in a constant state of turmoil, and had been for the past five days. It had started with her phone conversation with Will on Thursday night. He was obviously not himself, his excessive drinking proof of that. Her brother wasn't a drinker; he liked a cold beer or a glass of wine occasionally, but she never knew him to drink for the sole purpose of getting plastered.<p>

When he called her on Saturday morning, he was extremely hung over and sounded awful. Their conversation regarding Elizabeth hadn't lasted long, but it had stuck in her head since then. _'My relationship with her was built on deception,' _he had said. What kind of deception? What did she do? Will had said something about _'the person she appears to be', _but never did finish what he had begun to say. How is she not who she appears to be? What does that mean?

The very idea of it went against Georgiana's gut feelings. She felt that she had gotten to know Elizabeth fairly well, and now regarded her as a close friend, a sister even. She never saw any evidence of insincerity, no signs that Elizabeth was harboring some great secret about herself. She seemed so real, so genuine...how could that not be the real Elizabeth?

She called Matt after getting off the phone with Will on Saturday morning. She told him a little bit about what was going on, but didn't want to tell him too much. He was already on his way, and thinking it the right thing to do, she began to encourage him to go back to Boston.

"Why should I go back to Boston? You don't want to see me?"

"No! I mean, that's not why I want you to go back." She sighed. "I don't really want you to go back, I want to see you. I've been looking forward to it all week."

"So have I," he said quietly.

"I'm just upset, that's all. I'm sorry. You must think we're this extremely dysfunctional family! It's not always like this, I swear."

"I know it isn't, I've known you long enough to know that. The thing is, as much as you're worried about Will, _and_ Elizabeth, you have to let them figure it out. If it's meant to be, it's meant to be. They'll get it straightened out and everything will get back to normal."

"I hope you're right."

"Of course I am. Plus, you're all alone, aren't you? I don't want you to be alone, especially if you're sad. You need someone there to cheer you up and take your mind off of things."

Georgiana smiled. "You think you're up to the task?"

"I know I am. I'll put a smile on your face."

Feeling her cheeks pink, she spoke quietly into the phone. "You already did."

* * *

><p>Matt arrived before lunch, greeting her with a warm hug and a soft kiss on the cheek. They immediately decided to take advantage of the beautiful day and head to the beach. They separated to change into their suits, and when she walked back into her tiny living room, Georgiana watched as Matt's gaze traveled over her, making her blush once again.<p>

He cleared his throat. "Nice bikini."

She smiled shyly. "Oh, thanks. Um, let me just grab some water for us. I suppose we can just walk back up here when we feel hungry."

"Easy enough."

Georgiana hurried into the kitchen to retrieve some water from the refrigerator. He looked amazing in his navy blue board shorts, and she was finding it hard not to stare at his bare chest. He was lean, but muscular. Her face flushed even more, and she quickly opened the freezer and stuck her face in, willing it to turn back to its normal color.

They headed down to the sand and spread a blanket out. Georgiana laid on her back, with Matt next to her on his stomach, his arms folded under his head. She could feel his eyes on her, and decided to turn and peek at him. Sure enough, he was staring.

"You're very pretty," he said simply.

"Thank you," she said in reply, smiling widely. "So are you."

He laughed at that and rolled up onto his side, propping his head up with one arm, facing her. "Let's see, 'graceful' last week, and 'pretty' this week. I'm really scoring with the compliments."

Georgiana laughed with him, already feeling so much better since his arrival. With his loose hand, he reached to lightly grasp one of hers, lifting it from the blanket to thread his fingers through hers. She felt a fluttering in her stomach, but it was purely one of happiness and excitement; nothing about Matt made her feel nervous or self-conscious, although with the frequency that she blushed around him, you'd think she was a girl on her first date. She realized that for the first time in a very long time, she was genuinely excited about life, and what lay ahead for her. Yes, she was thrilled that she may be teaching again sometime soon, but this was so different.

Smiling down at her, apparently pleased with the expression on her face, he chuckled again and laid next to her on his back so that they were shoulder to shoulder, reaching for her hand again, keeping it enfolded in his.

_Yes, this is different, _she thought_. This is Matt._

* * *

><p>"So, this is the official 'date' part of the day I guess, huh?" Matt asked her sometime later.<p>

They were walking into the British Beer Company in Falmouth, which was situated directly across from Falmouth Heights Beach. They had wanted to go some place casual that had a view, and Georgiana had remembered driving past it on her way to Elizabeth's house. The fireworks were lit from a barge that anchored directly off the beach on July 4th.

"I guess it is. Maybe we can take a walk along the beach later? It's so nice out."

"It is. I actually got a little burn today, I think."

She glanced at him and noticed that the skin under his eyes, and the tip of his nose, were slightly pink. "It's not too bad."

They grabbed two seats at the bar while waiting for a table and ordered drinks, wine for Georgiana and a beer for Matt.

"When is your second interview in Falmouth?" he asked.

"Thursday."

"How do you feel about it?"

She shrugged. "Fine. I think it's a good sign, if anything."

"It's just a formality. You've got it in the bag."

She looked up at him. "You think?"

Their tall bar chairs were swiveled so that they faced each other, knees touching. He leaned forward, hands on this thighs, and smiled sweetly at her. "I don't think, I know. They'd be crazy not to hire you."

"Thanks." The noise of the busy bar faded as he leaned forward and reached up to brush a strand of long blonde hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. Leaning back again in his chair, he reached for his beer and took a long sip, studying her face, smiling slightly.

She cringed inwardly as she felt a blush creeping up her neck again. "I'm almost afraid to ask."

"Ask?"

"Yes, ask. You. What you're thinking."

"It was more that I was kicking myself."

"For what?"

"For waiting so long to do this." He looked away from her for a moment, then looked down at his beer, before returning his gaze to hers. "When we talked last weekend, I told you I was going to ask you out on New Years Eve, and I was, but the truth is, I'd been thinking about it for weeks. Months."

Georgiana's jaw dropped slightly. "Months?"

He nodded. "And I'm kicking myself now for wasting so much time."

She shrugged lightly. "Good thing we're both young."

Smiling, he lifted her hand from her lap and squeezed it softly. "Good thing."

* * *

><p>They walked along the beach across from the restaurant after dinner, then headed back to New Seabury. Georgiana was still feeling slightly overwhelmed by Matt's confession. <em>Months?<em> So many things could have been different. She decided not to dwell on what could have been. He was here now, that was all that mattered.

Her little house had a small deck that faced out toward the ocean, and they ended up sitting there, enjoying the slight breeze that came in off the water. They had talked endlessly throughout dinner and their walk, and then more on the drive to New Seabury, but now they were both quiet. Georgiana knew it was getting late, and he would be thinking about leaving soon, heading back to Boston. The thing was, she didn't want him to leave, she wanted him to stay.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

She decided to take the opportunity to be honest. "I was thinking that it's late, and you'll have to leave soon."

He nodded. "Yeah...soon."

She bit her lip and turned to look at him. "Do you...do you want to stay tonight?"

His eyebrows flew up and he looked slightly shocked. His mouth opened, but no sounds came out.

"I'd like you to," Georgiana said softly, then realized what the look on his face was about. "In the guest room! I have a guestroom." She laughed quietly. "Oh God, sorry for the confusion. The look on your face was pretty funny."

"I can only imagine," Matt said, laughing himself. "You definitely caught me off-guard."

"So?"

"I'll stay, yeah. I'd like that."

"Nothing important to be home for tomorrow?"

"Nothing that can't wait," he said, smiling. His face turned serious as he looked at her. "Nothing more important than this."

Georgiana felt a warmth spread from her neck into her cheeks, and she was grateful that there was very little light outside. They talked for a while longer, then headed in to watch a movie.

Matt made himself comfortable on the couch while Georgiana placed a disk into the DVD player. She sat down next to him, and he wrapped his arm around her gently, pulling her into his side. Curling up next to him, she laid her head against his shoulder.

It didn't take long until they were both asleep on the couch, sitting up, their heads tilted together. Matt woke as the credits were rolling at the end of the movie, and gently shook Georgiana to wake her. She lifted her head from his shoulder, looking slightly disorientated.

"Oh, I'm so sorry...I guess I'm more tired than I thought."

"I crashed too," Matt said, chuckling. "Doesn't say much for the movie."

Georgiana laughed. "No, I guess not. Maybe we should turn in."

Matt nodded. "We should." He stood up and held out his hands to help her up, pulling her close to him. Things suddenly felt awkward between them as they stared at each other, not saying anything.

Georgiana broke the silence. "Let me just find you a toothbrush," she said as she moved to walk toward the guest bathroom. After finding one, and pulling out a towel and washcloth for him, she showed him the guestroom, even though she had already given him a tour of the house.

Again, they found themselves face to face, this time in the hallway outside of Georgiana's room.

Matt cleared his throat. "Thanks for spending the day with me," he said quietly. "I had a good time." As he spoke, he reached to grasp both her hands, then leaned in to give her a lingering kiss on the cheek. "Goodnight Georgie."

Georgiana looked at him when he pulled back from her, and slowly she leaned towards him, lightly pressing her lips to his, giving him the softest of kisses. His lips were just what she thought they would be; warm, soft, and very kissable. When she pulled away, she slowly opened her eyes to see him gazing at her, a slight grin on his lips.

"That was a much better goodnight kiss," he said.

She nodded. "I think so too." Smiling, she squeezed his hands. "Goodnight Matt."

"Goodnight Georgie."

She walked into her room and closed the door behind her, leaning against it with a ridiculous smile on her face. Already, she couldn't wait for tomorrow. _Tomorrow_, she thought, sighing. _The first day of the rest of my life._

* * *

><p>Sitting in his office on Wednesday, Charles thought about how things in his world had gone from extremely wonderful to extremely terrible in the short span of five days. Since he had spoken to Will on Friday, things with Jane had become tense and strained. He had made the mistake of asking her, after she got home Sunday night, if Elizabeth had been involved with anyone that she knew of over the past year or so.<p>

"Why?" Jane had asked.

"I'm...just wondering, that's all."

Jane had looked at him closely, and as usual, had read him like a book. "Does he think she cheated on him or something?"

"I...no, I don't think...he didn't say," Charles sputtered.

"Lizzy was involved with someone while she was in college. It didn't end well, and since then, she's dated a few times, but she never got seriously involved with anyone. I would know, believe me. We're very open with each other." She looked Charles straight in the eyes. "She loves Will, completely. I've never seen her so happy...well, until this weekend, anyway."

Her voice trailed off, and Charles saw tears pool in her eyes. He walked over to her, pulling her in for a hug. "I'm sorry."

She leaned back to look at him. "_You_ have nothing to be sorry for, and as far as I know, neither does Lizzy," she said pointedly. As she looked at him, the questions that were on the tip of her tongue were apparent in her expression. "I don't know if Will does, but you seem to know a bit more about what's going on than I do."

Charles shook his head. "I really don't," he lied. As much as he hated to be dishonest with Jane, he had sworn to Will that their discussions about what had happened would remain between the two of them.

"You do...I can tell. You just asked me a very random question about my sister, so obviously you're thinking about whatever is going on with them. I'm sure you've been sworn to secrecy, and I understand that...to a point."

"To a point?"

"Yes, to a point. If you know something...or, I should say, _think_ you know something about Lizzy...about why all this crap is happening...maybe I can help. No one knows her like I do, not even Will. Whatever he thinks is going on, or whatever he thinks she did...he's wrong."

Charles shook his head again. "We have to end this conversation," he said firmly.

Jane's eyebrows rose, and she pursed her lips. "Okay. Fine. Conversation over." She had pushed away from him then and walked out of the room.

Now, leaning forward with his elbows on his desk, Charles sighed deeply, knowing that this was just the beginning of a whole new set of problems. He was determined to do everything in his power to keep the issues between Will and Elizabeth from coming between him and Jane. It would be no easy task; Jane was fiercely devoted to and protective of her sister, and would come to Elizabeth's defense instantly if need be.

Charles felt the same way about Will, just about. They grew up together, and were more like brothers than best friends; granted, Will didn't need his protection, but Charles owed him his loyalty at the very least. Charles could see, already, that he and Jane were going to be pulled in different directions over this, and it would be tough going until things between Elizabeth and Will were resolved. If they ever were resolved, that is.

He rubbed his hands over his face, feeling suddenly despondent. _Lord, give me strength._

* * *

><p>"When do you go back?"<p>

"Trying to get rid of me already?"

Richard laughed. "No, not at all."

Will sighed. "I'm not sure when I'll go back, actually. Maybe I'll stay, spend a little more time at the San Francisco office."

"Really? I bet you don't last five days out here without rushing back to Elizabeth."

Will shook his head, staring out the window of the cab they were in.

Instantly, Richard sensed that something wasn't right, but because of their location, he chose to leave it alone.

"Well, in any case, we're due out at the realtor's office at 9am tomorrow. She'll take us to the first building, and you'll have plenty of time to check everything out. If we can squeeze it in, we'll head to the second building in the afternoon. Other than that, it's just paperwork and red tape."

"Do we have to see the second building immediately?"

Richard shrugged. "No, I suppose we don't...I was trying to condense everything, I didn't think you'd want to be out here for very long."

"Why don't we see the first building tomorrow, then the second building on Monday or something."

Richard looked puzzled. "Okay...so, we'll see one tomorrow, wait a few days, then see the other one? We're going to spend the weekend here, in L.A.?"_ Something definitely isn't right, _Richard thought. "What's going on?"

"What do you mean, 'what's going on'? I figure if I'm here, I may as well take advantage of it. I never get out to California...except for my quick trip a few weeks ago, I haven't been to any of the other offices since last year. The last time I was at a satellite was last November...its been too long."

"What are you going to do while you're here?"

Will turned to glare at him. "Keep an eye on you."

"Fair enough."

Neither felt any desire to address the elephant in the room while in the back of a cab. It pulled up in front of the hotel, and the men climbed out. Will took a deep breath, then grimaced. "Nothing quite like the air in L.A., is there?"

Richard chuckled. "Nothing like it."

Richard had booked a two bedroom suite for them, and after they each got settled into their rooms, they met in the living room. Will was happy about the accommodations. "Not a bad spot."

"No, it's great. It's the closest luxury hotel I could get to the realtors' office. She'll drive us around, so I figured we'd just walk to her office. It's about a half-mile away."

Will seemed distracted. He was staring out the window and looked preoccupied, so Richard didn't say much else. After a few moments, Will spoke.

"Were you expecting to be home for the weekend? We can see the other building Friday, if it's easier. Then you can...get home. I'm sure Lauren will miss you." He was still staring out the window.

Richard shrugged, carefully examining his cousin's demeanor. "She'll understand. We can work things on your schedule, it's fine."

Will turned to him. "How are things with her? With the...baby?"

Richard smiled. "It's good. Everything is fine. She, um...she moved in last week, as soon as we got home from Boston."

Will nodded. "We need to have another conversation about everything...about this whole...messy situation. Things can't stay as they are."

Richard reached up to run a hand through his hair. "I realize that."

"I've been thinking...how much longer will she work? I mean, when is the baby due?"

"Not until February. You'll like this, actually...she's due February first."

Will's eyebrows flicked up. "You're kidding, right?"

Richard chuckled. "No, I'm not. Her due date is your birthday."

"Are babies usually born on their due dates? It must be a crap shoot, right?"

Richard chuckled. "Yeah, I guess that's one way to put it. They come when they want to, usually. It's a rough estimate, so to speak."

Will nodded, seeming to mull this over. "Well, anyway, how long will she work for?"

Richard shrugged. "She wants to work as long as she can, but I'm hoping she'll stop after Thanksgiving. I don't want her to be tired, you know?"

"You could always tell her boss to go easy on her."

"Very funny," Richard smirked. "Actually, she put in for a transfer as soon as we got back from Boston, and it already came through, she starts tomorrow. The pay isn't as good, but...well, it was necessary."

Will looked his cousin in the eye. "Very necessary." He paused for a moment, and turned to pace in front of the couch. "I've thought about this a lot, Richard. Everything that happened in Boston...I feel awful about it, and I hope you know that I really am sorry. I said some shitty things, and I was way out of line."

"We've already talked about this."

"I know we have, but I have some other things I need to say. I feel like you haven't really taken responsibility for any of this. For putting me in this position to begin with. I understand that Lauren is your girlfriend, and that you love her, and that you wanted to help her out. I get that. But suggesting that she apply for that job, as your assistant...that was just wrong. It was stupid, Richard. You should have known better."

Richard was silent, not taking his eyes off Will as he paced. Seeing that he wasn't going to get a response, Will continued.

"What if something had gone sour with you two? What if she was vindictive, and wanted revenge? She could make your life, and mine, a living hell."

"She's not like that."

"That may be the case, but I don't know her. You've known her for what, six months or so? She's pregnant with your child now, and she _works_ for you. It's like a plot from a movie or a novel or something. I'm not trying to be crass here, but you're her boss, and you knocked her up."

Richard started to say something, obviously angry, but Will wouldn't let him.

"I'm not trying to get you all fired up again, but it's the truth, that's what happened. As your cousin, I'll be as supportive as possible, but as your boss, as the owner of this company, I have to look at it differently. I can't have that...that type of potential problem at RJD. That risk, that you could split up, and she could go after you, or us. Something has to change."

"What do you suggest?" Richard asked quietly.

Will could tell from his tone that he was annoyed. "When she leaves...for her maternity leave, I would like her to resign permanently."

Richard huffed. "Even if she's working in another department?"

Will nodded, the disbelief that his cousin was upset evident in his voice. "Yes, Richard, even if she's working in another department! Why do you seem upset by this? You're the one who doesn't want her to work, this is the perfect way for that to happen, isn't it?"

"_I_ don't want her to work, but _she_ wants to work."

"She can remain with RJD until she goes on maternity leave, and I'll make sure her health insurance stays active until she gets coverage another way. I won't fire her, obviously; that sets me up for an entirely new set of problems." He held his hand up, stopping Richard from interrupting. "You'll have to talk to Lauren about this, of course, but my decision is final."

Richard stared at his cousin. "You're very cynical, you know. You automatically assume that Lauren has some kind of financial motivation to be with me...it's all about the money. You can't believe that she'd love me just for me?"

"I didn't say that."

"Well, you basically did, without really saying it. I could say the same for Elizabeth, you know."

Will glared at him. "Leave her out of it," he said firmly.

"No, I won't leave her out of it. You've been surrounded by gold-diggers all your life...Caroline Bingley, for example...then boom, you meet her, and she's 'the one.' How come it can be that way for you, but not for me?"

Will raised his voice, almost yelling. "Elizabeth is not my secretary, Richard! Jesus Christ!" He took a deep breath, reining in his anger. "All I'm saying is that sometimes...sometimes you think you know someone, but then it turns out you really don't know them at all, and they completely turn your world upside down." Will paused for a moment, taking a large swallow of air. "No, actually, they fucking _obliterate_ your world. Destroy it."

Suddenly, it all clicked into place with Richard. _Now I know why he's in no hurry to go home. They split up. _The anguish on Will's face was plain to see, and the emotion in his voice was evident to someone who knew him well enough.

"What happened with Elizabeth?" Richard asked quietly.

Will shook his head. "Leave it alone, Richard."

The expression on his face and the tone of his voice made it clear the subject was not open for discussion.

"Are we clear about Lauren?" Will asked firmly.

"Yes, we're clear."

Will gave a quick nod. "I'm going out for a walk."

Richard nodded. "Okay. We'll get some dinner later, if you want. The restaurant downstairs is pretty good."

Will nodded again and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stretched as she walked from the plane into the terminal. The flight to Savannah, Georgia, was short, and was made even shorter by Megan's incessant chatter. She was twenty-six, and had only been at WHOI for two years. It was obvious that she was beyond thrilled that she was selected for the Ace Basin trip. Elizabeth was glad for the distraction; anything to keep her mind off of Will.<p>

The employee joining them from NOAA, whom Elizabeth didn't know, was taking a later flight and would meet them in South Carolina. Megan knew the man, Thomas, and assured her that he was very nice as well as very knowledgeable about the area, as he had been there before.

Scott, an employee of the Basin Research Reserve, picked them up at the airport.

"It's about an hour ride to Beaufort, in South Carolina. You ladies will be staying in a nice house there with your other co-worker and two more people, coming in from a Reserve in Maine. You have tonight free, so have a look around Beaufort if you'd like. It's a small town, you can pretty much walk everywhere, but there's a lot to do. It's close to where you'll be working in the Basin."

"Thanks," Elizabeth and Megan said simultaneously.

Megan discreetly poked Elizabeth's shoulder from the back seat. Elizabeth turned and glanced at her, and Megan not-so-discreetly wiggled her eyebrows. "Cute," Megan mouthed. Elizabeth rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the road.

Little more than an hour later, they were getting settled into their temporary home. It was hot and sticky out, and both women were thrilled to find out that the house had air conditioning. They both let out audible sighs at the feel of the cool air on their skin. After looking at the four bedrooms in the house, they decided to stay in the room with two twin beds, both feeling comfortable enough to be roommates for a couple of weeks.

While they were unpacking, they made light conversation, which again, Elizabeth was thankful for. Until, that is, Megan asked for her 'status'.

"My status?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yeah, you know...single, in a relationship...your status. I'm single, completely single. You're not wearing any rings, so I'm assuming you're not engaged or married."

"No, I'm not. I'm...I'm not sure what my status is, actually."

Megan's eyebrows rose. "Not sure?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm in a relationship." Her heart lurched as she said the words, but she knew that saying them was the best way to end a conversation she wanted no part of.

"Hmmm. Okay...if you say so. You don't sound too sure of that."

"I'm not sure of anything, actually. Can we leave it at that? I don't really want to get into it." The last thing Elizabeth wanted was to spill her guts to someone she barely knew. "I'd like to be able to just focus on work while I'm here, maybe forget my life back on the Cape for a while. This trip couldn't have happened at a better time."

"Well...if our friendly driver Scotty is any indication, there may be a plethora of hotties to help you forget about Cape Cod. And you know...what happens in Beaufort stays in Beaufort."

Elizabeth chuckled, she couldn't help herself. "I tell you what...you have yourself a grand time, and I promise, I won't tell a soul."

Megan smiled devilishly. "_We_ are going to have ourselves a grand time. If you want to talk about it, I'll lend an ear, but if not, that's cool. I intend to have some fun while I'm here...all work and no play makes Megan a dull girl."

Elizabeth shook her head. "Maybe you should have taken a single room."

"No, I won't be dragging anyone home, don't worry. I just want to have a good time."

Their conversation was interrupted when they heard the sound of the front door opening.

"Oh, that must be the people from Maine. Let's go meet them."

They wandered out to the living room, and introduced themselves to the two people standing there. They were Lisa and Paul, and looked to be in their early thirties. It was plain to see that they were an established couple; Paul had his arm wrapped around Lisa's shoulders, and she had hers tucked around his waist. They both seemed very nice and were very excited to be in South Carolina as well.

"Our driver is from the Basin, he just went back out to the car to grab some info for us," Lisa said. "Apparently, he's one of the head researchers for the Carbon study. Maybe tonight we can all get together and look over everything so we're prepared for tomorrow."

Elizabeth nodded enthusiastically. "Sounds great."

"Better yet, we can look over everything while we have an ice cold beer," Paul said. Everyone laughed. "I'll have to ask Jason where the closest liquor store is, hopefully it's within walking distance."

Elizabeth started when she heard the name of the driver, then she gave herself a mental shake. _What are the chances? There are a million Jasons in the world._

The sound of the front door opening again caught her attention, and she quickly glanced toward it as the driver walked in. The tall, blonde man looked up from the papers he carried in, and Elizabeth froze.

His blue eyes immediately locked on hers, and she felt her heart drop into her stomach.

"Hello Elizabeth."

* * *

><p><em>I know, I know...I'm sorry! You'll have to wait a week. Please leave reviews! I love to hear from you. Thanks!<em>


	32. Chapter 32

_One last chapter before I go on vacation...decided that leaving you hanging with Jason at the door was not very nice! I fully expected the anger directed toward Will that I've read in the comments, and I appreciate the fact that readers are invested enough in the story that the characters' behavior gets you riled up! So keep those reviews coming! Have a great week._

* * *

><p><strong>Part 5<strong>

**Chapter 32**

_Days apart: 6_

"Hello Elizabeth."

It took Elizabeth several long seconds to wrap her mind around the fact that Jason Portman was standing in front of her. Even then, she couldn't get her voice to work. She was completely and utterly shocked. There was no doubt it was him, though; his blonde hair, his face, his eyes...nothing had changed. The most she could do was nod and produce a small smile, which probably looked a lot more like a grimace. Thankfully, Megan stepped forward to introduce herself.

"Hi, I'm Megan Turner," she said, offering her hand. "I work at WHOI."

"Oh yes, of course...it's nice to meet you." He shook her hand and proceeded to glance over the other three people in front of him, before letting his eyes wander back to Elizabeth again. "Everyone getting settled in okay?"

They all answered positively, saying how nice the house was. All of them, that is, except Elizabeth. She still couldn't find her voice, and was only able to nod mutely. Her heart was hammering away in her chest.

"Hey, is there a store nearby where we could get some food and beer?" Paul asked. "We wanted to take some time to look over all the paperwork and the maps tonight, and thought we'd have a cold one while we were at it."

"There's one just down the street, actually," Jason answered. "I could give you a lift there now, if you want."

Paul nodded. "Sounds great. What should we have for dinner?" he asked the group.

Megan spoke up. "Is there a grill here?"

"I believe there is, but let me check," Jason answered. He walked through the living room and opened the sliding doors that led to the deck. After disappearing for a moment, he came back in. "The gas grill looks fine, there's plenty of fuel in the tank."

"How about burgers?" Lisa suggested. They all agreed.

"Anyone want anything special to drink?"

"Beer is fine for me," Megan answered. "Want some money?"

"No, we'll figure it out when I get back. Elizabeth? Anything special?"

"No, any beer will do. I'm not picky."

"No tequila?" Jason asked quietly, only loud enough for Elizabeth to hear. She glanced at him and saw a small grin on his face. The expression on hers spoke volumes, and his grin quickly disappeared.

"Okay, so, we'll be back shortly," Jason said, as he and Paul headed out the door.

The minute they were gone, Elizabeth excused herself and went straight to her bedroom, closing the door. She sat on her bed with her head in her hands, shaking like a leaf.

_What the hell is going on? Why is he here? _This was certainly the last thing she wanted and needed. She thought back to what Paul had said. _'He's one of the head researchers for the Carbon study.' _One thing Elizabeth neglected to do, hadn't even _thought_ about doing, really, was to look into who her co-workers were going to be once she got to the Basin. Oh, how she wished she had. It wouldn't have changed her mind about coming, but she certainly would have been better prepared to face him.

A thought suddenly occurred to her. _Is this why I was chosen for this trip in the first place? Did he have something to do with me being__ here? _Her stomach turned at the thought. She wanted to be here on her own merits, not on the whim of an ex-boyfriend. If he was the catalyst behind her being here, she would be absolutely furious. She'd work twice as hard as everyone else, if that was the case. But why would he want to see her after all this time? What was the point?

_How dare he make that little comment about the tequila?_ What did he think, they'd share a laugh over it, like old friends? Unbelievable. Elizabeth felt the stirrings of anger deep in her gut. She thought about her immediate reaction when she saw him; she felt shock, and was certainly astounded that he was standing not five feet away from her, but other than that, she felt nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Megan as she entered their room, closing the door behind her. "Thomas should be here soon. You'll like him, he's like everyone's favorite grandpa. I hope he doesn't mind burgers for dinner."

"He could always call for takeout from somewhere if he does."

"True," Megan answered. She looked at Elizabeth for a long moment, then sat across from her on her own bed. "So, I take it you and Jason have met before?"

Elizabeth looked up at her sharply. "Why would you think that?"

Megan's eyebrows raised. "Oh, only because your eyes nearly fell out of your head when you saw him walk in. Anything you want to tell me?"

Elizabeth sighed. "Um, we went to college together. I was just surprised to see him, that's all. We...we lost touch, a long time ago. I didn't know he worked at the Basin."

Megan looked skeptical. "So, he's just an old college buddy?" She scrunched up her nose. "Not gonna fly."

"Well, that's all it was. I haven't seen or talked to him in years. He's just a friend..._was_ just a friend. Now he's...not really anything."

"Okay, if you say so...but consider yourself warned, Lisa said she's going to invite him to stay for dinner, she's hoping he'll fill us in on where we'll be working...I mean, the Basin is _huge_...they could stick us anywhere." She rose from her bed. "I'm going to help her take inventory of what the house has. Want to come help?"

"Can you give me a few minutes?"

"Sure, take your time," Megan answered. She walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

Elizabeth deflated even further at the knowledge that she may have to sit through a meal with Jason. _There goes my appetite._ As quickly as that thought entered her head, it was pushed away. She vowed, right then, that he would not ruin the time she spent at the Basin. She would deal with him, be civil to him even, but that was it. She came here to work, to take advantage of a great opportunity. Little did she know, when she had first learned about the trip, that she would be using it to help take her mind off of Will as well.

_Will._ His face floated through her mind, making her sigh. She hadn't even thought about him in the past half hour, not since Jason had walked through the door. _Well, there's that to be grateful for!_ Now that he had entered her mind, though, she found herself wondering what he was doing. Did he leave for California today, as he had planned to? Was he as miserable as she was? Did he miss her?

She shook her head, determined to force him from her mind. Obviously, he _wasn't_ miserable, and he _didn't_ miss her, or he would have called. He would have driven back to the Cape, showed up at her house, run up her stairs, pulled her into his arms and told her how sorry he was and how much he loved her, how he couldn't live without her. _Right? Right._

From Will, her thoughts skipped to Georgie, and she wondered how she was doing. She wasn't upset that she hadn't heard from her, honestly; she knew, in her gut, that they would talk eventually, and things would be fine. Elizabeth was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. Who knew what her brother had said to her, what he had told her?

Georgie's second interview was this week, and Elizabeth wanted to wish her luck, wanted to talk to her, but kept putting off calling her. Matt was supposed to visit this past weekend, and Elizabeth was curious about that too; Georgie had been so excited about it. She decided to send her a text, but only about the interview.

_Hello Georgie...not sure when your interview is this week, but wanted to wish you good luck, or say that I hope it went well, whichever is appropriate. Hope you are well._

She was tempted to text more, to ask questions about Will, about what was going on, if she had any information to share, if he was okay...but she stopped there, and didn't add anything else. Next, she texted Jane, as she promised she would when she arrived.

_I'm here Jane! I'll call you later if I can, we're doing some reviewing tonight. Hope all is well with you and Charles. Xoxo Love you._

She hoped that Jane and Charles were okay. As much as Jane denied it, she knew that they had argued a little bit over the weekend. Jane, being the selfless sister that she was, insisted that it was nothing, but Elizabeth knew better. She only hoped that her own problems with Will wouldn't cause problems for them. It could easily happen, and Elizabeth would feel horrible if it did.

Her phone chimed, and she looked down to read the message. It was from Georgiana.

_Hi Lizzy...so happy to hear from you. My interview is tomorrow, I'll be in touch. _

A huge wave of relief swept over Elizabeth, something she didn't expect.

She was distracted from her thoughts by the sounds of the front door slamming and more voices coming from the living room. After checking her appearance in the mirror, making sure she didn't look as horrible as she felt, she took a deep breath, steadying her nerves, and walked out to face Jason once again.

* * *

><p>After about an hour of walking through the streets of L.A., Will had decided he'd had enough. He couldn't very well go storming out of the room every time someone mentioned Elizabeth's name, could he? He'd just have to tell Richard that any conversation about Elizabeth was completely off limits.<p>

He strolled back into the lobby of the hotel and headed to the elevators. When he entered their suite, Richard was standing in front of the huge windows, talking on his cell phone, his free hand running through his hair. He turned when he heard Will enter. After a moment, he ended his call.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt," Will said flatly.

"You didn't, we were done talking anyway."

"Lauren?"

"Yes. Um, you'll be happy to know she started her new job today."

Will nodded. "Good."

He didn't want to get into another heavy discussion about work or Lauren or anything else at the moment. Exhaustion was claiming him rapidly, and he was famished. He hadn't eaten since breakfast, which this morning was a cup of coffee and a piece of toast. He'd had a snack on the plane, but turned down the lunch they offered; airplane food never agreed with him. It was now almost two o'clock in California, but his body was still on east coast time, believing it to be closer to five, and his stomach was keeping up a steady grumble.

"You hungry?" he asked Richard.

Richard shrugged. "I could eat."

"I know it's...well, early, I guess, for dinner...but my stomach isn't on west coast time yet."

"Lets go down to the restaurant, I'm sure we can get something."

Will nodded. Things didn't feel quite right between them; there was tension in the air, and Will knew that without further conversation, it would remain. So be it, for now; they'd talk tomorrow.

The restaurant was practically empty, and once situated at the bar, Will ordered beers for both of them and asked for a menu. They decided on a couple of appetizers, and planned to go for a real dinner somewhere later. He sat hunched over, both hands fiddling with the bottle in front of him, staring down at it as if in a daze.

"Is this the wonderful company I have to look forward to for the next five days?" Richard asked out of the blue.

Will didn't bat an eyelash. "This is the wonderful company you have to look forward to for at least the rest of the day." He sat up, straightening his back, and took a long sip from his beer. He cleared his throat. "Its been a long day, and an even longer week so far...I just need some sleep, that's all."

Richard, knowing that he'd probably be provoking his cousin, carefully worded his next statement. "I'm assuming your lack of sleep has everything to do with Elizabeth, but nothing to do with sex."

Will looked at him sharply. "Richard-"

"I know you asked me to leave it alone...and I will, if you just answer one question for me."

"What?" Will grunted.

"Did you two split up?"

Will didn't answer right away, and was horrified when tears blurred his vision. To stall for a moment, he lifted his beer again, taking another long drink. He set the empty bottle back on the bar, waving at the bartender to indicate his desire for a second one. Finally, he cleared his throat, and was able to utter one word.

"Yes." _Why does it hurt so much to say that one little word?_ It was almost as if the past six days had only existed within him, within his mind, but with Richard's question, everything became a part of reality. The entire nightmare became real.

Richard sighed. "Okay. You won't hear another word from me about her...but if you want to talk about it, just let me know."

Will nodded, his eyes avoiding Richard's at all costs. He watched as the bartender dug into the cooler behind the bar, producing beer number two. During the silence, his mind drifted to Elizabeth, and he wondered if she was already down in South Carolina, getting ready to explore the Basin. She had been so ecstatic about going, and he had been excited for her. _It's the chance of a lifetime_, she had said. He couldn't help but wonder if she was thinking about him at all.

As much as he didn't want to admit it, he had to call her, it was the right thing to do. He knew it, couldn't avoid it, wouldn't be able to escape it. And he would, he would call her. Once he got back from California, he would. For now, over the next few days, he would use the time to think, to figure out a way to approach her. His concern wasn't really what he would say; he was worried about what _she_ would say. _What will be her response?_ _Will she admit it, and confirm my worst fears? What could she possibly say to explain those pictures?_ Nothing, he decided. She didn't need to say anything to explain them. They were self-explanatory.

_Every picture tells a story._

* * *

><p>"Who's cooking?"<p>

Elizabeth immediately volunteered. "I will."

Thomas had arrived at the house just as Jason and Paul returned from the grocery store. He offered to help.

"No, I'll be fine. You get settled, I can handle a few burgers. Thanks Thomas."

Megan was right, he was very grandfatherly. To Elizabeth, though, he actually reminded her of her Uncle Ed. Granted, Thomas was older than him, but their personalities were similar. She could instantly see that she would like him and would enjoy working with him.

She stepped into the kitchen to unwrap the burgers, placing them on a platter that she found in one of the cabinets. The grill was already warming, so all she needed was some cheese and something to flip the burgers with. As she dug around in the drawers, looking for a spatula or tongs, Jason walked in.

"I'd be happy to help with dinner."

Without turning face him, or stopping what she was doing, she answered quietly. "No thanks."

"I'd really like to talk to you."

She shook her head, and the anger she felt earlier came rushing back into her body, making her hands shake. She suppressed it, determined not to let this whole set of bizarre circumstances get to her. Turning to face him, she pursed her lips. "I'd rather not, if it's all the same to you."

His eyebrows rose. "You know, we will have to talk to each other at some point...you're here for two weeks, and I'm the lead researcher on this project."

"I'm completely and painfully aware of that, believe me. When we need to talk about something related to the project, you can be assured that I will be a consummate professional. Other than that, don't expect much conversation from me."

She walked out of the kitchen with the burgers, through the living room and out onto the deck. It was gorgeous out, but the humidity was oppressive. Her head was beginning to pound, and as she stood in front of the grill, she closed her eyes for a brief moment and took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure. Somewhere, somehow, she was going to have to dig deep and find the strength to play the cards she'd been dealt in the last week.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the slider opening. Without looking, she knew exactly who it would be. She lifted the lid on the grill and began to lay out the burgers. Once finished, she lowered the lid, but didn't turn around.

"Elizabeth."

She turned around to face him, feeling exasperated. "What, Jason? What could you possibly have to say to me?"

"I just wanted to...see how you are. How you've been."

Her mouth dropped open and she gave a short laugh. "_Really_?" There was no suppressing her anger now, the best she could do was try to keep her voice down. "Pardon my French, but are you fucking serious?"

He suddenly looked unsure of himself. "Yes...really."

"Don't you think you're a day late and a dollar short? I mean, when I wanted to talk to _you_...oh, six, almost seven years ago...you were nowhere to be found!" She couldn't keep the sarcasm from her voice. "Now, you just want to chat me up? See what's new?"

He stared at her silently.

She shook her head, almost talking to herself. "This is unbelievable. Unreal." The thought entered her mind, again, that he was the reason she was there in South Carolina. She had to know, _needed_ to know, if he was behind it. "Tell me one thing, and I want the truth. Did you ask the Reserve to send me on this trip?"

"No."

"No?"

"No, I didn't. Collins recommended you."

"I was told by Bill that the project leaders asked for me. You're one of the leaders."

"I didn't ask for you. You'd have to ask Bill who asked for you specifically. As far as I know, it was all based on his recommendations."

"Did you know I worked at the Reserve in Woods Hole?"

He nodded silently.

"Yet you say you have nothing to do with me being here?"

"I swear to you, I don't. Collins recommended you, and I – along with other members of the team – agreed to his recommendation. That's all."

That struck Elizabeth as odd. She'd have to talk to Bill about it more when she got back to the Cape. "How did you know I worked at the Reserve?"

He rolled his eyes. "It wasn't hard to figure out, El."

"Don't call me that." Her eyes blazed at him.

"Okay." He nodded his head once and paused for a moment. "It wasn't hard to figure out. I mean, you were determined to stay on the Cape, I knew you'd end up there. I've been following your work since you were named Project Manager, overseeing that massive grant. Then, when they transferred you to the Carbon project, I knew there was a chance you'd be heading down here."

Elizabeth turned her back on him again to open the lid of the grill and flip the burgers. She closed it again, and began peeling apart slices of cheddar cheese. "Why didn't you ignore Bill's recommendation? Why didn't you ask for someone else?"

"Well, obviously, Bill would have wondered why. You know how it works...if someone is recommended, you take them. A recommendation in the Reserve is as good as saying you're the best."

She said nothing for a while, keeping her back to him, staring off into the small backyard.

"I have a lot of things I'd like to say to you," Jason said quietly. He stared at her back as he waited for a response, and the silence stretched out.

Finally, she spoke. "That's unfortunate, because I don't want to hear anything you have to say." She turned to face him. "You had your chance to speak to me, a long time ago, and you chose not to."

His eyes dropped down to the deck. "I just want to apologize."

"I don't want your apology. I did, once upon a time, but I don't now. I'm not the person that you left behind six years ago, Jason." Her voice was firm, strong. "That girl...the one that looked for you, called you, cried over you...she doesn't even exist anymore. I'm certainly not going to reincarnate her just to soothe you and your conscience."

He looked shocked at her words, but said nothing.

"While I'm here, our conversations will be about work. If we're not talking about work, we're not talking. Plain and simple."

Nodding slightly, he finally responded. "Okay. I understand, I get it."

"And Jason? Don't call me El. Ever. It's Elizabeth."

* * *

><p>The rest of the evening was surprisingly uneventful. Elizabeth was still very uncomfortable with Jason being there, but she really couldn't do much about it. It's not like she wanted to broadcast her business to her housemates. He didn't try to strike up a private conversation with her at all, which was just how she wanted it. Throughout dinner, everyone talked about the Basin and their excitement continued to build. Over the next few days, they would be driven to their research sites, and would begin to learn the area they'd be working in.<p>

Paul and Lisa were very likable, but watching them be so easily affectionate with each other throughout the evening filled Elizabeth with a sense of longing. They weren't clingy or annoying, they were very easy and comfortable, and were usually touching in some way; hands would be held, or Paul would drape his arm around the back of Lisa's chair, lightly touching her shoulder, or Lisa would rest her hand on his knee.

Elizabeth couldn't help it, it made her think of Will, and the way he would rest his hand around the nape of her neck, sometimes – most of the time – twisting her hair around his fingers. Other times he would just softly caress her skin there, before letting his hand trace her spine, all the way down to the small of her back, then back up to her neck again. Thinking about it even now made her shiver, the recollection so strong she could almost feel his fingertips gliding across her skin.

Something else had become unbearable as well; listening to the radio. Every damn song was either one she had heard him sing, or one whose lyrics seemed to speak directly to her. When they finally found a radio station that came in without crackles and static, it started playing James Taylor. Granted, it wasn't the song that Will sang to her on her birthday, but it didn't matter! Any song by James Taylor now made her think of Will Darcy.

She hadn't touched her iPod in a week since before that last disastrous softball game. Will had managed, at some point during the past few weeks, to get hold of it, and had loaded it with songs for her. Songs that they had danced to, songs that he had sang to her, or songs, he had said at the time, "that just make me think of you." Of course, the reverse was true; all those songs made her think of him as well...watching him play his guitar...watching his fingers as they plucked the strings, coaxing the music out...yes, that iPod was a sure way of conjuring up images and memories she'd just as soon forget.

* * *

><p><em>Days Apart: 7<em>

Georgiana walked out of her interview on Thursday morning with a huge smile on her face. She hopped in her car and started the engine, turning on the air conditioning before taking her cell phone from her pocketbook. She quickly dialed Matt's cell number, and felt slightly deflated when it went to his voice mail.

"Hi, it's me. Call me as soon as you can! Bye."

She couldn't call Will yet, it was only six-thirty in the morning in California. She decided to text Elizabeth. What she really wanted to do was call her, but she knew she was in South Carolina, and was probably in the middle of some marsh or something at the moment.

She was thrilled and relieved to get a text from her yesterday. As she typed in her message, though, she felt slightly like she was going behind Will's back. _Oh well_, she thought. _He won't tell me what's going on. _She quickly typed in a message.

_Hey! I got the job! They offered it to me this morning. I'm so excited! I know you're working now, I'll try to call you later._

She bit her lip, wondering what else she should say.

_I hope you're doing okay. I miss you._

She decided to leave it at that. Hopefully, she'd be able to reach her later and the two women would be able to talk. The questions about Will would be inevitable; Elizabeth would have some, but Georgiana had some of her own as well. She was tired of being in the dark.

Her next phone call was to Mrs. Reynolds. Georgiana laughed at Mrs. R's exclamations of delight and pride over her news. They talked for a few minutes, and when Mrs. R asked about Elizabeth and Will, she blatantly lied, telling her that they were fine, and that both were traveling to different parts of the country at the moment on business.

"You're brother seems to have finally found someone that makes him happy," Mrs. Reynolds said. "I don't think I've ever seen him looking so ardently in love as he did when you all came by for a visit. She seems to feel the same, don't you think?"

Georgiana tried to disguise her sadness. "Yes, I think she does."

"What a handsome couple, too. She's quite pretty, and we all know that your brother is the most handsome man in Boston."

Georgiana felt a smile lift her lips; in Mrs. Reynolds' eyes, everyone paled in comparison to Will. "Well, maybe the _second_ most handsome man."

"Ohh?" Mrs. R asked. "It sounds as though you have an opinion on who the most handsome man is? Care to share with me?"

Georgiana felt herself blush. "Remember Matthew Evans? He's Julie's older brother. You've met him before."

"I do recall him, though it's been a while. What about this Matthew?"

"Well, we're sort of dating. No, not sort of, we _are_ dating."

"Oh, Georgie, that's lovely. He's a nice young man, I hope?"

"He's very nice. I've known him for such a long time, I've always had a crush on him. I guess he's had a crush on me for a while too...it just took some time for us to get our acts together."

"Well, I'm very happy for you dear. The next time you're in Boston, you bring him around to visit."

Georgiana smiled widely. "I will. I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

"Okay. Bye now."

"Bye Mrs. R."

Georgiana pulled out of the parking lot of the school administration building, heading back toward New Seabury. Her phone rang when she was almost home, and she answered it quickly when she saw it was Matt.

"Hi!"

"Hi, what's up? How was the interview?"

"I got the job!"

"Oh, that's great! I knew this interview was a formality. That's fantastic, Georgie. Congratulations."

"Thanks. You're right, it was just a formality. They offered it to me right away, I was only there for thirty minutes or so."

"What are you going to do to celebrate?"

She sighed. "Nothing, really. I guess I'll just hit the beach today, it's beautiful out."

"You deserve it. I wish I could hit the beach with you."

"Maybe this weekend?"

"_Definitely_ this weekend. No maybes."

"Do you mind driving here again? I know what the traffic is like coming on Cape on the weekends."

"The traffic sucks, true, but it's not much of a hardship to spend the weekend on the Cape, believe me. Especially since I get to spend it with you."

She smiled. "Do you want to come tomorrow night? You could stay, again...if you wanted to. I mean, I don't know if you had anything else planned for the weekend."

"I have nothing else planned, and I would love to stay again. I'll be there tomorrow night, for sure."

"Okay."

"I'll call you tonight. I have to get back to work though, I've been standing in the mens room while I've been talking to you...people are going to start wondering if something is wrong with me!"

Georgiana laughed. "Get back to work. I'll talk to you later."

"You will. Bye Georgie."

"Bye Matt."

* * *

><p>"What do you mean, you're going to New York?"<p>

George rolled his eyes. "I mean I'm _going to __New York_. Just what I said."

"For how long?" Lydia asked.

It was Thursday, and they were sprawled together on George's bed at Bill's house, stark naked. It was nearing noon, and they had been there since nine o'clock in the morning.

"For good. I got a job there working for Conde Nast. They have a small upstart magazine that they're giving a lot of attention to, and I've been approached to be a staff photographer for them."

"For good? What kind of magazine?" Lydia climbed over George, straddling his hips.

"A...fashion magazine. I'll be shooting some fashion shows, models...things I used to do before I took that stupid fucking assignment with Boston Magazine. I'm tired of taking pictures of pretty places; my talent is better served taking pictures of pretty women. As you well know." He smirked at her, thrusting his hips up slightly.

Lydia frowned. "What's going to happen to us?"

George's eyebrows rose. "Us?"

"Yes, _us_," she replied, obviously annoyed. "Will you come back to the Cape to visit? Or can I go visit you in New York? I'd love to see New York City, I've never been there. Times Square, Central Park...oh, we could have so much fun!"

"Sure, babe, you come visit me whenever you want. I probably won't have time to get back to the Cape, though, with the new job and all."

Lydia leaned forward, rubbing her hands over his chest. He reached up to return the favor, and she felt him start to stiffen beneath her. "When do you leave?"

"Sunday."

Her eyes flew open, and she pushed his hands away from her breasts. "Sunday? _This_ Sunday?"

"Yes. I'm sorry, I only just found out."

"Why do you have to go so soon?" she whined.

He rested his hands on her thighs and shrugged. "They wanted me there today, but I said no," he lied. _Might as well make it sound good._ "I told them I had to have a little time to say goodbye to my lady, I couldn't just pack up and go on a moment's notice."

Lydia pushed her lower lip out. "I can't believe you're leaving."

"But you'll come to visit me soon, right? I'll get settled, get an apartment. I'll be staying at a hotel for a little bit at first, they're paying for it, and paying my moving expenses. I should be able to find something pretty quickly. As soon as I'm all moved in to my own place, I'll let you know."

"Okay," she said on a sigh. "I can't believe we only have three nights left together. I have tonight and tomorrow night off, and I'm definitely calling in sick on Saturday night." She slowly began grinding herself against him. "I want to get my fill of you."

George smiled up at her. "Oh, you'll get your fill, alright."

* * *

><p>It was almost eight o'clock in the morning when Will's cell phone began to ring. Dressed in running shorts and a white muscle shirt, his body was soaked with sweat. He had just returned to the suite after a long, punishing workout in the gym. After a six mile run on the treadmill, he had used every single Nautilus machine – twice – then topped it off with a half hour on the elliptical machine. If he kept up this pace, he wouldn't have an ounce of fat on him in another week. He wiped the sweat from his face and picked up his phone. It was Georgiana.<p>

"Hi Georgie,"

"Hi Will. I didn't wake you, did I?"

"No, I've been up for a while. What's up?"

"I got the job!" Her excitement was obvious. "I found out almost two hours ago, but I was afraid to call you so early."

He smiled, genuinely thrilled for her. "That's great, Georgie, it really is. I knew you'd impress them."

"Thanks Will." She paused for a moment. "How are you?"

He cleared his throat. "I'm fine. Richard and I are going to one of the building sites today. I had originally thought we'd stay in L.A. over the weekend and see the second site on Monday, but I'm starting to rethink that plan. I think we'll squeeze in the second site tomorrow."

"Oh…so when will you be back?"

Will sighed while he poured himself a glass of orange juice. "I don't know. I'm going to San Francisco with Richard when I leave here…I've been thinking of making the rounds, so to speak…I don't get out to the other RJD offices nearly enough. I'm long overdue for some visits."

Georgiana was silent for a moment. "When you get back, are you going to stay in Boston, or will you come home?"

Will didn't answer right away. _Where will I go? Where is home now?_ "I don't know, Georgie. I guess I'll make that decision when I land at Logan."

She was surprised at his answer. "Oh…okay. Um, so…how are you?"

He sipped his juice. "You already asked me that."

"Yes, and you gave me your itinerary."

"No, I told you I was fine, and I am. I'm absolutely fine."

Georgiana sighed. "Can I say something? Maybe it's none of my business – no, I take that back, it _is_ my business – but you are _not_ fine. Whatever happened between you and Elizabeth has obviously messed you up completely. I wish you would talk to me about it."

"I told you everything I can at the moment. We'll talk more when I get back, okay?"

"No, Will, it's _not_ okay. You're not being fair, don't you see it? You don't want me to talk to Elizabeth, yet you won't tell me why."

"You just have to trust me." His voice was starting to rise.

She sighed. "I do, you know I do. The thing is…Elizabeth has never been anything other than a wonderful, supportive friend to me. If you can't tell me anything, or _won't_ tell me anything, then I have to make my own decisions about her."

"Georgiana, listen—"

"No, _you_ listen! I haven't talked to her in almost a week, Will! I feel horrible. I won't turn my back on her like you did."

The silence was deafening. When Will spoke, his tone was cool. "I did what I had to do. Do you think this is easy for me? Do you think this isn't killing me?" He took several deep breaths, trying to get a grip on his feelings. "This is tearing me apart, Georgiana. Do you…do you think I would just walk away from her, give her up, for no reason?"

His voice had quieted to nearly a whisper, and tears came to Georgiana's eyes. She could hear the pain in his voice, and it tugged at her heart, but she was resolved in her decision. "No, I don't think you would. At least, I hope you wouldn't. But if you can't share that reason with me, if you can't open yourself up to me, then I have to do what I think is right. Until you're able to give me a reason why she shouldn't be a part of my life anymore, then she _will_ continue to be a part of my life. I'm sorry if that upsets you or hurts you, Will, I really am."

Will swallowed thickly. "No…don't apologize. You're right…you're right. It's not fair of me." He was nodding while he spoke, his voice hoarse. "Just...just do me a favor, okay? I don't want to know how she is, or...or what she's doing. I don't want you to talk about her to me, at all."

"Okay."

"Okay," he said quietly. "I really should go...I have to get in the shower, Richard and I need to leave soon, and I'm all sweaty from working out. I'll call you, later." He paused. "I'm really happy about the job, Georgie. It's great news, I'll let Richard know."

"Thanks, Will." She felt like there was still so much more to say, but she didn't know where to start. If only he would just talk to her, she might be able to help. "You know you can call me whenever, right? If you want to talk?"

"I know. Thanks."

"Okay. Bye, Will. I love you."

"I love you too Georgie. Bye."

Will hung up his phone and stared down into the near-empty glass of orange juice. Without thinking, he turned and hurled the glass with all his strength up against one of the walls of the suite. It exploded, breaking into small pieces that littered the floor. Tiny streams of juice ran down the wall.

Richard came out of his bedroom, wet from the shower, holding a towel around his waist.

"What the hell was that?"

Will didn't miss a beat. "I broke a glass. Sorry."

Richard glanced toward the wall, saw the mess there, and shook his head. "Whatever this is, whatever is going on...smashing shit won't help. Figure out another way to vent, but don't do it like that. It won't do you any good, you'll just end up feeling worse."

"Fuck off, Richard. I don't need your half-assed therapy."

Richard's eyebrows rose. "Okay, fine. You're on your own." He turned and walked back into his room, closing the door firmly.

Will wandered over to the couch and sat in silence for a few moments. He felt like an idiot, a toddler throwing a full-blown temper tantrum. _I seem to feel that way a lot lately_.

He used the hotel phone to call the desk, asking for a broom and a dustpan, explaining that he had broken a glass and wanted to sweep up the shards. While he waited for housekeeping, he retrieved a hand towel from the bathroom, soaked it in warm water, and began to wipe up the juice that was now making the wall sticky. Ten minutes later there was a knock at the door. The woman from housekeeping offered to come in and sweep, but Will refused.

"It's very nice of you, but I'll do it myself. I don't want you to cut yourself or anything. I'll just leave the broom and the dustpan outside the door when I'm done."

The woman nodded politely and left him to his cleaning. He carefully kneeled on the floor, sweeping the glass that he could see into a small pile. He supposed he should have asked for a vacuum as well; there were bound to be shards in the carpet too.

A thought came to him, then, from out of the blue, and he had to bite back a self-deprecating laugh. How ironic it was that the original shape and form of the glass were completely gone, destroyed into a million little jagged bits, unable to be put back together again. Completely shattered. Just like his heart.

* * *

><p>After a long day touring the eastern-most points of the Basin, the group of five housemates was enjoying the slight breeze and the waning sunlight from the deck. At around eight o'clock, Elizabeth's cell phone rang. She was happy to see that it was Georgie, and for a split second, reminded herself that she needed to call Jane. She rose from her chair and walked out into the middle of the backyard, turning her back to the deck in order to keep their conversation private.<p>

"Hello?"

"Hi Elizabeth, it's Georgie."

Elizabeth could hear the hesitation in Georgiana's voice. "I know it's you. How are you?"

"I'm well. Are you...are you okay?"

Elizabeth mentally steeled herself. She had no idea what Will had said to Georgiana, or even if he'd said anything at all, so she wasn't sure where this conversation was going to go, and it put her a little on guard. "I'm fine, Georgie. I really am." _Not. _"I got your message this morning. Congratulations! That's fabulous, I'm so happy for you!" She was truly thrilled for Georgiana; she didn't have to pretend about this.

"Thanks. I'm so excited, and relieved! I can't believe I'll be back in the classroom in a couple of months. I'm already looking forward to it."

"Well, now you can enjoy the rest of your summer without worrying about finding a job."

"I know, it's a huge relief."

The conversation lagged for a few seconds, until Georgiana spoke again. "Oh, so, how are things going in South Carolina? You must be so hot!"

"Oh, it's _unbelievably_ hot down here. Humid. We spent the day doing some sightseeing out on the Basin, and I think we're doing the same tomorrow, although I think we'll be shown our research sites too. I can't wait to do some more exploring."

Georgiana was surprised at the normalcy in Elizabeth's tone; it threw her for a loop, actually. She sounded upbeat, excited...normal. Was it just a show, or was she really as happy as she sounded?

"That sounds exciting," Georgiana replied. "How have you been feeling? The concussion and all; is that better?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes. "Yes, it's getting better. I still have an occasional headache, but I know I'm overdoing it. I'm still supposed to be resting as much as possible. As a matter of fact, I'll probably go to bed early tonight."

"Oh, well that's good. Good."

"How was your weekend with Matt? Did he come to visit?"

"He did! It was fantastic. We went to the beach, went out to dinner, and then the next day we went to the beach again, and I took him out to Heritage Plantation."

"Hmm. So he stayed, did he?" The more they talked, the more Elizabeth began to relax. Their easy banter began to fall back into place. "Anything you care to divulge?"

"No...but only because there isn't anything to divulge! He stayed in the guest room, of course. We had such a great time, though...he's so sweet. And hot! God, he looked great in his board shorts."

Elizabeth laughed, and for a moment, she pictured Will in his navy blue bathing suit. She gave a soft sigh. "Well, I'm glad you had fun. When are you going to see him again?"

"He's coming this weekend, but this time on Friday. I can't wait to see him already."

A twinge of sadness struck Elizabeth. The sheer anticipation of seeing Will was almost always as good as the moment that she was finally able to lay her eyes on him...that build-up, that excitement of knowing that you would be together again soon was a heady feeling. She missed it.

"I'm happy for you." She didn't want to ask, but knew that she had to. The question was there, hovering around them, waiting to be put into words. "Have you talked to Will lately? Is he okay?" she asked softly. Her stomach filled with butterflies as she spoke the words.

Georgiana was unsure of how much to say. Will had said that he didn't want to hear anything about Elizabeth, but he didn't say that Elizabeth couldn't hear things about _him_.

"I've only talked to him a few times since last Thursday, he's out in California right now. He...he says he's okay, but I don't think he is."

"Do you know...can you tell me-"

"Lizzy, I don't know anything, and believe me, I wish I did. I wish he would talk to me, talk to you...I just don't know what to do for him. He's miserable, it's obvious. You don't...you have no idea why he's acting like this?"

"I don't. I swear to you, Georgie...one minute he was with me in the hospital, the next he was gone. I just don't know...and as much as I love him, and you know how much I do...I can't put my life on hold to find out. He said he couldn't talk to me, _not now_...so what does that mean? If not now, when? Am I supposed to wait until he's ready? It's not fair, it's totally unfair." Her eyes began to fill with tears, and she berated herself for allowing her anger to give way to self-pity once again. As she turned to glance toward the deck, she noticed Jason standing not ten feet away from her. _Where the hell did he come from? _She turned her back on him and walked away, and when she glanced behind her, she was relieved to see he was walking back toward the deck.

"I don't think it's fair either, Lizzy. To you, especially. He loves you, I know he does. I wish I had some answers for you. I'm so sorry."

"You have nothing to apologize for, so please don't-"

Georgiana interrupted. "I _do_ need to apologize, Lizzy...I should have called you sooner. I don't know why I waited. I guess I was confused, but...it's no excuse. I feel terrible about it...about Will...I wish I had more to tell you. I think that's part of the reason I didn't want to call, I feel helpless. I really am sorry, Lizzy."

"Georgie...if this is something that can be worked out, we'll work it out. It's not for you to worry about, okay? God only knows I _want_ it to work...I love Will so much, you know I do, but he's making it a long-shot...every day that passes makes it that much harder. We can't work on whatever the problem is if he won't even talk to me about it."

"I know. All I can hope is that he sees what a stubborn fool he's being."

Elizabeth smiled sadly into the phone. "I hope for that too."

They ended the conversation, and Elizabeth promised to call Georgie on Sunday night.

That night, while laying in bed, Elizabeth thought about what she had said to Georgie. _Your brother is making it a long-shot...every day that passes makes it that much harder. _The reality was this; the brick wall around Elizabeth's heart that Will had painstakingly dismantled, brick by brick, over the past two months, was slowly being rebuilt. Every day that passed that she didn't hear from him was a day that another brick was added to the wall.

* * *

><p><em>There! Everyone satisfied at how Elizabeth handled Jason? She won't have much tolerance for him, obviously. Please leave me a review, I love to hear what you're thinking. Next posting is set for Saturday. Thanks!<em>


	33. Chapter 33

_Back from vacation, although it wasn't much of one, I must say. A medical crisis in the family took precedence, so I've been back and forth to Boston quite a bit this week. I will try to stay to a regular posting schedule, but please forgive me if it becomes erratic! I'll do what I can. Thanks for continuing to read, and please leave reviews! I love to know what you're thinking. ~Cat_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 33<strong>

_Days apart: 10_

Will found himself once again in first class, headed back to Massachusetts, back to his home. He had found that a change in scenery did not do a damn thing as far as altering his mental state. In fact, it had only made it worse.

Richard kept his word on both issues that they had discussed; one, that he would talk to Lauren about leaving the company when she went on maternity leave; and two, that he would _not_ bring up Elizabeth in conversation.

The two men traveled back to San Francisco on Saturday, and had discussed at length what they needed to do to get back on track with establishing FRD Design. Will realized, while talking in-depth with Richard, that as long as the situation with Lauren was resolved, he would rely on Richard as much as he always did with business matters. Richard had a good business head on his shoulders; Will was not making light of Richard's poor decision regarding Lauren, but also knew that he wouldn't let that one decision affect their working relationship. Richard had let his emotional situation with Lauren influence him, but Will believed that Richard now clearly understood what the consequences would be if he did so again.

Richard had invited Will to stay overnight at the condo he shared with Lauren, but Will declined; he wouldn't have been comfortable at all. He did go over for a visit in the afternoon, and noticed right away that Lauren seemed much more relaxed than she did in Boston. _I'm on her turf now_, he realized.

Richard, thankfully, didn't beat around the bush, and told Lauren that they all needed to discuss a few things. Lauren didn't look surprised, and Will figured that Richard had probably told her at least a little of what they had already discussed, and what Will's expectations were.

Will was very surprised to hear that Lauren had completely agreed with his suggestion. She and Richard had both apologized for putting Will in that situation to begin with, and for unintentionally causing friction between the cousins. Richard went a step further, acknowledging that he had put his cousin in a very difficult situation, both personally and professionally.

In a very straightforward manner, Lauren assured Will that she had no ulterior motives; her feelings for Richard were real, and she would do whatever it took to smooth things over for them. She had looked at Richard then, and Will could see it, what Elizabeth had said she could see that night in Boston. Lauren loved Richard, and really just wanted him, and nothing else. She seemed happy. Granted, Will couldn't really know for sure, it's not like he knew her that well, but...she _looked_ happy. Richard _was_ happy, ecstatic even; he looked like he was floating on air, was obviously smitten, and was thrilled that they were having a child.

They had decided to go out to dinner that night, and Richard had suggested calling Anne to join them. At first Will was hesitant, but then he figured it couldn't hurt. The dinner served two purposes, the first being that they were celebrating the purchase of the two buildings in L.A. that were sure to bring RJD a healthy income. The second purpose for the dinner was for Will to get to know Lauren a little better, without all the talk of jobs and work.

Anne met them at the restaurant, and her natural exuberance had made Will smile, at least a little. Well, at first it did anyway, until talk turned to Elizabeth.

"Don't let my mother find out we're here together," she had joked to him, "it looks suspiciously like a double date."

"Oh, don't worry, she won't hear it from me," Will had replied, frowning slightly. "And believe me, the last thing you want to do is get me started on your mother."

Anne grimaced. "I know. I'm sorry about all that...I managed to get it out of her, what she said to Elizabeth, and I know she was awful. I let her have it, believe me...although I don't know how much good it did. That's why I didn't tell her I was meeting the three of you tonight, she would have called the press!" She shook her head. "Speaking of dating, how's Elizabeth doing? It really was nice to meet her in Boston."

Richard cleared his throat and was about to say something when Will interrupted him.

"She's down in, um, South Carolina for work. For a couple of weeks."

"Ohhhh, I see. She needed a break from you already, huh?" She laughed at her own joke, but when no one at the table reacted the same way, she stopped. Her brows furrowed slightly, and Will could see her trying to read his expression, so he smiled at her. A big, fake, toothy smile.

She shrugged slightly. "Well, tell her I said hello when you talk to her."

"I will. I'll do that." Thankfully, the rest of the meal was uneventful, and he was grateful to return to his hotel.

As he flew home on Sunday, he realized that seeing Richard and Lauren together fueled a whole other emotion within him; sadness. His anger over this entire situation was slowly morphing into something else, but he wasn't sure what. _Is it grief?_ He missed Elizabeth, that he could easily admit. He missed everything about her, _every single damn thing_. He still loved her, so much...he knew it would be a long time before that would change. It was intense, how much he felt for her, even though their time together had been brief.

Not seeing her all this time, not speaking to her...it was hard to explain how it made him feel. It was a physical ache, a gnawing sensation in the pit of his stomach, and it wasn't getting better. Oh, definitely not. It was getting worse, by the day, by the hour, by the minute.

He thought back to his conversation with Charles. _Why are you giving everything up? _Charles had asked him that, and Will repeating the reasons over and over in his head. _It was__ Wickham. He was in her bed. She kept the pictures._ His mind had repeatedly tried to figure out a scenario in which those pictures had been...set up, as the ones with Georgie had, and he just couldn't see it. If Wickham's desire was to make it obvious that it was Elizabeth, and use those pictures to harm her, as he had with Georgie, he would have had her face showing clearly. No, these photos weren't meant to blackmail or deceive. God, how he wished it would have been any other man in those fucking pictures. Anyone! _Why did it have to be Wickham?_

Memories of the first morning they made love came tumbling into his mind, and he closed his eyes and sighed deeply, allowing his mind to replay the entire experience. She had been so sweet, so beautiful, so giving and trusting of him. He remembered taking out her camera, and how he had frozen with disgust when he thought she would think poorly of him. She never did, though; she allowed him to take those beautiful pictures, still his favorites of all the pictures he had of her. Three days later, they had confessed their love to each other.

Now look at where they were. By _his_ choice, they were apart; he wouldn't talk to her, wouldn't communicate in any way. Charles' voice boomed back through his head.

_Why are you giving everything up?_

* * *

><p>By Saturday afternoon, Elizabeth was exhausted, but excited. The past few days had been filled with tours of the Basin, thankfully led by Scott. Their team had spent most of the day Thursday with Jason, but he had maintained distance from her, only speaking to her when it concerned work. He had managed to make himself absent after that. If that was by his design or just the way things happened she didn't know, and frankly, she didn't care.<p>

Scott had taken them out in kayaks on Friday and again today, taking them up and down the Combahee River, showing them exactly where they would be doing their research, on Beet Island and Ashe Island. Elizabeth would be working directly with Megan and Thomas, as well as Scott and one other person from the Basin, a woman named Ellen. Paul and Lisa would work mainly with Jason and another man named Adam. Elizabeth had only met Ellen and Adam briefly, but they seemed excited to welcome their "Cape Cod co-workers."

They spent both days on the river and on the two islands, and even took a boat out into St. Helena Sound. Elizabeth was so glad that she had remembered to take her camera on both days, she was going to have some amazing pictures by the time the trip was over. The array of birds she saw, alone, kept her reaching for her camera constantly. And the sunsets...they were in a class by themselves, and although she tried hard not to think of him, seeing them naturally made her think of Will.

After playing telephone tag with Jane, they had finally spoken on Saturday night. Elizabeth had already made the decision that she wouldn't tell Jane that Jason was here. Jane would be on the next flight down, armed and dangerous, and would launch a full blown assault on him if she knew. She was already worried enough about Elizabeth, between the concussion and the whole thing with Will; Elizabeth refused to add to it.

She didn't like the tension in her sister's voice, and had inquired about it, but Jane just shrugged it off, a very un-Jane-like thing to do. Of course, Elizabeth was still worried that the problems between her and Will would eventually spill over and cause discord between Jane and Charles. Listening to Jane, she wondered if her worries were justified.

"How's the wedding planning going?" Elizabeth had asked.

Jane sighed. "Fine."

Elizabeth pursed her lips. "Okay...can you give me some details? What have you done?"

"Booked the chapel, secured the caterer, and got a band, it's the same one that played at the Memorial Day cookout. We liked them, so, you know, we decided to get them again." Her voice was flat and matter-of-fact.

"How's the dress hunt?"

"Oh, I haven't really looked. No time."

_No time my ass,_ Elizabeth thought. Jane, with no time to shop? Fat chance.

"What's going on, Jane?"

"What do you mean?"

"You sound so...blah. About the wedding, about Charles...you don't sound excited at all."

"Oh, it's nothing, we're just...we're just getting on each others nerves a little, I guess."

"Why is that? Is it because of Will and me?"

"No, Lizzy, I told you that before. You let me worry about me and Charles, okay?"

"No, it's not okay, 'cause I'll end up worrying about you too. What's the deal?"

Jane sighed loudly. "It's just wedding shit, nothing-"

Elizabeth interrupted. "Did you just say wedding _shit_? Now I know something is wrong." Despite the seriousness of the conversation, they both started laughing at Jane's choice of words.

"We're fine, Lizzy, really. I love Charles, he loves me, we're getting married. All you need is love, right?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes. _That's what I used__ to think._ "Do you promise to call me if something is really bugging you so we can talk about it? I'll be out at the Basin all day, but I'll be around every night."

"Yes, I promise I will call. Have a great time tomorrow, I know you'll be in your element."

Elizabeth laughed. "Yes, lots of mud and muck. Perfect for me." She sighed. "I miss you. Please kiss and make up with Charles, okay? And if you find a dress, email me a photo of it."

"I miss you too, and yes, I'll kiss Charles, and yes, I'll email you a picture. I'd rather shop with you, though, so maybe I'll wait."

Elizabeth smiled. "I'd like that. Something to look forward to when I get back to the Cape." _Because there won't be much else_. "Love you Jane...I'll call you again in a couple of days."

"Okay. Love you too sis. Bye."

* * *

><p>"Were you talking to Elizabeth?" Charles asked Jane on Saturday night. They were seated in the living room of Charles' apartment, having a glass of wine. Jane was reading a book and Charles was finishing up some work.<p>

"Yes."

"How is she? How is South Carolina?"

"Fine and fine."

Charles sighed. "Has she been able to go out and see much yet?"

"Some."

He put down the document he had been perusing and took off his reading glasses, laying them on the table next to him before reaching up to rub his eyes. "Is this how it's going to be whenever I mention Elizabeth?"

"Yes."

"Okay, I'll bite. Why?"

Jane closed her book. "_Why? _We've been around and around in circles about this, Charles, you _know_ why. You've talked to Will, and though you say you don't know what's going on with him, I find that hard to believe. You know why he's doing this, and it's hard for me to pretend you don't. She's my sister, my best friend!"

"And he's my best friend! He spoke to me in confidence, and I don't feel right breaking that confidence."

"Oh, come on Charles. You know Elizabeth pretty well by now. Whatever he thinks has happened...does he think she did something? Betrayed him somehow? Or does he just think she's not good enough anymore? Whatever it is, you know her, and I know her, and I know that she's madly in love with him, and would never hurt him for the world. How do you not see that?"

Charles shook his head, staring down at his hands for a moment. He was torn, genuinely torn, about what to do. On the one hand, he had his best friend's trust, and on the other, he had his gut instincts about Elizabeth. He was frustrated; there were thoughts poking at him relentlessly, telling him that some of the things that he and Will had discussed just didn't ring true.

Jane continued, speaking quietly. "Why did you ask me if she had been involved with anyone over the past year or so? That's not just a random question, Charles. Will is suspicious about something, it's obvious."

"Jane, please. I can't say anything."

Jane felt anger welling up inside of her. "Well, you _not_ saying anything says it all, believe me, because if he wasn't suspicious, you'd at least tell me that. I know my sister, okay? Even if she had some type of fling or a one night stand or something, which I don't believe she would, she would never, ever betray Will. Never. If something like that happened, it happened before Will was in the picture."

Charles inadvertently let out a short laugh at her ironic choice of words, but covered it quickly.

"Do you remember my friend Charlotte? From your cookout?"

"Vaguely, yes."

"Elizabeth found out, not that long ago, that our lovely sister Lydia was fooling around with Charlotte's boyfriend behind her back."

"Oh God, you're kidding me. What's the deal with Lydia, anyway? Remember that night at Wicked?"

"Do I remember? How could I forget? I don't know what her problem is...she's selfish and rude and knows no boundaries, how's that for a start? Anyway, Elizabeth was horrified when she found out. She was upset for Charlotte, and mad at Lydia. Someone who gets that mad over her _sister_ being part of a tawdry relationship is not going to get involved in one herself, believe me."

Charles groaned. He knew he should tell Jane what he knew, but could he risk Will's anger? What if Jane knew the story behind those pictures, but had never said anything out of loyalty to Elizabeth? What if something horrible had happened to Elizabeth at the hands of George Wickham?

He looked at Jane. "Can you please just give me some time to think? I want to tell you, I do, I want you to know everything, because if there is some way that you can help, I want you to help. It's just hard for me, Jane...Will and I have had each others backs for a long time. As much as you and Lizzy are sisters, Will is my brother. All of this…everything that's happening…it's killing him."

"_Then let me help you_, let me help him. Let me help my sister."

Charles nodded. "We'll talk. Tomorrow, though, okay? Not tonight. I need another night to sleep on it."

Jane rose from the couch and went to sit on his lap. She wrapped her right arm around the back of his neck and leaned her head against his, while he hugged her close to him.

"I just don't want this to come between us," she whispered, "and it's already starting to. We can't let that happen."

Charles lifted her left hand, planting a kiss on her ring. "I won't let it, I promise. We'll talk tomorrow."

* * *

><p>Sunday was a day of sleeping in a little, then just lounging about, doing some prep work for their real first day of research. Elizabeth still didn't feel one-hundred per cent herself, but did feel better. The headaches were minimal, and she tried to stave them off by staying very hydrated and resting when she could. She always went to bed early, which Megan complained about quite regularly.<p>

"You keep ditching me and leaving me with Thomas and the lovebirds." The two women were sitting outside late Sunday afternoon, enjoying a cold beer and the rare breeze that was coming across the yard, lessening the heat and humidity.

Elizabeth laughed. "I'm sorry, but I need to make sure I'm getting enough rest." She had told Megan about her unfortunate softball injury. "The last thing I need is to have some weird kind of relapse or something while I'm down here."

Megan sighed. "I know. I would do the same, I suppose...nothing would pull me away from here."

Elizabeth nodded. "Exactly."

They were quiet again, listening to the birds, enjoying the solitude. The past few days had made them even more comfortable with each other. They discovered they were very much like Felix and Oscar of 'The Odd Couple'; where Elizabeth tended to be neat and tidy (Felix), Megan tended to let her belongings 'spread' around the room (Oscar).

Elizabeth found herself thankful for Megan's presence, though. She was outgoing, funny, and smart, and they'd had some truly ridiculous conversations over the past few days (including a debate on who has the better ass, Tom Brady or Jacoby Ellsbury), as well as some conversations that would make anyone not of the marine science world shake their heads. They thought nothing of having a lengthy discussion on the aragonite saturation states and pH of St. Helena Sound, or debating the causes of the spatial and temporal ranges of titration alkalinity in the Combahee River. Yes, Elizabeth found herself very happy for the distraction that was Megan.

Elizabeth had confessed to her over the weekend that she and Jason had been involved while they were in college, but she wouldn't say any more than that. Megan was not surprised; she knew by the way Elizabeth had reacted to his appearance that something was up. Elizabeth told her they had parted ways a long time ago and hadn't spoken since.

As they sat outside, Megan asked her a question.

"Remember when we first got here, I asked you what your status was?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes. How could I forget? Nosy bitch."

Megan giggled and reached out to give Elizabeth a light shove in the shoulder. "Shut up. First you said you weren't sure, then you said you were in a relationship. What's the deal?"

"God, you _are_ nosy," Elizabeth said, trying to sound lighthearted.

"Yes, I am," Megan laughed, but then she became serious again. "I can tell that you're sad about something. I mean, I don't know you that well, but I can see it. Sometimes, you just drift off, and your expression changes. You just look sad."

Elizabeth didn't know what to say. _Am I that obvious? Is it written all over my face? _She tried to make light of it again. "Wow, am I really that pathetic looking?"

Megan just shook her head. "No, I can tell you're making an effort to get whatever – or whoever – is making you sad off of your mind, but I can still see it every once in a while."

Elizabeth sighed. Did she want to get into this? She wasn't sure. "Look, Megan, I appreciate your offer of an ear, but I really don't want to talk about it, okay? When I said I was in a relationship...I meant it. I am. Let's just leave it at that."

Later that night, as she lay in bed, she asked herself why she still felt that way. Will was making it obvious to her that their relationship was over, but she needed him to say it to her face, and she needed to know why. What she wouldn't do was chase him down and beg him to talk to her, plead with him to give her answers. No way would she put herself through that hell again, like she had with Jason. Calling, leaving messages, crying at the sound of his voice as his voicemail picked up again and again. No, she wouldn't chase him. When – if ever – he was ready to talk to her again, he'd have to come find her. Chase _her_ down. Make _her_ listen.

He had done it once before, when he had come home from California; he came home to explain everything, and she had made it so easy for him. She realized that she had _wanted_ it to be easy for him. Even then, she knew she couldn't be without him. Now, though, she was faced with the possibility that she _would_ be without him, forever. Still, she couldn't escape the one question that haunted her.

_Why?_

* * *

><p>"I thought I'd let you know I'm home."<p>

"When did you get in?" Georgie asked.

"Just a little while ago." Will sat in his home office in Boston, leaning back in his desk chair, his eyes focused on Elizabeth's eyes staring back at him from the picture on his desk. He had managed to restrain himself from pulling up pictures of her on his phone for the past five days, and now here she was, right in front of him, smiling. He let his eyes roam over the picture repeatedly, soaking in every detail, even though he had gazed at it dozens of times before.

"Are you coming back to the Cape?"

He sighed. "I don't know, Georgie. I suppose I will, at some point."

A jab of frustration nudged her. "Well, let me know when you've decided. Matt's here, he's just getting ready to head back to Boston, so I should go."

"Matt's there?"

"Yes, he spent the weekend here with me."

"Again?"

"Yes, _again. _And I'll tell you right now, you can stop with that tone."

Will's eyebrows flew up. "What tone?"

"You know what tone. That...that...fatherly tone."

"I just don't want you to get hurt, Georgie, that's all."

"I know that, but you don't have to worry. We're taking things slow, and he's been wonderful to me. Could you please relax about it?"

Will smiled to himself. "Okay, I'll try to behave. I want you to be happy."

"I want you to be happy too." She paused. "I know we agreed not to talk-"

Will interrupted her. "If you're going to say something about Elizabeth, please don't. I asked you not to speak to me about her, and I meant it."

Georgiana sighed. "Fine, I won't tell you how miserable she is then."

"Georgie!" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Please don't."

"Okay, I'm sorry, that was a low blow. I'll leave it alone. For now."

"Thanks. Go back to Matt, tell him I said hello. I'll catch up with you in the next day or two, alright? I might be doing some traveling soon, but not for another week or so."

"Where are you going now?"

"I was thinking of going to the D.C. offices for a visit, then maybe heading to New York to visit there. It's been a long time since I've been to either place."

_He's running away, _Georgiana thought. It was obvious, and he knew he was doing it, so she didn't feel the need to point it out. "Well, just let me know what you decide."

"I will. I'll talk to you soon."

"Okay. Bye Will...love you."

"Love you too Georgie. Bye."

Georgiana hung up and walked back out into the living room from her bedroom. Matt was sprawled on the couch, watching a Red Sox game. She went over and sat next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"How's he doing?" Matt asked.

"Oh, he says he's fine, but I know he isn't. He's one step away from being a basket case, although anyone who doesn't know him probably wouldn't be able to tell. I kind of snuck in a comment about Elizabeth."

"Didn't he ask you not to talk about her?"

Georgiana shrugged. "Yes, he did, but I had to say _somethi__ng_. I want him to know how upset she is, how sad she is. I'm so...frustrated. He's being incredibly stubborn...how can they fix it if they don't talk?"

Matt shook his head. "I don't know, but like I told you before...if it's meant to be, it's meant to be, they'll make it work." He turned his mouth to plant a soft kiss on her forehead and squeezed her to him.

"I hope so."

"Me too."

He tipped her chin up so that she was looking into his eyes, and Georgiana leaned into him to kiss him, raising her lips to his, melting against him, enjoying their last few moments together before he returned to Boston.

Breaking away slowly, Matt smiled down at her. "Are you stubborn like your brother?"

Georgiana's lips twisted into a smirk. "Possibly. I've been told I am."

"By your brother?"

She laughed. "Of course."

He reached up with one free hand to stroke her cheek. "I know this is all new for us, and I know we're just starting out, and I know you want to take things slowly. You have to promise me one thing, though."

"What's that?" Georgiana asked, staring into his blue eyes.

"You have to promise me that you'll never do that...if you're ever upset with me, or angry at me for something, please don't close yourself off from me. Don't withdraw from me. Okay?"

"Okay," she whispered. "You have to promise the same, though."

He nodded. "I know, and I promise." He leaned in to kiss her nose, grinning again. "This is all new, like I said, but you know what? _We_ are meant to be too, I know we are."

Georgiana's heart skipped a beat at his words, and she felt her face warming under his gaze. She smiled back at him. "I know we are too."

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 11<em>

Elizabeth and her housemates were staring at the television at seven o'clock Monday morning, disbelief etched on their faces, as the weatherman on the local news station showed the mass of wind swirling around, southeast of the Bahamas.

"_Tropical Storm Danielle is hurtling itself toward the Bahamas, and is expected to reach hurricane strength sometime tonight. We'll be watching the track closely to see how this developing storm may impact the U.S. Stay tuned to channel 8 for..."_

"I can't freaking believe this. A hurricane? Really? This totally sucks. Totally sucks!" Megan was pacing back and forth, completely frustrated.

"Relax, Meg," Paul said, "they don't even know the track yet. It could head for the tip of Florida or into the Gulf."

"It could, but it won't. Did you see where it was? Hurricane Bob started just where Danielle is living now. Almost nine years ago to the day, this new storm is brewing. I'm telling you, conditions are ripe, we're gonna get slammed."

"Megan! Stop being such a nervous nelly," Elizabeth said. Truthfully, Elizabeth was worried as well. If this _did_ turn into a hurricane, and _d__id _follow Bob's track, she'd have to go home. Her house was so exposed...it barely made it through Hurricane Bob. She couldn't rely on her father to get the house prepared for such a large storm on his own. "We just have to wait and watch...they'll have a better idea tomorrow. Come on, we need to get moving, the van is here."

The five housemates all piled into the van, driven by Jason today, Elizabeth noticed.

"Good morning everyone," he called out as they loaded up. Everyone replied with a grumbly 'good morning'. He smiled at Elizabeth, and she gave him a half-hearted grin. She was the last to get in the van, and he stopped her before she climbed in.

"Have you been watching the weather?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yes, I have."

"Does your family still own that cottage on the beach?"

"We do...not that it's any concern of yours," she said firmly but quietly, darting a glance into the van to make sure no one was listening.

He sighed. "I just wanted to make sure you knew about it, that's all. You don't have to bite my head off," he said, his voice low.

She raised her brows. "Bite your head off? Oh please, Jason, grow up. _Nothing_ in my life, including that cottage, should be a concern for you. You did a great job six years ago of pretending I didn't exist. Why don't you try doing that again?" With that, she climbed into the van and slammed the door.

* * *

><p>Monday morning found Jane hightailing it down Route 3, toward the Cape, toward her parent's house. She had called her boss to say that there was a family emergency, and even though there wasn't – yet – there soon would be. Once she got her hands on Lydia, there would be an emergency of epic proportions.<p>

She and Charles had talked at great length on Sunday. Actually, Charles had done most of the talking, while Jane had done plenty of reacting.

"Be patient with me," Charles began, "because I'm going to start by telling you something that I've never told you. Before I do, though, I have to know that you'll keep everything you hear in confidence." He wondered then, for a moment, if Elizabeth had told Jane already about what had happened to Georgiana back in January, and thought he should ask. "Has Lizzy ever talked to you about Georgiana, about something that happened to her?"

Jane looked puzzled. "No, not that I can recall. I don't think so."

"You'd remember, it's not something you'd forget."

After Jane had promised she wouldn't repeat anything he told her, Charles proceeded to tell her about what happened to Georgiana. Jane was horrified, of course, and while she had dozens of questions on the tip of her tongue, she refrained from speaking until he was done with the whole sordid story.

"Oh, my God. That poor girl...and Will just paid him off? They should have gone after him, prosecuted him! He got away with rape, for crying out loud!"

"I know, Jane, believe me. I wanted Will to go after him too, but Georgie didn't want to pursue it, she didn't want to deal with the all the publicity, a trial…she wanted to just hush everything up. Will went along with her wishes…I think he was reeling from everything, and just didn't know what to do. The faces of the two men weren't visible in the pictures...neither one of them wanted to risk dragging Georgie through another horrible ordeal." He paused. "In hindsight, I'm sure he wishes he had dealt with it differently." _I know he does now._

"What does this have to do with Elizabeth?"

Here, Charles knew, was the part that would get difficult. "Remember how Will and Lizzy met?"

Jane smirked. "How could I forget? That was a one-of-a-kind meeting. He thought she was stalking him! It still makes me-" She stopped for a moment, and the expression on her face changed. Charles waited, knowing she was connecting the dots on her own. "Does Will think she was out there taking pictures of him by design? Not just by chance?"

Charles shrugged and shook his head slightly. "I don't know, Jane. He's thought about it, but even he isn't sure."

"What do you mean, he isn't sure? She was photographing a _wedding_ that day, obviously it was just coincidence that they were all on the same beach at the same time." She stared at Charles, waiting for him to say something; she could tell by the look on his face that he wasn't finished.

"There's more, isn't there?"

Charles cleared his throat, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. "Will...he found...he went to Lizzy's house, the night she was hurt playing softball. He went to get some things for her...clothes, I think."

"Yes, I remember. He called you to tell you what happened."

"Well...he found some photos, tucked away. It was...that same man, the one who assaulted Georgie. Lizzy had pictures of him...um, _explicit_ pictures of him...one of which, apparently, had her in it. With him. Explicitly."

Jane's eyebrows flew up. "What? No way, I don't believe it! Lizzy would never leave pictures like that lying around!"

Charles looked a little taken aback. "So it's not surprising that she would be _in_ pictures like that, only that she would leave them lying around?"

Jane glared at him. "What the hell is_ that _supposed to mean? Look, what Lizzy does with her boyfriends is her own business, but I can guarantee you that she hasn't had...well, _that_ type of boyfriend since college."

Charles shook his head. "According to Will, these pictures...they were taken at Lizzy's house."

Jane looked confused. "That doesn't make sense. Lizzy has _never_ mentioned anyone to me that she had a relationship with. I know my sister well enough to know that she wouldn't do..._that_...with just anyone." She thought for a moment, chewing on a thumbnail nervously. _Something isn't right, there's a piece of this puzzle missing. _"Do you know the guy's name? Will must know it, if you don't. You have to find out his name, maybe it will ring a bell for me."

Charles looked at her and sighed. "I know his name. It's Wickham. George Wickham."

* * *

><p>As her car traveled across the Sagamore Bridge, Jane dialed Lydia's cell number. She answered almost immediately.<p>

"Hi Jane."

"Hi Lydia, how are you today?" Jane played all sweetness and sisterly love, but inside, she was seething.

"Oh, okay I guess. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm great. Just great. You sound a little down in the dumps, what's up? Boy trouble?"

"Oh, can you tell? Yes, I've got boy trouble. Man trouble. I have no man anymore...that's the trouble!"

"Oh, what happened? You and your new love break up?"

"No, not really...he took a job in New York. He wants me to visit, though, and I will, as soon as he gets his own place."

"Oh, that's too bad Lyddie, it really is. Hey, I'm on the Cape, I came to visit mum and dad. Want to meet me for lunch or something? It's on me. My treat, you pick the place. Maybe it will cheer you up."

"I'm actually on my way to mum's too...I, um...I have something to drop off." She looked at the house key she held in her hand for a second before shoving it into her shorts pocket. "I'd love to have lunch, though."

"Great," Jane said, through clenched teeth. "I'll be in Mashpee in about twenty minutes. See you there."

"Okay! See you Janey."

Jane thought back to the rest of the conversation that she'd had with Charles, after he had revealed the man's name that assaulted Georgiana.

"Did you just say _George Wickham?"_

Charles' stomach had dropped then, as it was obvious that Jane had heard the name before. "Yes...that's right. George Wickham. Jane, please tell me you don't know him…please tell me Elizabeth doesn't know him."

"She does know him, Charles!" Her mind was spinning, and as she heard Charles mutter a curse under his breath, she immediately knew he was assuming the worst. "He is Charlotte's boyfriend! Or was her boyfriend, until Lydia started sneaking around with him...I just told you about that last night, remember?"

"That's...that's who Charlotte was seeing? That's who Lydia is seeing now?"

"Yes! He's...he's been to Lizzy's house, he's used her darkroom! She always thought he was skeevy, kind of perverted...she would never, ever be with someone like that. Oh, my God, _he_ raped Georgie? Oh shit, Charles! _He's_ _been in L__izzy's house_! Charlotte has...and Lydia...oh, no, what if he...what if he did something to them? What if he did something to Elizabeth?"

Charles' mind was already leaps and bounds ahead of Jane's, and he could see the panic in her eyes, hear it in her voice. "No, Jane...hold on, try to stay calm, and think with me for a minute...the pictures that Will found. He couldn't see Elizabeth's face...do you think it could have been Lydia?"

Jane was distraught. "I don't know, Charles...oh God, I don't know. Elizabeth couldn't stand him, wouldn't even let him in her house unless Charlotte was with him. Then, when Lydia started seeing him, she wouldn't let him come over at all, she was so disgusted by the whole thing." She began chewing her thumbnail again, until Charles gently tugged it from between her lips.

"Does Lydia have access to Lizzy's house?"

Jane shrugged. "My parents have a key, I have a key...I don't think Lydia does, Lizzy probably wouldn't trust her with it." Suddenly, Jane's eyes widened. "Are you suggesting that Lydia...with him...in Lizzy's house? Oh, no, Charles...I don't think even Lydia would stoop that low. Plus, when would it have happened? I know Lizzy stayed at Will's sometimes, but usually they were at her place. She hasn't been anywhere..." Jane froze, and her hand flew up to her mouth. She looked at Charles. "The Vineyard, they went to the Vineyard for her birthday. And Boston...we were in Boston for the benefit. Do you think...?" Again, her voice trailed off.

Charles shook his head. "I don't know what to think. When did Lydia start seeing that dirtbag?"

Jane thought for a moment. "I remember Elizabeth saying that they met at Madness...Lydia was going with Denny, they were meeting Charlotte and George there. Lydia wanted Will and Lizzy to go, but they didn't want to" She stopped speaking, trying to remember details about that brief conversation with Elizabeth. "I think...I think it was after their trip to Martha's Vineyard, I think that's why they didn't go."

"So maybe something happened while Lizzy was in Boston."

Jane shook her head repeatedly. "I just can't believe it, if what you're saying is what really happened." She looked at Charles. "I have to talk to Lydia. I'm going to the Cape."

"Now?"

"Yes, now."

"Jane, come on...why don't you wait until tomorrow. Let me call Will, talk to him...I think he's still in California, but I can get him on his cell-"

"No, no. Please don't call Will, not yet. Let me talk to Lydia first, I have to get the truth from her...if there is a truth. If she's done what you – what we – think she's done, I want her to admit to everything, to my face. If I call her on the phone, she'll just hang up."

"Fine, then wait until tomorrow to go, don't go tonight."

Jane sighed. "Okay, I'll wait. You have to promise me you won't call Will until we know everything. I won't call Lizzy, you won't call Will. Okay?"

Charles nodded. "Okay."

Jane was beside herself with sadness, for Elizabeth mostly, but also for Will, too. As for Lydia...well, for Lydia, there was just a lot of anger._ Stupid, selfish girl. _Jane blinked back tears that were threatening to spill over, and Charles reached up to stroke her face.

"We'll fix it Jane, we'll straighten it out, okay?"

"I hope so. I'm just so sad for Elizabeth and Will. And I could _kill_ Lydia!"

Charles sighed, pulling her close. _The line forms behind me._

* * *

><p><em>Finally! Someone is putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Thanks for reading, reviews are welcomed!<em>


	34. Chapter 34

_Things are looking up for my family right now...thanks to everyone who sent their best wishes, and again, thanks to everyone reading and reviewing._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 34<strong>

_Days apart: 11_

It was just before noon when Jane pulled into the parking lot in front of her parent's condominium. She realized, a little too late, that she still hadn't informed them about her now two-week old engagement. She hadn't wanted to do it over the phone, feeling that would be too impersonal, but she _did_ want to do it when Charles was with her. Sighing, she pulled the ring from her finger and stuck it in a zippered pocket inside her purse. As much as she didn't want to take it off, if her mother spotted it, there would be no escaping from her clutches, and she needed to have some alone time with Lydia.

She rang the bell before walking in, and her eyes immediately lit on her mum, sitting on a couch in the living room, watching her favorite game show – and dressed like she was ready for a night on the town.

"Hey mum."

"Jane! What a surprise!" Mrs. Bennet rose from the couch to give her daughter a hug and a kiss on each cheek. "You didn't tell me you were coming to visit today! Oh – and where's Charles? Is he with you?"

"No, he had to work today. I had some time, so I thought I'd come to say hi. I'm actually meeting Lydia here, she said she had to come by for something, so I thought she and I could go out for lunch."

"Oh, your poor sister. That Wickland, or Whitman, or whatever his name is, has moved to New York. Such a pity! He seemed so good for Lydia, she was so happy with him. She's very upset that he's up and left."

"Yeah, she told me, what a pity." She rolled her eyes slightly. "Um, where's dad?"

"Oh, now, where do you think? He's at the library, I'm sure I won't see hide nor hair of him until dinnertime. I have some of the ladies coming over in an hour or so for tea and Mahjong, you'll have to stay and meet them."

"Maybe."

Jane turned as she heard the front door open. Lydia walked in and smiled at her mother and sister. She walked over and hugged both of them as they exchanged greetings, then immediately headed down the hall to the kitchen. "Um, be right back."

Immediately curious – and suspicious – as to what her sister was up to, Jane followed her down the hall quietly. She saw Lydia reaching up to the key rack to hang a key there, but then she looked confused, and quickly tucked the key back into the pocket of her shorts.

"What have you got there?" Jane asked innocently, knowing immediately what it was.

"Oh...nothing."

Jane held out her hand. "Can I see it?"

Lydia looked at her oddly. "It's nothing, Jane...it's just a key. I thought dad didn't have a spare key to my place, but he does, so...he won't be needing another one."

"Can I see the key, Lydia?"

Jane knew her father well enough to know that if the key Lydia held was Elizabeth's, it would be engraved or marked, somehow, with her name or initials.

Lydia sighed and dug into her pocket, briefly holding out the key before attempting to put it away. She wasn't quick enough, though, and Jane grabbed it from her fingers. Sure enough, the key was looped onto a small, thin ring, and attached to the ring was a small metal tag with an "E" on it.

Jane looked at her coldly. "Why do you have this key?" she asked, her voice low.

Lydia looked at her with disbelief. "As if it's your business," she said with a cocky tone.

"It is my business. Why do you have dad's key for Lizzy's house? Tell me now, Lydia."

"What's your problem, Jane? Why are you jumping all over me?"

"Do you want to know why I'm jumping all over you? I'll be glad to tell you. It's your choice if you want me to tell you here, though, or somewhere else. I don't think you want mum listening in."

Lydia rolled her eyes. "God, Jane, you're such a drama queen. Fine, let's go out to lunch."

"No, Lydia, no lunch. The conversation we're going to have isn't going to be held in public. Let's go, we'll take a ride down to the river. There's a lot of walking trails there."

"What? I'm not going for a walk in the damn woods! Do you want to know why I needed that key? Fine, I'll tell you, and I don't care if mum hears!"

Mrs. Bennet walked into the kitchen. "You don't care if I hear what, dear?"

"Why I took Lizzy's spare key from dad! The truth is, Lizzy was being such a bitch to George, she wouldn't even let him go into her house to get the things he had there from when he used her darkroom. She's pissed that he dumped Charlotte for me, so she kept his stuff."

Mrs. Bennet sighed, exasperated. "Oh, that Elizabeth. Can't she just be happy that you found a nice man for yourself? She's always so difficult. Oh, your father was wondering what happened to that key, Lizzy had to drop him off another one so he could keep an eye on the house while she's in South Carolina. Why is she down in that God forsaken place to begin with? She should be with William, spending time with him, not traipsing around down south in some swamp. If she's not careful, he'll find someone else if she shows more interest in her job than she does in him."

"Mom?" Jane said quite loudly, turning to glare at her mother. "Could you just be quiet? Better yet, could you just leave? I need to talk to Lydia privately."

Mrs. Bennet's mouth dropped open comically. "Really, Jane, asking me to leave my own kitchen? I can't believe-"

"Believe it mum, 'cause that's what I'm doing." Mrs. Bennet stood there, fuming, before stomping out of the kitchen. Jane turned to look at Lydia. "Do we do this here, now, or do we take it somewhere private? Your choice."

Lydia stared at her for a second, not sure of exactly where this conversation was going to go.

"Fine. I'm not walking in the damn woods, though. We can just go outside on the deck, mum won't bother us."

"Lead the way."

As soon as they were outside, away from Mrs. Bennet's prying ears, Jane began talking. "You need to tell me _right now_ if anything else happened when you were at Elizabeth's house. I mean it, Lydia...and don't start with that crap about Lizzy being a bitch and not letting George get his stuff. I swear, if you say that again, I'll knock you into next week."

Lydia stared at her defiantly, saying nothing. She could tell by Jane's tone of voice that she meant business.

"Okay Lydia, since you don't want to talk, I'm going to tell you what _I _know. I know that there are pictures, of you and George, that were taken in Lizzy's house." She was playing her hand a little earlier than she wanted to, but knew she could read Lydia like a book. Sure enough, Lydia's eyes opened wider and she visibly paled.

"I...I don't know what you're talking about."

Jane leaned towards Lydia until her face was merely inches away. "_Yes. You. Do_. You screwed up, big time. Did you have sex with George in Lizzy's house? Did you take pictures? I already know that you did, so just admit it."

"How...how do you know? How did you find out?"

"The pictures you left behind were found."

"I...we didn't leave any pictures behind. What are you talking about?"

"Will found the pictures in one of Lizzy's dresser drawers. Problem is, from what I understand, the pictures weren't very clear, and Will thought _you_ were Lizzy."

For a moment, Lydia looked shocked, but then she did the unthinkable. She began to laugh, and tried unsuccessfully to cover her large grin with her hand. "Oh my holy shit, you're kidding me? Oh, that's rich! Lizzy with George? What a joke." She continued to giggle, until Jane grabbed her wrist forcefully.

"Have a good laugh over it Lydia, because if I know George – and I do know him, far better than you do, by the way – he'll have the last laugh. Those pictures that you took will be all over the internet, or in some nasty porn magazine."

Lydia smirked and pulled her wrist out of Jane's hand. "Oh drama queen, what could you be talking about now?"

"George has a history, Lydia. He likes taking pictures of women, and he's not shy about showing them off. If he can't get the women to cooperate, do you know what he does? He drugs them, then rapes them, and snaps photos of them while he's doing it. Sometimes he even tries to blackmail them."

The smile on Lydia's face faltered, and she looked less sure of herself. After a moment, she began shaking her head. "No, I don't believe you. You're pissed at me, Lizzy's pissed at me, Will's probably pissed at me...Charles too, right? You're just trying to get back at me. Did Lizzy put you up to this? She's in South Carolina, so you came to do her dirty work?"

"It's the truth, Lydia. That's George's thing, that's what he does. And actually, for your information, Lizzy doesn't know about this at all, doesn't even know the pictures exist. Not yet, anyway, but God help you when she finds out. Will knows, because he's the one that found them. And do you know what he did? He walked out on Lizzy. Left her, high and dry, in the hospital with a concussion, and hasn't spoken to her since."

"What? All because of those pictures? Jesus, those two belong together. They're both so uptight."

"So you're admitting that you did it? You had sex, in Lizzy's house, with that scumbag...when?"

"Fine. Yes, we did, while she was in Boston a couple weekends ago. We had sex on her bed, in the shower...both showers, actually...on the couch..." Lydia paused for a moment, staring off into space. "Oh, and on the beach one night. But I guess that doesn't count, since it wasn't actually _in the house_."

Jane's eyebrows flew up, shocked that her sister actually seemed to be bragging. "How long were you there for?"

Lydia spoke quietly. "The whole weekend."

Jane closed her eyes and took a deep breath...then another...and another. When she opened her eyes, Lydia was staring at her, and Jane could tell that she was deciding if now was a good time to bolt.

"I can't believe you," Jane said calmly. "Even for you, this is a new low. How could you do something like that? Something so...completely disrespectful and disgusting? You made yourself at home in someone else's house, _Lizzy's_ house, without her permission? With that...nasty creep? Elizabeth is your sister, for Christ's sake! What the hell is wrong with you, Lydia?"

"Oh, shut up Jane! Nothing is wrong with me! I didn't plan it, not at all. I only took George there to get his stuff. I felt bad for him. Lizzy was pissed at me for going behind Charlotte's back, and I knew he was right...she probably _wouldn't_ let him in, and he needed his stuff."

"So how did you go from getting his _stuff_ to staying there for the entire weekend? You don't see how that's completely fucked up?"

"I just told you, I didn't plan it! He just...he just made it sound like we could have fun...'playing house', he said. We...we didn't have sex _in_ her bed, just...just _on_ it. On a blanket."

"Oh God, shut up, you're making me sick. You realize that I'm going to tell Will and Lizzy everything, don't you? This whole situation has completely messed them up."

"Why did Will freak out? I mean, yeah, it looked like she was with another guy, but so what? It's not like she claimed to be a virgin when she met him...although she might as well have been."

"Lydia!"

"Oh, for Christ's sake, I'm sorry, but geez, who cares if she was with someone else? She wasn't cheating on him, he must know that. God, she wouldn't have time to cheat, they were always together. And really, why would she? Will is fucking _hot_…I mean, George is hot, but Will is _hot _hot. If I had that, I wouldn't even _look_ at another guy."

"Lydia! Stop! Ugh, I wish you could hear yourself. Will...knows George. He...they have a history. That's why Will got upset."

"What kind of history do they have?"

"I'm not telling you any more than that. It's not my place to tell you, but suffice it to say, it's not a good history. George is a bad person, Lydia. I know you don't want to hear that, and you probably don't believe it, but he's a horrible, horrible person. You need to stay away from him and forget about him."

"So I should just take your word for it?"

Jane sighed, exasperated. She didn't have the energy to argue anymore. "Yes, Lydia, I'm asking you to take my word for it. Trust me, just this once. This isn't something I'm saying to get back at you, or get even...this is for your own good. Please believe me."

Lydia stared at her for a long while, then shrugged. "I don't know, Jane...if he's done all these horrible things, why isn't he in jail? It makes no sense to me. I think you and Lizzy are just determined to see me unhappy. I've found a good man in George, someone fun who likes me for me. If Lizzy had her way, I'd be with Denny right now. Denny! Living a boring little life in Maine."

Jane closed her eyes, coming to the realization that this was all a huge waste of time. Yes, she got the truth about the pictures from Lydia, but the rest of it? Trying to convince Lydia to stay away from George was a lost cause.

"I'm sorry that you think that Lizzy and I want to see you unhappy. It's not true," Jane said quietly. "I'm afraid, though, that it's exactly what you'll be if you continue to pursue George." She paused. "I think that given enough time, you'll see his true colors. Sadly, I think he'll hurt you – severely – in the process. I hope not." She paused. "Once Elizabeth finds out everything, she's going to come looking for you…and I wouldn't be surprised if Will went after George. Consider yourselves warned."

* * *

><p>Will tried to concentrate on Monday morning, he really did. Now that the business in L.A. was pretty much wrapped up, he could get back to working on getting FRD Design up and running, and being more involved with the whole process of moving it to the next level. The lead architect, Stephanie Hanscom, had been recruiting new staff diligently, and her plan was to be ready for business by the first of September. Will was impressed by her 'get to it' attitude. She seemed able to tackle anything that came her way, and was putting an extremely competent design team behind her.<p>

All this, he knew. The paperwork he had to look over, the contracts...even proposals that they had received for design work, based solely on the strength of Stephanie's reputation...he had mounds of work to do, all laid out in front of him, waiting for his undivided attention. But instead of focusing on the tasks at hand, what was he doing? Wallowing. Wallowing, with the same thought going through his mind, over and over again.

_I. Have. Fucked. Up._

This was the new mantra working its way through his head as he sat staring into his cup of coffee. He had spent all of Sunday evening, into the wee hours of Monday morning, revisiting every moment since the beginning of his relationship with Elizabeth.

That first month, when they were getting to know each other...God, he was practically a giddy schoolboy with his first crush. He couldn't wait to see her every day, couldn't spend enough time with her, couldn't kiss her or touch her enough. Thinking about that naturally led him to, once again, think about the first time they had made love (and almost every time after that)...their time spent together at her house, and at his home in New Seabury...her birthday, their trip to the Vineyard...he had replayed so many memories throughout the night, they had begun to blur into each other.

Sometime in the early morning hours, he had managed to grab a few hours of sleep, but even then, she invaded his dreams. They weren't really dreams, though; they were more like flashbacks. He woke up thinking about the afternoon that he had come back from California, how they had laid on her bed and napped together, how they had talked quietly after waking up. She had opened up to him, then, about her past, about Jason.

That night, they had talked on the phone, and he remembered saying that he didn't know what he would do if the situation had been reversed, if it was _him_ filled with all these horrible thoughts about whether she had been faithful or not. What had he said to her, back then? Did he say he would listen to her, give her the benefit of the doubt, let her explain herself? No, he didn't. He said 'i_t would depend on the situation_.'

So many things suddenly became clear, seemingly in the blink of an eye. Elizabeth didn't know, there was no way it was possible; she may know Wickham, but she didn't know _about _Wickham, what he had done, who he really was. Will knew, too, that the way he met Elizabeth that day, on the beach, was not by design; it was fate. It was happenstance. Those pictures in her drawer...whatever the explanation behind them, it had nothing to do with Will's relationship with her. How could he have thought differently?

Everything seemed to suddenly gel in his mind, and his shoulders sagged. It was almost as though someone had lifted blinders from his eyes, urging him to see, _really_ _see_, what was in front of him.

Deep in the pit of his stomach, he felt an odd pulsing sensation. It was nerves. Fear. Instinctively, he knew it was too late. He had walked away from her, turned his back on her when she needed him the most. Now she was gone, somewhere down in South Carolina. Gone, in more ways than just physically. He had asked her to go, to let him be, and she had listened. She was gone.

Not knowing what else to do, he got up and began pacing, then began wandering through the townhouse. He went up to his office and eyed his guitar, sitting in the corner on its stand. He hadn't played at all lately, not since he and Elizabeth had been apart. Even now, he couldn't bring himself to do more than stare at it.

He sat behind his desk, staring at her picture. _What do I do now? _He knew he had to find her, talk to her, and plead for her forgiveness. What his exact words would be he hadn't yet figured out, but he would by the time he was standing in front of her. It couldn't be done on the telephone; it had to be done in person. If he had to go to South Carolina, he would. He would call Jane, beg for her to tell him where Elizabeth was, where he could find her. He had to do it, as soon as possible.

That odd sensation remained in his stomach, lingering, making him feel as if he had a gaping hole in the center of his body. Will knew just what it was; the physical manifestation of a powerful emotion. It was regret and remorse. It was the feeling of loss and pain, in its harshest form.

_I. Have. Fucked. Up._

* * *

><p>By the end of the day on Monday, Elizabeth was getting more information about Tropical Storm Danielle. Well, Hurricane Danielle, as it was now known. The storm had reached hurricane status over night on Sunday, and was currently wreaking havoc in the Bahamas. The National Hurricane Center, a division of NOAA, predicted that it would track north-northeast, paralleling the East coast, just as Hurricane Bob had done almost a decade ago.<p>

As Elizabeth watched the weather report with her housemates, she sighed. _Why doesn't someone just drop a house on me and get it over with__?_ She knew she'd have to return home. Jason and Scott had both already mentioned that if the storm continued to track up the coast, they'd have to suspend research at the Basin anyway, as it would be battered by high winds and rain. Everyone would be stuck in the house, and they would probably end up driving each other crazy.

Megan threw her hands up in the air. "Damn storm! Ugh!" She turned and looked at Elizabeth. "Can you believe this?"

Elizabeth couldn't help it, she laughed. "Megan, the way my life has been going lately, I'd believe anything you threw at me."

Megan pouted comically. "I'm sorry, you're the last person I should be complaining to. What are you going to do? Do you think you'll go home?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "I guess I have to talk to Jason, he has the final say. I'd like to go, but I want to come back when the storm has passed. If my house wasn't so vulnerable, I'd stay...but I don't think my father will take care of everything on his own, and I really can't expect him to. I have a sister on the Cape, but...she's pretty useless. I don't think she'd be much help."

"You know that if you decide to go, it has to be in the next day or two. Winds are just over ninety miles an hour now, so she's verging on a category two, but you know as well as I do that as soon as she hits open water again, she's going to speed up and strengthen."

"I know. I have to talk to Jason tonight." She'd call Jane, too, to let her know what was going on, and her dad, so he wouldn't worry. Not that he would, anyway.

Elizabeth went in search of Paul and Lisa, and found them in the kitchen. It was their turn to prepare dinner. "Hey guys."

"Hey Liz. I hope everyone's hungry, we're making Lisa's mom's killer lasagna."

"Oooh, sounds good. Um, I have a question...did Jason happen to mention any details about what we're supposed to do if the storm heads our way?"

"He said he's coming by at some point tonight to discuss that very thing, actually," Paul said. "You worried about your house?"

Elizabeth nodded. "A little, yeah. I mean, I did alright during Bob, but I was home then, so I had a lot of time to prepare. I had to evacuate eventually, the police wouldn't let me stay, but I had the chance to get some important stuff out that I needed. If Danielle is heading to the Cape, I need to get home soon."

"I'm sure Jason would be fine with you leaving, he'd understand," Lisa said, grinning a little. "I think he's taken a liking to you."

Elizabeth looked at Lisa with her eyebrows raised. "What?" She had never said anything to anyone except Megan about her history with Jason. "No, he hasn't. Trust me."

Lisa smiled at Paul. "Paul and I have discussed it...he watches you a lot. Stares."

"We're never even together, how can he stare at me? You're imagining it. I think your little hyper-romantic brains have gone into overdrive."

Paul laughed. "No, Lisa's right. He stares. I'm a guy, I know these things. Believe me, it's what we do. We stare. I stared at Lisa all the time."

Unbidden, thoughts of Will instantly crowded into Elizabeth's mind, forcing thoughts of Danielle and Jason elsewhere.

How well she knew that staring was not always a sign of dislike. She had loved the intensity in Will's eyes when he watched her, especially when they were being intimate; he always wanted to look at her, watch her face, watch the play of her expressions and emotions when they made love. It was like breathing to him, it was a necessary thing. There were times when she felt like his gaze was burning through her body, penetrating right to her soul.

No, sometimes staring was not a sign of dislike; sometimes, it was a sign of ardent love...but not always the kind of love that lasts forever, apparently.

"Um, Elizabeth? Did you hear me?"

Paul's voice broke through her reverie. "Oh, sorry, my mind wandered. What did you say?"

"I said I was sorry if we made you feel weird about Jason. We don't know what he's thinking, honestly. Anyway, he's coming by in a while, I told him we'd be serving some killer chow tonight, so he may eat with us. Talk to him then."

Elizabeth nodded. "I will."

* * *

><p>As Jane drove back to Boston on Monday afternoon, she couldn't get thoughts of her conversation with Lydia out of her mind. How was she going to explain all of this to Elizabeth? To Will? Lydia showed no remorse at all, which had actually surprised Jane. She thought she would be at least a <em>little<em> contrite over what she had done, and the consequences that had resulted from her actions. There was no remorse. _None_!

The more Jane stewed as she drove, the more her thoughts wandered to Will. She understood his shock at finding the pictures, of course...it must have been a complete jolt to his mind to have that image in front of him. Still, for him to completely check out, walk away...it kind of pissed her off. No, not kind of, it _did_ piss her off.

She understood the need for him to step back and take a deep breath, maybe even take a day or two to calm down or whatever, but to just walk away for good? While Lizzy was in the _hospital?_

Jane had purposely stayed away from Will all this time, believing that Charles would give him the support he needed, that he would have been encouraging Will to go to Elizabeth and talk to her. Now, she wondered what exactly Charles _had_ been saying to Will.

Picking up her cell phone, she called Charles. He answered immediately.

"Hi babe, I've been waiting to hear from you. How's it going?"

"I'm on my way home. It all happened just as you thought...Lydia spent the weekend at Lizzy's house when Lizzy was in Boston for the benefit."

"Shit. I hope you handed Lydia her ass on a platter."

Jane scoffed. "You know, at first I thought she seemed upset, but she really wasn't. Actually, she might have been upset that she got caught, but that's about it. I tried to warn her about George...but I didn't want to mention Georgiana, so I had to be vague. She didn't believe me, she thought I was saying all that stuff about him to get back at her, or because Lizzy put me up to it. God, she's clueless."

"Completely. At least now we know the truth."

Jane hesitated for a second before asking Charles what she needed to know. "So all this time, when Will was thinking all these horrible thoughts about Lizzy, about what she might have done, what he _thought _she did – what exactly were you thinking?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...were you in agreement with him? Did you come to the same conclusions?"

"Well...the way Will explained everything...we tried to come up with something that would explain the pictures, but...we just couldn't."

"So you agreed with him."

"Jane, the way he presented the facts-"

"Stop being a lawyer for _one second_, please. Regardless of the way he _presented the facts_...think about the actual information itself that he gave you. Did you honestly think that Lizzy was capable of being that deceptive, that...that sleazy?"

"Don't put words in my mouth! I didn't know what to think. Everything Will said seemed to make sense...I even thought that maybe she had been victimized by Wickham. I didn't want that to be true, of course, and after thinking about it, it just didn't seem to be the case. We tried to come up with other scenarios, I swear we did...we just couldn't."

"You just couldn't? Do I need to remind you that you're engaged to Lizzy's sister? Did you forget that important tidbit?" Jane could feel herself getting angrier. "You had this person right next to you over the past week and a half, who _wanted_ to talk to you about everything, _wanted_ to know what was going on, but you just refused to talk to her about it."

Charles sighed. "Jane, I'm not having this conversation with you again. Do I regret not talking to you about it sooner? I do now, yes. I know that all of this could have been avoided if I had confided in you right away. I understand that, and I feel like shit about it. You know why I didn't, and if those reasons aren't good enough for you, I'm sorry. It took a lot for me to break Will's confidence."

"But-"

He interrupted. "I know what you're going to say. It's about Elizabeth, and she's your sister. I know all that, and I know that the two of you are best friends as well as sisters, and that you look out for each other. You have to understand, though, that Will and I are the same way."

Jane sighed, her anger abating – slightly. "I do understand that, and I know the two of you have been through a lot together."

"Throughout that whole ordeal with Georgiana...Will wouldn't talk to me. I knew what had happened to Georgie, every gory detail, but I couldn't get him to talk to me about how he felt, what he was thinking, what he was going through...nothing. It ate away at him, and I felt completely helpless."

"It must have been awful for him."

"It was, and I could see the toll it was taking on him, mentally and physically. He was a mess. This time, when I went to see him that day at his place...I told him I wasn't leaving until he talked, really talked, to me. Once he did, it was hard for me to just disregard his trust and repeat everything to you. I would never intentionally hurt Lizzy, you know I wouldn't, and I'm sorry if my hesitation made things worse."

"Charles, it wasn't _your_ hesitation that made it worse. Why didn't Will just talk to her? I just don't get it. He left her in that hospital, without a second thought."

"He _did_ have second thoughts."

"Don't defend him!"

"I'm not defending him, but I know what his state of mind was when I went to see him. I did encourage him to talk to her, he just wouldn't, and I couldn't very well make him. He was afraid of what she would say."

Jane's eyes opened wide, and she thought for a moment that she'd have to pull over. "Afraid of what she would say? What did he think she was going to say? He really doesn't know my sister at all, does he? He thought she was going to admit to everything. _That's_ what he was worried about."

"That's what he was afraid of, yes." His voice had returned to its normal tone. "I think he thought it was better to not know than to know for sure. That's why he hasn't talked to her."

"Excuse me for saying so, but that is_ fucked up_."

"Jane-"

"No, Charles, it is. I'm sorry. All he had to do was talk to her...cool off and talk to her, and all of this shit would have been avoided! He's a pigheaded, self-centered man, and you know what else? He doesn't deserve Lizzy. She opened herself to him, after years of being alone, and he just trampled all over her heart. I hope she _doesn't_ forgive him, he doesn't deserve it."

"You don't really mean that."

"Yes, I do!"

"Stop yelling at me! You can yell at Will, alright? I'm asking him to come over tonight, I need to tell him everything. I won't hide all this from him. Are you going to say anything to Lizzy?"

"No, Will needs to be the one to tell her everything, not me." _I'll be there to pick up the pieces after._

"Okay, okay, I get that. Do you want to be here when I tell him?"

"Of course I do...but so help me God, Charles, you better not try to stop me when I give him a piece of my mind. I'm going to hand him _his_ ass on a platter."

Charles sighed. _I have no doubts about that_.

* * *

><p>"Ugh, I'm going to pop. That was fantastic." Megan leaned back in her chair at the dining room table, rubbing her stomach. The rest of the group laughed. "I want that recipe."<p>

"It'll cost you," Lisa laughed.

"I'll gladly pay."

Elizabeth stood up, smiling. "Before you pop, we have clean-up. Let's go."

"Actually," Jason spoke up, "before anyone leaves the table, I'd like to talk quickly about the storm."

Elizabeth sat back down while Jason got up to retrieve a hurricane tracking chart from a folder on the

coffee table in the living room. He sat back down at the table, putting the chart in the center so that everyone could see it.

"This is the direction the storm is expected to take." He traced his finger over a large black arrow that was drawn on the chart. It extended from Danielle's location down in the Bahamas, straight up along the eastern seaboard, ending at the Cape. "These other two arrows," Jason continued, pointing at two blue arrows, one on each side of the black arrow, "are also possible tracks. Of course, the track that sends Danielle out to sea, away from us, is the track we hope she follows. It doesn't seem likely, though."

"Any prediction of wind speeds?" Thomas asked.

"Well...there's talk of this being similar to Bob, so I think that if it continues to pick up speed, it could be a three by the time it gets here...probably early Wednesday morning, depending on the speed it sustains."

"Shit," Paul said.

Jason nodded. "It's our neighbors north of us who will feel the brunt of it...the Outer Banks are going to get hit again badly."

"What about the Cape?" Elizabeth asked.

Jason looked at her sympathetically. "Well, if you remember, when Bob traveled up the coast, it slowed down quite a bit when it hit those cooler shelf waters. If the Hurricane Center's predictions are correct, it'll hit Rhode Island first, probably as a two." He glanced over at Lisa and Paul. "Then it will pass over the Cape, and after that, it will head on to Maine, though it will probably be much weaker at that point, maybe only at tropical storm strength."

"Where do you both live?" Thomas asked Paul and Lisa.

"Rockport. We're not directly on the water, though, we live a bit inland," Lisa answered. "We had a lot of rain with Bob, almost eight inches, but where our house is...it's fine." She looked at Elizabeth. "What are you going to do, Liz?"

Elizabeth glanced at Jason, and saw that he was watching her intently. _Okay, so he does stare, apparently. _"I think I need to go home. Soon. Tomorrow, probably. I need time to get my house squared away. What about you, Thomas? I never thought to ask where in Falmouth you live."

"Oh, I'm fine," the older man replied. "I'm in the center of town, away from the coast. I have a son nearby, he'll take care of my wife."

"That's good, that's a relief I'm sure," Elizabeth said. Thomas nodded.

"Maybe Danielle will veer off toward sea, or maybe she'll take the other track, and turn inland sooner," Megan said.

Elizabeth shrugged. "If that happens, then great. I'll be back that much quicker. I have to go, though...I'd rather be safe than sorry."

Jason nodded. "I think that's wise. Book a flight, I'll make sure you get to the airport tomorrow."

"Okay, thanks." She offered him a small smile. "Alright, now we clean up. Let's go Megan."

"I'll dry the pots and pans and what have you...just leave them," Thomas offered.

"You got it," Megan answered.

The two women walked into the kitchen, both feeling disappointment at the turn of events. Before they even had a chance to say a word, Jason walked in.

"Can I talk to you Elizabeth?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Sure."

Jason turned to look at Megan, making it obvious that it was a personal conversation.

Megan put the pan down that she was holding. "Excuse me," she said, raising her brows at Elizabeth, before walking out of the kitchen.

_I don't have the energy for this_, Elizabeth thought. "What is it?"

He cleared his throat. "I thought...I thought that maybe you could use some help. On the Cape. I don't know who's around...or if you have anyone to help you..."

Elizabeth's face registered her surprise. "You want to come back to the Cape to help me?"

"Yes."

"No."

"No?"

"No, Jason. Why would I want you to help me?"

He gave a short laugh. "Maybe because there's a major hurricane heading up the coast-"

"_Maybe_ heading up the coast. Maybe."

"Okay, maybe, but still...you have a lot to do, I know...I remember Bob. I could help you out."

"I don't want your help. Thanks, but no thanks."

"Look, I'm just offering friendship here. A friend helping a friend."

"You are not my friend, Jason! You are my supervisor, my boss, for lack of a better word, and only for the time being."

"Are you worried about how it would look if I went with you?"

Elizabeth couldn't help it, she laughed and shook her head. "Oh my God, you just don't get it, do you? Even if you _weren't_ my boss, I wouldn't want you to go with me. I don't want to be your friend, I don't want to be anything to you other than what I've been for the last six years; nothing!"

"You haven't been _nothing_ to me."

"Well, you have a damn funny way of showing it. I don't know what you expect from me...forgiveness, friendship, whatever it is...but you're not getting it. You put me through hell. Everything I went through...wondering why you left, finding out I was pregnant, miscarrying...when I was in the middle of it all, I never thought I'd survive it."

He looked at her bleakly. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. You're sorry. Would it make you feel better if I accepted your apology? Is this some kind of self-help thing you're doing, where you have to make reparations for things you've done in your past?"

"No, it's not...I'm genuinely sorry."

"Well, I _genuinely don't care_. You left me, without a second glance. Walked away. Saying you're sorry isn't going to change that."

Elizabeth could tell she had shocked him into silence. She felt overwhelmed by anger, and she felt no need to censure the words coming out of her mouth. In the back of her mind, even as she was speaking, she knew that a lot of this anger, all these words being directed at Jason, were words she wanted to say to Will.

He spoke softly, looking at her sadly. "You've changed a lot, Elizabeth. You're not the same person you were back then."

"Of _course_ I'm not! Did you really think I would be?"

He shrugged. "I don't know."

"I already told you that the girl you left behind, the one that cried for you...she's gone. You changed her into what I am now. I should thank you though, because the person I am now is stronger than that girl ever was. I won't let anyone do that to me again." Despite those last words, her voice broke, and she felt herself precariously close to losing control.

Jason looked up at her quickly, and when he saw her expression, he walked closer to her. "I wouldn't do that to you again, I promise I wouldn't. I walked out on the best thing I had in my life, and I've regretted it ever since." He reached up to stroke her cheek lightly with his fingers. "We could try again, we could make it work."

Elizabeth froze; he had obviously misunderstood her words and the emotion in her voice. She pushed his hand away from her face and stepped back from him. How could he continue to think this was about him, that she was telling him all this so that they could move past it?

"No, Jason. _I don't want you._ If you had come to me six years ago...if we'd had this discussion then, if you had apologized then, maybe it would have made a difference. Who knows where we'd be? But now...now it just doesn't matter."

All the fight drained out of her, and she suddenly felt exhausted. "Maybe you've changed, and maybe you _are_ really sorry about the choices you made and the devastation that you caused. I believe it's possible for someone to change…but...as for the rest, it's too little, too late. I can't accept your apology, and I just can't forgive you. I'm sorry, but I can't."

* * *

><p>"<em>George? It's Lydia. Um, I haven't heard from you...you're probably getting settled in at the hotel, but I thought you'd call me last night, when you got there. Anyway, we have to talk. I have some questions to ask you...about, um, the pictures you took...did you leave some at Lizzy's house?<em>

George grinned as he listened to Lydia's voice mail. So Lizzy must have found the pictures. Damn, he would have loved to see the look on her face! _Pric__eless!_

_...I don't understand why you would do that...and the thing is, Jane is worried that Will Darcy is coming after you. She said you had a history with him, but wouldn't tell me what. What's the story behind that?_

George frowned, but only briefly. Darcy would never find him here, and if he did, what could he do? Absolutely nothing. He had no proof of anything from his...tryst with Georgiana Darcy. Even if Darcy kept those pictures of his sister, had them locked away somewhere, he couldn't prove Georgiana was forced to do anything.

_I won't tell Jane where you are...I mean, she knows you're in New York, but I won't tell her where. Can you call me? I want to ask you about those, um, those pictures you took of us, too. You're keeping them private, right? I just...I don't know why you'd leave them at Lizzy's-"_

The voice mail was cut off, and George snickered. Lizzy got an eyeful, all right. He laughed to himself over his little prank, completely unconcerned about any possible repercussions. Lydia couldn't tell anyone where he was, because she didn't know. He never even gave her the name of the hotel he was staying at! Did she _really_ think he wanted her to visit him? She was a good lay, a pleasant diversion for his last two weeks on the Cape, but that was it. He had one intention when he met Lydia; to fuck her. Like he told Bill, when you can't have what you want, you take the next best thing. And take her he did, every which way he could.

At the thought of Bill, a little prickle of worry worked its way into his gut, but just as quickly as it came, it vanished. _He won't talk._ No, Bill was nothing if not a coward. He would be too afraid, and rightly so, of losing everything if he talked. George thought a little more about this, and decided to call him anyway. That same little prickle of worry arose again, this time working its way down his spine. _Yes, I'll call him. Just in case._

* * *

><p><em>So, Will has finally seen the light, but is it too late? Next chapter includes my version of 'Hunsford'...stay tuned! Please leave a review!<em>


	35. Chapter 35

_High angst warning! Buckle up!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 35<strong>

_Days apart: 11_

At seven o'clock Monday night, Jane and Charles were waiting patiently for Will to arrive. Well, Charles was waiting patiently; Jane was chomping at the bit, and was slowly sipping her second glass of wine, trying to relax. She was determined to stay calm and not completely blow her stack; all it would do was turn the evening into a shouting match, which wouldn't do any of them any good.

As much as she thought it would be an exercise in futility, Jane had _tried_ to put herself in Will's shoes, _tried_ to figure out what could have led him to the conclusions he had drawn about those pictures, and about Elizabeth. It had only made her feel worse, and had changed her mood from that of extremely irate to extremely sad and confused.

She knew Will loved Elizabeth, and everything about the two of them suggested that theirs was a match meant to last, even though their relationship was still in its infancy. Why would he so readily believe that she would deceive him like that? She just couldn't fathom it, couldn't comprehend it. It was hard to admit, but she felt sorry for Will, she really did. Her sadness was slowly turning to pity. She didn't feel bad that he had probably blown a very good chance at lifelong happiness; that was his own doing and he deserved no one's pity for that. What she _did_ feel badly about was that Will seemingly had an inability to trust. Even though he could give his love to Elizabeth, and take her love in return, he was unable, for some reason, to have faith in that love.

She glanced over at Charles, who was staring into his glass of wine, obviously deep in thought. He seemed to know that she was staring at him, and he looked up at her, his blue eyes staring into hers.

"I'm sorry, Jane," he said, nearly whispering. He sighed and shook his head, looking down again.

"Charles, you don't need-"

"Yes, I do. This whole mess...it goes beyond what I ever imagined it would. You're angry with me...Will is _going_ to be angry with me...Elizabeth is miserable, and has every _right_ to be angry with me, Will is miserable...I never thought that my actions, or _lack_ of actions I should say, would result in this."

Jane rose out of her chair and walked over to sit next to Charles on the couch. She reached up with one hand to stroke his hair, letting her fingers sink into the thick blonde layers.

"I'm not angry at you, Charles. I was, at first…I felt like you had chosen your friendship with Will over me, but I know that's not the case. You were in a difficult position, I know that. I know you love Lizzy like a sister, and you care about her well-being."

Charles turned to look at her. "Of course I do. She's important to you, that makes her important to me. I would never purposely hurt someone you love, Jane, you know that, don't you?"

"I do."

He reached to grasp her hands, looking down at them. His expression changed suddenly, and then his mouth opened, as if he was about to speak, but then he paused for a moment. The color in his face drained slightly. "Where's your ring?" The words came out very quietly.

"My ring?" It suddenly dawned on her what he had just noticed. "Oh, my ring!" Jumping up from the couch, she went to her pocketbook and quickly dug the ring out of its pocket, sliding it back on her finger. "Here it is, it's right here."

Charles was looking at her with wide eyes. "Why...why did you take it off? Were you really that upset with me?" He looked completely horrified.

"No!" She bit back a smile, she couldn't help it, the look on his face was one of complete shock, and would have been funny in any other situation. Walking back over to him, she knelt on the floor in front of him between his legs, resting her hands on his thighs, and looked him straight in the eyes. "I couldn't let my mother see this on my finger today, she would have pitched a fit. I took it off before I saw her. I want you to be with me when I tell my parents. Today was not the day for them to hear our news."

Charles visibly relaxed, letting out a huge breath, then chuckled softly. "She would have been calling for her salts."

Jane grinned, reaching up to stroke his hair again. "Yes, she would have. Every neighbor would have known, including that big mouth next door, Mrs. Phillips. She's like the town crier over there."

Charles leaned forward and smiled lightly, closing his eyes and wrapping his arms loosely around her waist, pulling her close until their noses touched.

"I'm sorry if you felt I chose Will over you," he said after a moment. "If that's what I did...I didn't see it that way, and I'm sorry. I would never do that...you are my first choice, always." He kissed her lightly before gathering her completely in his arms and pulling her up to sit on his lap. "Please don't doubt me...I love you so much."

Jane leaned in to kiss him, longer this time. "I love you too." They were interrupted by the sound of her cell phone ringing. She gave Charles another quick kiss, then rose to answer it. As she did, she heard the doorbell ring, and knew that Will had arrived. Seeing that her call was from Elizabeth, she told Charles she would take it in the bedroom. Charles nodded once, then went to answer the door.

* * *

><p>"What do you mean, you fucked up?" Charles could hardly believe the words coming out of Will's mouth as he stood in the doorway of Charles' apartment. Had he found out the truth already somehow?<p>

"I fucked up, Charles, utterly and completely."

"Okay, um...why don't you come in. Do you want a beer or something? Wine?"

"No, no, I don't want anything. I'm leaving tonight. When I leave here, I'm going to South Carolina." He quickly looked around Charles' living room. "Where's Jane? Is she here? I have to talk to her. I need to know where Elizabeth is."

"Slow down, for Christ's sake. Come in and sit down, at least."

"I can't sit. Is Jane here?"

"_Yes_, she's here, she's...she's on the phone."

Will looked at him closely. "Is she talking to Elizabeth?"

"I don't know."

"Bullshit. She is, isn't she?"

"Alright, yes, she is." He watched as Will eyed the hallway. "Don't even think about leaving this room, you stay put."

Will sighed. "I'm sorry. Look...all that shit we talked about, all those stupid things I said...God, Charles, I'm so blind! That's not Lizzy, that's not her. She..._if_ she was ever...with him, it had nothing to do with me. The way we met, it was an accident. Fate, serendipity, whatever you want to call it, that's what it was. She didn't _plan_ it, how could she?"

"Will-"

"No Charles, I know what I'm talking about. I still don't know the story behind those pictures. She must have known him, at some point...maybe something...happened between them. I don't know, the whole thought of it, if something _did_ happen...I can't even think about it, it makes me sick to my stomach, but-"

"Will, stop. It's not Elizabeth, in that picture…it's Lydia."

Will looked at him in absolute confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"The woman in that picture with Wickham. It's Lydia."

Will's eyebrows flew up. "Lydia?"

"Yes."

Before Will could react further, Jane walked back into the room, her conversation with Elizabeth over.

"Hi Jane."

Jane nodded. "Will."

He turned to look back at Charles. "What are you talking about?"

Charles looked at his fiancee. "Jane can help fill in the missing pieces, but you need to sit down. This may take a while."

* * *

><p>Will sat with his elbows on his knees, his head in his hands. <em>Where's a bottle of whiskey when you need <em>_one? _The room was completely silent. Charles and Jane were obviously giving him time to process everything that had just been said, but his brain was not cooperating.

He lifted his head, turning to look at Charles. "So all this time, this guy that Elizabeth couldn't stand, the one she had the weird feeling about...it was Wickham. He was the 'creepy guy' that Charlotte was dating."

Charles nodded. "Yes."

"And now he's...dating Lydia."

"Well...I would use that term loosely, if you know what I mean. She says he moved away. Yesterday, in fact. He left for New York."

"Those pictures I saw...they...took advantage of Elizabeth's absence and used her house?"

"Yes."

"So Elizabeth had no idea. No idea who he was all this time...he was right under my nose...how did we not meet?"

"Well, I thought about that," Jane said. "If George was in Lizzy's house, I'm sure he's seen your picture. God knows you're plastered everywhere in there." Will watched as she rolled her eyes, and right then, he knew exactly what she thought of him. "Anyway, if he recognized you, I'm sure he made it impossible for your paths to cross."

Will nodded. "There were a few times that Charlotte had suggested plans to Elizabeth, but truthfully, Elizabeth never wanted to do anything with them anyway. She loves Charlotte, but she despised George...she got a bad vibe from him. Guess her intuition is pretty good."

"Not always," Jane mumbled under her breath, causing Charles to glance at her with raised brows.

Will exhaled loudly. "Alright Jane, say it," he said calmly. "Whatever you have on your mind, spit it out, because I know it's all there, on the tip of your tongue. You might as well just let me have it. God knows I deserve it."

The room fell silent again as she glared at him. She finally spoke quietly. "Do you love her?"

Will's eyebrows shot up. Her question was not what he expected, but he answered without hesitating. "Yes. I can't begin to tell you...yes, I do."

"Are you going to go after her?"

"Yes."

Another moment passed. Jane looked at him as if studying him, slowly shaking her head. "I just don't understand, Will. How is it that you love her _so much_ that you're willing to chase after her now, yet you instantly believed such horrible things about her? How is it that you saw those pictures and didn't automatically think that there must be an explanation, because the woman you love, the woman you know _so well_, wouldn't be party to anything so horrid, and so deceitful?"

Will remained silent, not breaking eye contact with her. On the outside, he remained serene, but on the inside he was feeling anything _but_ serene. Just the same, he remained perfectly still.

She pursed her lips and studied him more before speaking again, her voice low and cold. "You don't deserve her, you know. She deserves someone far better than you. You walked out on her, just when she needed you the most, and you didn't have the courtesy, the decency, the _balls_, to tell her why. You hid, like a frightened child."

"Jane-" Charles tried to interrupt.

"What?" She looked at him with sparks shooting from her eyes.

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Jane turned back to Will. "Do you honestly think she'll take you back?"

Will shrugged. "I don't know. I hope so," he said softly.

"She told me that you know about Jason, about the pregnancy, everything."

Charles eyes grew wide. _Pregnancy?_

Will nodded. "Yes."

"Think about it, Will, what he did to her...and then think about what you did."

She waited patiently for him to say something, but he stubbornly remained silent.

"Don't you have anything to say?" she asked, becoming exasperated.

He shook his head. "No, I don't."

Jane leaned her head against the back of the couch, closing her eyes and sighing. "You have nothing to say at all?"

"No offense Jane, but you're not the one I have to explain myself to," he said, still keeping his voice controlled and even. "Even if you were, what could I say to you that would make a difference? Do you want me to defend myself? I won't, because I can't. I ran, just like you said. I hid. I was scared."

"_Fea__r _I can understand, Will, it's the way you chose to _react_ to that fear that baffles me. Didn't you learn from your mistakes with Georgiana?"

Will turned to glare at Charles, frowning.

"I had to tell her, Will," Charles said. "Thank God I did...if I hadn't, we never would have figured everything out."

Will rubbed one hand down his face, sighing loudly.

"Do you know why Charles told me?" Jane asked him. "He told me because he knows he can trust me. _Trust_, Will. Have you ever heard that word before? I'm sure Lizzy has mentioned it, at least once or twice. Remember that first weekend you came to Boston, when we all had dinner here? You picked her up at the bus station."

Will nodded. "Of course I remember."

"She was falling in love with you even then, I could see it. I remember her wondering how she had gone from thinking you were an arrogant prick, to wanting to be with you all the time, within the space of a week. You had just sent her all those roses...she didn't know she was falling in love, but I could already see it happening...and that was only after a week."

Jane continued quietly. "After _everything_ that happened while you were in California…she welcomed you back. She could have easily believed the worst, and at first she did, you know she did…but she was willing to listen to you, and give you the benefit of the doubt. I encouraged her to! But you…you haven't even given her a chance, Will."

Will looked down at his hands, unable to look Jane in the eyes anymore. He didn't want to hear this, but if Jane needed to say it, so be it. He deserved her bitterness. He swallowed thickly and forced himself to look at her again.

"It took her so long to trust you, to trust _herself_, her feelings...she was terrified. Worried that you'd get bored, that you were just infatuated. Worried that you would be another Jason."

Charles sat back, watching everything unfold. He didn't know who Jason was, but he was sure as hell going to find out tonight.

"I'm not another Jason. I would never turn my back on a child. Never."

"Maybe you wouldn't, but you turned your back on _her_. Don't you see? You did the same thing he did, you _walked away_. In my eyes, Will...you're no better than him."

Will nodded repeatedly. It was his turn to speak. His voice was firm and sure. "Okay, Jane, okay. I get it. I know what I did, and I _hate_ myself for it, I'll never forgive myself for leaving her. She is..." he paused, trying to put his feelings to words. "I...I don't know what to say. She...she's everything to me. And I _know_ I fucked up, I know it. You have every right, every reason to hate me for causing your sister so much pain, because I know that indirectly, I've caused you pain too, and I'm sorry for that, I truly am. You can hate me all you want, that's fine with me."

Jane looked at him and said nothing, waiting for him to finish. Her face was expressionless.

"The thing is, it's not for _you_ to decide if I deserve her, it's for Elizabeth to decide." He stood up and started pacing as his mind raced ahead of his words. "I'm going to do everything in my power to fix what needs to be fixed. Things about me...there are things I have to change, I know that. I'll do it. I'll do whatever it takes, whatever she asks me to, I'll do it."

"You may be too late."

He shrugged. "You're right, but I'll say it again, that's not for you to say, it's not for you to decide." He stared at her, and knew his resolve showed in his expression. "I'm not going to ask for your help, obviously."

"Obviously."

"I am going to ask you for two things, though."

"Really? What?"

"First of all, like I said, I don't expect your help...but I don't want you to get in my way, either. I want you to let Elizabeth decide for herself what she wants. The second thing is, you have to tell me where to find her. I'm leaving tonight, to go to South Carolina, and I need to know where she is."

Jane shook her head, but before she could speak, Will continued.

"Don't shake your head no, Jane, please. I won't ask you for another thing, ever. But I have to see her, I have to talk to her."

"I'm not saying no, Will. We actually agree on something..._you_ have to be the one to tell her why you abandoned her."

He nodded. "Yes, I do."

Jane sighed, unsure of what to do. Did she tell him that Elizabeth would be back on the Cape tomorrow? Should she check with Elizabeth first? Either way, Will was determined to speak with her.

She thought for a moment before making up her mind.

"She'll be back in Falmouth tomorrow."

Will's eyes opened wide. "Back tomorrow? Why?"

"Hurricane Danielle. She has to get stuff out of the house, secure it. It's a lot of work."

_Shit_. _The hurricane!_ "Is she all set? I mean, does she need help?"

"No."

"Is she coming into Logan?"

"Yes."

Will's thoughts were going a mile a minute. "What time?"

"You can't go to the airport."

"I won't go to the airport, I don't want to talk to her in the airport, or in a car. What time is her flight?"

"Early. She should be back in Falmouth by noon."

Will nodded his head, and reached to grab his car keys off of the coffee table. "I have to go."

"Now?" Charles asked.

"Yes, now." He looked at Charles, then at Jane. "I'm going back to the Cape. It's time to go home."

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 12<em>

The relatively short flight from Savannah, Georgia, back to Boston was still long enough for Elizabeth to become mired in her thoughts. Without anyone to distract her, not even a talkative neighbor on the plane, she became lost in her musings about what had happened to her budding relationship with William.

All this time, she had been wondering what she had done that had driven him away. Or, more appropriately, what he _thought_ she had done. Soon enough, though, she began to think that her initial fears, the ones she held in the early weeks of their relationship, right through to his trip to California, were more logical, and perhaps explained his disappearance better. Maybe it wasn't something he thought she had done...maybe it was just...who she was. He may have had second thoughts about her. A long time ago, Jason had felt that very same way.

Was that what it was? Did he just decide, on the spur of the moment, that she wasn't enough for him, that he didn't want that life with her after all? It had to be something like that. But then, the more she thought about it, the more it didn't make sense as well. It was obvious to her that he was happy. They had made each other genuinely happy...at least, she thought they had. Maybe not; maybe she only saw what she wanted to see.

She could feel herself becoming more and more despondent. Try as she did to give herself mental pep talks, it just wouldn't work. She loved him, she missed him, and she wanted to see him, even if only to get an explanation from him. He owed her that much, at the very least. Whether he agreed or not was a different story altogether; she had no idea what he was thinking. If she didn't hear from him, soon, she would have to close this chapter of her life and move on. No looking back.

* * *

><p>Jane sat at work Tuesday afternoon, unable to concentrate. She knew that Elizabeth would be getting home soon, back to the Cape. She had decided not to let Elizabeth know that Will was planning on seeing her, but was now having second thoughts. She should warn her, let her know, so that she wouldn't be completely taken by surprise.<p>

She dug her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Elizabeth's number. After several rings, it went to voice mail. Frustrated, she hung up without leaving a message, deciding instead to text her.

_Please call me on my cell asap, have to talk to you!_

_Why_ hadn't she called Elizabeth back after Will left last night to tell her that he was heading to the Cape? What was she thinking? When Elizabeth had called her, just as Will had arrived, they hadn't talked much about anything but the storm. Jane had asked how she was doing, and she said she was okay, but Jane could hear in her voice that she was sad and confused. Elizabeth had talked a great deal about having to leave the Basin, and how upset she was to be doing so. Hopefully she'd be able to get back soon enough. Jane had kept an eye on the weather, and was pleased to see that the hurricane seemed to be taking more of an easterly track now, meaning that the Cape may not suffer a direct hit. If that was the case, then Elizabeth would be able to return to the Basin sooner, rather than later.

The sadness and confusion in Elizabeth's voice didn't stem from the fact that she was leaving the Basin, though, that much Jane knew. Although Elizabeth had avoided talking about it, Jane knew that she was distraught over Will, and was only being stoic. What would she do when she saw him? Jane honestly had no idea. She knew that Elizabeth loved him more than anything, but once she knew everything, once she knew what Will had been thinking, what he had been imagining, how would she react?

Jane sighed, determined to try to focus again. She glanced at the clock, saw that it was close to one-thirty, and leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes. _Please call me back, Lizzy!_

* * *

><p>Will sat staring at his sister Tuesday morning, waiting for her to say something to him. Anything. They were seated in the small living room of her house. He had wanted to sit outside, but the day had turned gray, and he could see that it would only be a matter of time before it began to rain.<p>

Georgiana was completely and utterly speechless. The story her brother had just told her...about the pictures, about George Wickham, Lydia Bennet, all of it...it had rendered her silent. She couldn't decide which was more appalling; that her brother had believed Elizabeth guilty, initially, of being with Wickham, or that Wickham was back, around here, on the Cape.

"You weren't going to tell me any of this?" she asked Will.

He shook his head. "No, I wasn't. I mean, not until I found out the truth, that is. Not until I talked to Jane and Charles and found out what had really happened. If they hadn't figured it all out, and I was still in the dark...I wasn't going to say anything."

"Even though you had already decided, prior to talking to Charles and Jane, that you wanted to speak to Elizabeth, and try to straighten everything out."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Why? Why wasn't I going to talk to you?"

"Yes, Fitzwilliam, why?"

_Uh oh, full name. _"The answer should be obvious, Georgie...I didn't want to mention anything about that man to you."

"If Charles and Jane hadn't told you what happened, you would have learned it from Elizabeth anyway, right? I mean, you were going to say something about the pictures, weren't you?"

He nodded. "Yes, I would have had to, don't you think?"

"Obviously. Once you told her about the pictures, she would have told you of her connection to...to him, and the truth would have been known. How could you possibly think that you would have been able to keep everything from me? Furthermore, why would you want to?"

"I didn't want you to be reminded of...everything. You have changed so much, you're healing...your life is moving forward, just as it should. I didn't want to dredge up the past, and have you worrying that he was around again."

Georgiana remained silent, contemplating what he had just told her. Eventually, she spoke. "You thought you were protecting me?"

"I thought so, but I have to be honest with you...my reasoning, my intentions, my actions, have been so backwards and off-target that I have no idea if it was the right thing to do or not. Maybe I should have told you right away. Maybe I did the right thing in keeping everything to myself, I honestly don't know right now. All I can say is, at the time, I _thought_ I was making the right decision, I really did. I thought I was doing what was best for you."

Georgiana nodded slightly, then looked down at her clasped hands. "All of this is my fault anyway," she said softly. "If _I_ had done the right thing, all those months ago, none of this would have happened."

"What?" Will asked her quietly. "What are you talking about, Georgie?"

"I should have been stronger, I shouldn't have let him get away with it. I should have gone after him. What if...what if something had ended up happening to Lizzy? What if he abused Charlotte? Or Lydia? What if there's someone else out there who was victimized by him, because I was too...too weak to confront him?"

"Don't do this to yourself now, please. If anything, it was my fault...I knew what he was, knew what he was capable of, and I let him walk away."

"Only because you were respecting my wishes, you were trying to do what I asked you to do."

"I did that to make it easier on myself. I could have overruled your wishes, could have pushed you to file complaints, contact the police. You know damn well that if I had forced the issue, you would have had no choice. I didn't. Instead, I did what I could to make it easier on me, too. It wasn't all just you."

She shook her head. "If I was stronger...I was so weak."

"You were scared, Georgie. You were a victim, and you were terrified and traumatized."

They were silent again, and Will turned to look out the window. The wind was picking up, but no rain was falling yet. After a few more moments of silence, Will finally spoke.

"What are you thinking?"

Georgiana turned her eyes to look at him. "Where is he now?"

"New York, supposedly. He's not here, anyway, I'm fairly certain of that, from what Lydia told Jane. Why?"

Georgiana shrugged. "I'm just wondering."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth sat on her deck Tuesday afternoon, watching as the clouds slowly swallowed up the sun. A gray day, perfectly in keeping with her mood. The waves crashed noisily on the shore, pounding against the sand, lulling her into this spell of inertia. She had so much to do, but didn't have the motivation to do a thing.<p>

She had decided that today, and _only_ today, she would give in to her feelings of self-pity, and allow herself a little time to mourn, for lack of a better word. Walking up the steps to her deck forced so many vivid images back into her head, things that she longed to remember, even though they caused a deep ache in her chest. She stood up from her chair and leaned over the railing, looking down at the sand below her. The beach buckets that Will had used to send his message of love on her birthday were lined up below, tucked slightly under the deck. She could see them peeking out, and even though it pained her to think about that night, it made her smile slightly. It was so romantic and thoughtful, what he had done.

Unbidden, tears came to her eyes. She sat back into her chair and without thinking twice about it, she let them fall. They cascaded endlessly down her cheeks, big, fat, salty tears, dripping off of her chin, running onto her lips. _Let it out, Elizabeth. _She knew she needed to...she had resisted crying since the day she left for South Carolina. That day was huge for her, at least she thought it was at the time. _No crying anymore_, she had told herself then.

Who was she kidding? She gulped in huge amounts of air as sobs escaped her, mingling with the sound of the tide. She opened her hand, and looked down at the item she had clutched there. Her iPod. It had been on the plane with her, but she had resisted listening to it. On the bus ride back to the Cape from Boston, it felt like it had weighed ten pounds in her pocket; she was constantly aware of its presence. It was such a tiny little thing, but at the same time, it was a huge representation of Will and their time spent together. So much of what they had shared had involved music, in one way or another. His music, his singing, his voice.

_Everyone has a soundtrack to their lives, I think_.

She remembered him saying that on their first date. Correction, their _second _date. She allowed her mind to wander back to those first days of them getting to know each other, all the silly things...likes, dislikes, quirks...first kisses...it was all so magical, so enchanting. Who would even begin to guess that she would be sitting here, nine weeks later, wondering what had happened, what she had done, why she wasn't good enough?

Without thinking, she slipped her earbuds in and turned on the iPod. She sat back in the chair, eyes closed, and let song after song play, while the tears streamed steadily down her face. They seemed to just come and come; from where, she didn't know, but they weren't abating.

_Let them go_, she told herself. _This is it...the last time...so just let them fall_.

Every song seemed to be speaking to her, or speaking about Will...she listened to "You and Me" by Dave Matthews, and remembered Will telling her, when he absconded with her iPod, that it was the song that was playing on the fourth of July when he realized that he was in love with her. "At Last" played, and she thought about him singing it to her while they danced at the benefit...God, was that really only a little over two weeks ago?

Another song started, and Elizabeth inhaled sharply. She remembered Will downloading this song, telling her how beautiful, but sad, it was, but how he loved the woman's voice. Elizabeth hadn't had the chance to listen to it, and was almost afraid to now...but she did, and the words struck her forcefully as she listened to them, especially those at the end of the song.

_I cannot go to the ocean, I cannot drive the streets at night, I cannot wake up in the morning,  
><em>_without you on my mind.  
><em>_So you're gone and I'm haunted, and I bet you are just fine.  
><em>_Did I make it that easy to walk right in and out of my life?  
><em>_Goodbye my almost lover, goodbye my hopeless dream, I'm trying not to think about you,  
><em>_can't you just let me be?  
><em>_So long my luckless romance, my back is turned on you.  
><em>_Shoulda known you'd bring me heartache, almost lovers always do._

She reached up to cover her face with her hands, letting the hurt drain from her body through her tears. Suddenly, she felt a hand lightly grasp her wrist, and she jumped and pulled her hand away, turning to look at who was there.

Her heart plunged to her stomach as she saw Will, kneeling next to her chair, tears swimming in his eyes. She pulled the earbuds out and gawked at him, shock evident on her face. He pulled her toward him, embracing her, and she let him, but didn't embrace him back. She was too stunned by his appearance, and as the roaring noise that was echoing loudly through her head finally subsided, she was vaguely aware of his voice in her ear, whispering to her.

"I'm so sorry, Elizabeth, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry," he said, over and over again.

She could tell, now, that he was crying a little, and though she wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around him, she held herself in check. After a moment, she forcefully pushed against his chest, almost causing him to tumble back. He stood up, and took a step back from the chair.

"I'm sorry, I...I didn't mean to startle you. I called your name from the stairs, but...you didn't...you couldn't hear me."

Elizabeth was still too dazed to speak. Her throat was raw from crying, and her eyes felt itchy and swollen. Her nose was alternating between stuffy and runny, and she needed a tissue. Without saying a word, she rose from her chair and turned and walked into the house, heading straight for the bathroom.

Will stood on the deck, unsure of what he should do. Follow her? Wait where he was? He chose to wait, and in a few minutes she returned, tissues in hand.

For the first time that Elizabeth could recall, she felt awkward in front of him. She stood just outside the door, not moving to sit again, but standing uncomfortably. Her eyes ate him up hungrily as he leaned back against the railing of the deck. For a long moment, all the anger that she felt, all the frustration, all the sadness, was gone. It was Will, _her Will_, and the feeling of just having him in front of her again...it was like a balm to her soul. He looked good...a little thinner, maybe, and tired...but good. So good.

Will was waiting patiently for her to say something. He knew what he had to do, what he had to say, but it all had to happen at her pace. The explanations, the truth that needed to be said...he couldn't just heap it all on her right away, he had to move slowly. For now, he was content to just look at her, soak her in. Even from that one embrace, her scent was on him, and he took long, quiet breaths, just breathing her in. She looked like she had been crying for a while, and guilt ate at him as his heart broke further. _I did this, I did this to her_.

"Why are you here?" she asked him quietly, her voice hoarse from crying.

"I had to see you. I need...we need to talk."

She shook her head lightly, breaking eye contact with him and instead, turned to gaze out at the waves. Looking at him, staring into his eyes...not a good idea. "Why now? Why not...why not eleven days ago?" Her voice was still hoarse and quiet. "Or ten days ago? Nine? Eight?" She felt her heart pounding in her chest. Here it was, the moment she had been anticipating, yet dreading just the same, since the night he had walked away from her.

"There isn't an easy answer to that question. I wish there was, but there isn't."

She shook her head again, this time a little more decisively. "No, no...there is an easy answer. Just think about the question, Will, and give me the answer. Tell me."

He swallowed, and knew what she was waiting to hear. "I chose...I had to stay away. I decided...at the time, it seemed like...it was what I should do. What I needed to do...for me."

There was a long moment of silence again, and Elizabeth felt her eyes welling up with tears again. Before she could stop them, they ran down her face. She reached up to wipe them away swiftly. "What _you_ should do. What _you_ needed to do..._for you_."

He nodded. "Yes." He waited to see if she would say something more, but when she didn't, he continued. "Lizzy...I have so much I want to say...so much I need to tell you. So much I need to apologize for," he said, never taking his eyes from her face, even though she refused to look at him.

She gave a short, watery laugh, shaking her head even more. He began to walk towards her, and she held up a hand to stop him, knowing that if he tried to embrace her again, or touched her in any way, she'd crumple like a house of cards. She was too fragile at the moment, too vulnerable. "Stop," she whispered, her eyes now closed. "Don't."

He stopped where he was, several feet from her. He wanted to hold her and comfort her so badly, it was like an ache in his bones. His arms were thrumming, vibrating with the effort it took not to walk the remaining four feet to her and pull her up against him.

"I need to explain everything," he said. "I need to tell you why I acted the way I did. Why I left...why I'm back now." In his head, he was silently pleading that she would want to hear him out. _Just let her __listen, let her give me the chance to tell her everything. _He knew that there was a good chance she would turn him away in the end, and he wouldn't blame her at all if she did; he deserved nothing less. Deep inside, he didn't think she would, though. She must still feel something for him. _Something other than anger and betrayal, that is._

She nodded her head. "I need you to tell me, I have to know...I can't go through that again, the not knowing. I wish I could just tell you to leave, but I can't. Not yet."

He knew what she was referring to, and his stomach flipped. Already, she was equating him with Jason. The thought appalled him, but once again, he deserved no less.

He spoke quietly. "We...we should go inside, maybe. The rain will be starting soon. Do you want to go in?"

She sighed. "I guess."

They walked into the house, and Elizabeth stood hesitantly behind the couch, waiting to see what he would do, where he would go. He chose to sit in the chair, so she moved to the front of the couch and sat down. Her heart rate was finally beginning to slow, though her stomach was in knots.

"I need to get something. It's, um...it's in your room, I think. Still. I don't know...can I go into your room?"

She looked at him, clearly puzzled. "What do you need in there?"

"Just...just bear with me, okay? I'm not...I just have to get something."

Elizabeth nodded lightly and shrugged. He rose and walked into her bedroom. What he was after, she had no idea. His guitar maybe? It stood in the corner of her room, gathering dust, but she knew it was one of his favorites. She could barely bring herself to glance at it.

In a moment he returned with what looked like two photos in his hand. His face was drawn and serious, and she was admittedly curious about what the pictures were of, because she knew she had no unframed photos laying around in her room.

"I have to say something," he began, "before I show you these. I know it's going to sound...contrived, or desperate, but...I love you, Elizabeth, with all my heart. Over these past two weeks...that has never changed. What I feel for you...it hasn't gone away. If anything, it's grown...being without you, not having you around me has...its only made things...my feelings...clearer for me." He watched as more tears traveled silently down her face, and felt his eyes welling up again. "I don't know what will happen to us after you hear what I have to say, but...I love you, and if you can find it in your heart to forgive me..." His voice trailed off.

Elizabeth didn't respond, but she listened. She limited her response to a nod, too overwhelmed to speak.

"What are those pictures of?" she finally said, nodding toward the photos with her chin.

Will cleared his throat and showed her the first picture, the one of just George on her bed.

Elizabeth's eyes widened perceptibly, and her mouth dropped open. "Oh, my God...what...where did you get this? Why..." her voice trailed off, then suddenly her hand flew to her open mouth. Her voice grew in strength. "That's my room...that's my bed. Why is he...?" She stopped speaking as understanding began to seep into her jumbled mind. "Did you think...?"

Before she could finish, Will handed her the next photo. He swallowed thickly and looked away from her, wanting to avoid her reaction.

She took the picture and gazed at it for a few seconds before dropping it on the floor.

"Lydia."

It was all she said, that one word, that one name. Will closed his eyes and exhaled, nodding. "Yes, it's Lydia."

Elizabeth felt the cold realization of what had happened seep into her. "You thought...you thought it was me, didn't you?" Her voice was deceptively quiet, effectively hiding the shock and anger that was lingering just under the surface. He didn't say anything, so she asked him again, her voice stronger and a bit louder now. "Tell me _now_, Will, _answer_ me. You...you saw that picture...that night. The night I was in the hospital. You found it...somewhere...and you believed it was me."

Will nodded, slowly opening his eyes to look at her. "Yes. I thought it was you, yes."

She turned away from him, her mouth dropping open slightly again, disbelief etched on her face.

"Do you know who that is?" she asked him, sure that his answer would be no.

"I do, yes. Unfortunately, I know exactly who that is."

Her eyes opened wide in surprise. "You do? How...? You've never met, I never introduced you."

"His name is George Wickham."

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes. He was Charlotte's boyfriend...the one that cheated on her with Lydia."

"Yes, I know that. I only found that out yesterday, but I've known him for a little longer than that. Well, not _known _him, really...but I know who he is. I know what he is." Before he had a chance to explain to her exactly how he knew Wickham, Elizabeth spoke up.

"Is this what the past twelve days have been about? These pictures? You thought I slept with him? You thought I _cheated_ on you?" Her eyes were wide, and she stood from the couch, her voice growing even louder. "How could you think that? All this...this _silence_, for two weeks..." Her voice trailed off as she walked to the back window to stare outside. The rain had just started to fall.

Will was shaking his head. "Please sit down, Elizabeth. Please. There's so much more I have to tell you. I need to tell you everything. Please."

"I don't know if I can listen to anything else," she said, and it happened again. _God, these damn tears_, she thought, as a fresh onslaught of them spilled out of her eyes.

"Just...just let me finish. Then...then I'll leave, if you want me to."

"I want you to leave now," she said quietly, and immediately, she regretted that the words had slipped out. Even after all this, she didn't want to hurt him, she wanted to spare his feelings.

He looked distraught, but stood up. "Okay...I'll go. Just-"

She interrupted him, shaking her head again. "No, no. Just finish, Will. Finish what you came here to say." She walked to the couch and sat back down.

Will also sat, and decided he needed to just get it all out. "That man...Wickham...he's the one that assaulted Georgiana. He's the man that...that took those pictures of her, at the party. It was him."

* * *

><p>Almost an hour later, Elizabeth still sat on the couch, while Will paced in her living room. Finally, he sat back down, this time on the couch. She looked at him warily, and he read her look quite easily. <em>Keep your distance, <em>it said. He stood back up and walked back over to the chair, sitting there again.

"That's it. That's everything, Elizabeth. Everything that...that happened, everything I was thinking, everything I was feeling...all of it."

_It's odd,_ Elizabeth thought, _how different I feel right now, compared to how I felt an hour ago, when I first saw him, kneeling next to me on the deck. _Her stomach was no longer in knots, her heart wasn't pounding. Her tears had dried up, and now she just felt...numb. It was as if she was incapable of feeling any type of emotion; she was completely blank. Will began to speak again.

"Please talk to me...say something, anything. Yell at me, scream at me, throw something at me...please."

"How could you...how could you think those things?" She was completely baffled by everything he had told her. She knew he had been honest with her when he told her the entire story, and he had related everything matter-of-factly. It certainly hadn't put him in a very forgiving light, and she was shocked and angry at what he had imagined her guilty of. "Do you really think so little of me...do you really believe that I think so little of _myself_?"

"I don't think those things...I did, I know, but I realized I was wrong. I told you, I realized it before I knew the full truth, before I knew what actually happened. It took me so long, and there is no excuse for that, no excuse for why...why I doubted you. I'm disgusted with myself-"

"If you had just talked to me, trusted me...trusted who I was."

"I do."

"But you didn't, not when you really needed to." She paused for a moment. "Do you remember when we talked after you got back from California? Do you remember our conversation that day?"

Her voice sounded detached and cold, and she still wouldn't look at him. He swallowed and nodded his head. "Yes," he whispered. "Yes, I remember, of course I remember." She finally raised her eyes to his, and to him they looked dull.

"Do you? I told you how scared I was to trust you, how afraid I was to let my heart go and just..._feel _again."

He nodded silently.

"We talked about it more, you and I...the first time we made love, that day...we talked more about it. I was so afraid of losing you, of missing out on what I could have with you, if I kept holding back. I had to decide what I was more afraid of...getting my heart broken, or losing out on the chance to love you, and have you love me."

Will continued to just watch her, and saw her eyes turn bright as they filled with tears. Slowly, they began falling again, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Who would think," she said, "that both would happen? That you would break my heart, _and_ I would lose that chance with you. All at once."

He began shaking his head, leaning forward in the chair. "No, Elizabeth...it doesn't have to be that way. We don't have to lose each other, we still have a chance...I know what I did, what I thought, was awful, and wrong, and...there's really no way I can make it up to you. I know that. What I did isn't going to be erased by anything I say or do. You...you just have to believe that _I_ _love_ _you_, more than anything, and I'm so, so sorry."

She shook her head and looked down at her hands, tears running off her cheeks and onto her lap. "You made promises to me that day. You understood me...you _said_ you understood me, how I felt, and you said you would never hurt me. You said those words to me."

His eyes closed briefly. "I know. I know what I said, and I know that I did hurt you, badly. It's me...it's all me. I can't change what I did, all I can do is promise you that it won't happen again. I have to fix what it is that's broken with me...I know that."

"I was so afraid," she whispered. Her eyes were glued to a spot in front of her; she wasn't looking at him, and it was almost as though she was talking to herself. "Terrified."

Will didn't respond, and instead waited for her to continue. She finally turned to look up at him. "All this time, I was worried that you had decided I wasn't good enough for you." Her voice was still quiet, but firm. "Worried that you had decided, just like that, to move on."

He shook his head adamantly, but didn't speak.

She read his actions. "No, I know the truth now. It's not me, it never was." She took a deep breath. "The truth is...it's you. You're not good enough for me."

Will felt all the air being sucked out of his lungs, and his heart clutched in his chest. Before he could respond, before he was even coherent enough to reply, she spoke again.

"I love you, so much. I do. But it's not enough. I need more." She looked at him, her gaze steady now, and watched as silent tears slid down his face. "I can't take that chance with you. Not again. You left me, walked away...you said you never would, but you did."

"I won't do it again, Lizzy, please...I'm begging you, just give me-"

"No. I can't"

"You said you love me. You said it. You can't change that, you can't just _pretend_ you don't feel it. I love you too, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes...we can start over, we can-"

"God, Will, _no! _I can't do it! I'm not strong enough...you say you'll never do it again, you'll never turn away from me, but...how can I believe you? How can I trust you?"

"You _can_ believe me, you _can_ trust me. I won't."

"You're forgetting...I've heard that before. You said those words before. You lied."

Will closed his eyes tightly, trying to ignore the churning in his stomach and the pounding in his chest. Slowly, he opened them. "Please, Elizabeth, please," he whispered, staring at her, sorrow etched in his expression, his voice saturated with grief. "Don't give up on me, don't give up on us. Please, not yet."

Elizabeth exhaled loudly, her breath hitching. "I have to, Will. Don't you see? You already did."

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading...reviews are welcomed and very appreciated!<em>

_Song: "Almost Lover" by A Fine Frenzy_


	36. Chapter 36

_LOTS of people upset with Will...and rightly so. There will be quite a few chapters of unhappiness and angst before things begin to look brighter again. Hang in there..._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 36<strong>

_Days apart: 12_

"Jane?"

The voice on the other end was soft and hesitant, and Jane's heart broke. "Oh, Lizzy...are you okay?"

Elizabeth sniffled. "No...no, I'm not okay. Not at all."

Jane closed her eyes. "I'm so sorry, I really am...I knew he was going to see you, I tried to reach you to tell you he was coming. I should have called you right away, and instead I waited..."

"It's okay. It wouldn't have changed anything, would it?"

"No...no, I suppose not. Do you need me to come to the Cape? I can be there tonight...I'll come right after work."

"No, it's okay, you don't have to come. I'll be fine. I have to pack a few things...just clothes and my camera equipment, some pictures. I have time tomorrow to take care of the outside of the house, dad is coming over to help me board up the windows."

"Are you sure? You know I don't mind. I want to help you."

"You're helping me now, just by talking to me." She paused for a second. "You'd think I would have learned, wouldn't you? I seem to have this...this _talent_ for picking out the wrong men."

"Lizzy, it's not you, honestly. Will...he has some issues, obviously, and needs to get them straightened out. I feel badly that you got hurt in the process of him realizing that. It's not fair."

"It's not me, Jane? How is it not me? Jason left me, without so much as a backward glance. Didn't even respond when he found out I was pregnant, and is now nothing but a thorn in my side. Will...Will thought all those horrible things...about me, about my character...how can you say it's not me? There must be something-"

"Hold on. Hold it, wait a second," Jane interrupted. "Back up. How is Jason _nothing but a thorn in your side?_ What does that mean?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes. _Oh shit_. "Ugh, Jane...I didn't want to tell you-"

"Please don't tell me he's been in contact with you. Has he called you? Is he bothering you? I swear, Lizzy, I will _kick his ass_ if he comes anywhere near you."

Despite everything, Elizabeth smiled. "Jane, you have to promise me you'll behave. He _has_ been in contact with me, but it's been unavoidable...at least, it has been for me. I think he could have avoided it. He works down at the Basin, I've seen him several times."

"What? You are _kidding_ me! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Because I know you, and you would have been on the first plane down...at least, you would have tried to be on the first plane down, but you would've gotten yourself arrested for trying to smuggle weapons on board."

"Ha ha, very funny. Seriously, Lizzy...Jesus, I can't believe it."

"Jane, it's fine. I wasn't happy to see him, and I'm not happy I have to work with him, but...I'm handling it." She sighed. "I'm handling it fine. I've had the opportunity to give him my two cents, for what it's worth...he's really a non-issue. I'm there to work, not to relive my past. I think he understands that. Now."

"Now? _Please_ don't tell me he wanted to dredge all that stuff up. _Please_ don't tell me he wants to be all buddy buddy with you or something."

"No, not really...I mean, he tried, he wanted to apologize, but I didn't let it get very far. I just can't handle that right now. I can't deal with...all that. The only benefit to all of it was that it got my mind off of Will...temporarily, at least." Her voice softened. "Will wants another chance...he thinks we can start over."

"I know he does. What did you tell him?"

"I told him no."

"Just...no?"

"Pretty much. I can't do it, Jane...I wouldn't be able to cope if he just...left again. I love him so much...I don't think I could survive it. His reaction...what if we were to face a real crisis? Not one drummed up in his head, but a real, honest to goodness crisis. What if something happened that really tested our relationship? I don't think I could rely on him to stay by my side."

"Did you tell him that?"

"In a roundabout way, yes. He swears he would never do it again, he would never leave me, but...I can't trust that. He said it once before, he said he wouldn't hurt me...but he did." Elizabeth sighed. "Do you think I'm making the right decision?"

"I can't answer that, Lizzy. You have to do what's right for you, what's right for your heart. I'm behind you one hundred and ten percent, whatever you choose to do, you know I am. But it's your decision."

Jane grimaced. She had told Will she wouldn't interfere, and she wouldn't. She would be there, just as she said, to support Elizabeth in any way that she could; what she wouldn't do was try to influence Elizabeth's decision. Right now, though, she felt Elizabeth's decision was the right one. As strong as she was, she knew her sister couldn't take much more heartbreak.

"How do I stop loving him?" Elizabeth whispered into the phone. "I haven't stopped thinking about him since he left. The look on his face, Jane...I know I had to say what I said, and I know I hurt him. Why can't I just be happy that he got a dose of his own medicine? Why can't I be vindictive like that, instead of...instead of hating myself for hurting him?"

"It's just who you are, Lizzy...you haven't got a vindictive bone in your body. You have a gentle soul, and it's not in your nature to deliberately hurt someone, or strike out just to cause pain."

"I wish I could say I felt nothing, that I was indifferent to it...but saying those things to him killed me. Telling him no, turning him away...it was the hardest thing I've ever done. He looked so devastated..."

Her voice trailed off, and Jane could tell that her sister was crying again, which made her eyes cloud with tears as well. "The hurt will stop, Lizzy. Eventually, it will. It's just...it's going to take time. A long time. You can't force it away, but some day, it will get better."

Elizabeth sniffled and took a deep breath. "Some day."

* * *

><p>Georgiana knocked on the slider several times. She saw Will's car in the driveway, and knew he must have been back from Elizabeth's house. He had told her he was going to talk to her, and she wanted to know how everything went. She was hoping, praying, that they had come to some sort of truce, and would be able to work things out. At the same time, she knew it wouldn't be easy for Elizabeth to forgive him, if she ever could.<p>

She gave up knocking, and called him on her cell while she was still standing on the deck.

"Yes?"

"Will, it's me. I'm on the deck, can you let me in?"

"What do you want, Georgie?"

"I want to talk to you." Obviously, things with Elizabeth hadn't gone well.

"I don't want to talk right now, okay? Can you just leave me alone?" His tone was flat, emotionless. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Okay, fine." She hung up, and walked back over to her house. Grabbing her keys, she walked back to the main house and let herself in the front door. His office was the logical place to look for him, but he wasn't there. She walked upstairs and headed to the master suite. The door to the sitting room was slightly ajar, so she knocked lightly. There was no response, so she pushed the door open slowly. Seeing the room was empty, she walked through to his bedroom door. It was wide open, but she stopped just shy of it.

"Will?" She called out loudly.

"Uggggh," he groaned. "Jesus, Georgie, I told you I'd talk to you tomorrow."

She walked completely into his room, and found him sitting out on the small deck beyond the French doors. "Yeah, I know what you told me."

He looked at her warily, and she could see that he had been crying, probably, at some point. His face was drawn and pale, and his eyes were rimmed with red.

"It's chilly out here, why don't you come in?"

"Nope. I'm warm." He reached down and lifted an almost empty bottle of Jack Daniels from the deck. "Old Jack here is keeping me warm. It's beautiful out. A beautiful day, don't you think?" He raised the bottle to his lips and took a long sip before holding it out to her. "Want some?"

She looked at him with a blank expression. "No, I don't _want some_. What's the matter with you?"

"Do you really need to ask?" He laughed sarcastically. "Everything, Georgie. Everything is _the matter_ with me. I'm a rotten person. I have no control over my temper. I'm extremely impulsive and judgmental. I suck in relationships, too, don't I? Let's not forget that. That's a big one." He paused, and turned to look out at the ocean. "I mean, I finally find someone who...who just wants me for me, but I end up blowing that in a huge, huge way. I ended up treating her like shit. I couldn't just trust myself. Trust her..."

"Fitzwilliam."

"Yes, _Georgiana_," he said, smiling at her and taking another long sip from the bottle. "Do you have any light to shed on the subject? I'm sure you do. See, I think that I was really just waiting for a reason not to trust Elizabeth. I think I was...hey, you know what?"

Georgiana took a deep breath, trying not to lose her patience, trying to follow his alcohol-induced train of thought, wanting to let him talk. "What?"

"When all that shit happened with Caroline, Lizzy told me that she felt like all that stuff she had been worried about with me was coming true. That she was just some little diversion, some summer fling, or something like that." He laughed. "She thought I'd get _bored_ with her. Can you fucking believe that? Bored? With her?" His smile faltered and he shook his head, before bringing the bottle to his lips again. "Hey, do you want to sit down?" He pushed the other chair toward her with his foot. "Sit down, make yourself comfortable. Take a load off."

Georgiana moved to the other chair and sat, remaining silent.

"What was I saying? Oh yeah, it was about me getting bored. Well, it never happened, it never would. I mean, how could I get bored with her? Right?"

Georgiana could see he was waiting for her to answer. "Right."

"Right. The thing is...it was always me, worried about not being enough for her. In the back of my mind...in my head, I think...I think I always thought that it would come down to...what it always came down to. They all want something, Georgie. Something from me. They never just want _me_."

"Who is 'they', Fitzwilliam?"

"Can you cut with the _Fitzwilliam_ shit?"

"Okay, _Will_, who is 'they'?

"Just...anyone. Everyone."

"Not Elizabeth, though."

"Aha, you're right. _Not Elizabeth_. Can't lump her in with them. No, Elizabeth just wanted me for me. I finally figured that out. I figured out that I fucked up royally, but you know what? It was about eleven days too late."

"Do you really think so?"

"I don't think so, I _know_ so. She told me. Right to my face. She won't take me back, won't take that chance. Can you blame her?" He lifted the bottle and drained the remaining contents.

"So...is this what you're going to do now? Sit around and drink?"

"Well, it's all I've got on my schedule at the moment. So, yes. Tonight, I'm drinking." He looked at the empty bottle. "Well, I was drinking. I guess I'm done."

"Good. Can I say something?"

"Sure. Let me have it."

She took a deep breath. "You're pathetic, Will. I never thought I'd ever have a reason to say that to you, but you are."

He nodded his head in agreement.

"Do you want Elizabeth in your life? Do you really want her back?"

"Of course I do, how can you even ask me that?"

"I can ask you that because you have a strange way of showing it. Instead of sitting here, feeling sorry for yourself and drinking yourself into a stupor, you should be figuring out how to win her back."

His expression became serious, and for a moment, it was as if he was completely sober. "It's not going to happen, Georgie," he said quietly. "She's done. I blew it. I don't deserve her...she knows it, I know it. I've lost her."

"You love her. She loves you, I know she does."

He nodded, allowing himself a small smile. "I know she does too. She said she did. She said it's not enough, though."

"Of _course_ it's not enough. If you want her back, you're going to have to change. You're going to have to work on whatever it is that made you run away from her."

"How, though? I know...I _know_ I would never do that to her again...I _know_ I wouldn't. But how do I prove it? There's no way...I don't know how."

"I don't know how either," Georgie said quietly. "But I do know that this," she gestured toward the bottle, "isn't doing you any good. You're too smart for that, Will. Don't drown your sorrows, and create a whole new set of problems. I can't let you do that."

"Oh, I won't Georgie, don't worry. Tonight, though...I just wanted to numb myself. I wanted to forget."

"It's not working though, is it? The booze will only make it worse. Everything will be the same tomorrow, only you'll also be dealing with a hangover on top of it all."

"I know, I know. Please don't lecture me, I know. I'm done with it, okay?"

She nodded. "Okay. No more lectures from me, no more whiskey for you. Do you want some dinner?"

He raised his eyebrows at her, and grimaced as he rubbed his stomach. "Um...no, not really." He stood from the chair, and when he did, he wobbled precariously.

Georgie stood to help balance him. "Ugh. Please go inside so you don't fall off the deck."

He laughed. "That would suck."

She bit her lip to keep from laughing too. How could they be laughing at a time like this?

"I think I'm just going to lay down," he said quietly. "I haven't slept much...I need to sleep."

They walked back into his bedroom, and Georgiana closed and locked the French doors. "That's probably a good idea. Get some sleep, okay? I'll lock up the house on my way out."

Will smiled at her. "Thanks for coming over."

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, and was surprised by the force of his hug. He clung to her for a moment before slowly stepping away.

"Call me if you need anything tonight, okay?"

He nodded. "I'll be fine. I'm just going to sleep." He looked at the clock. "Shit, is it really only six o'clock?"

"Yes, that's why I asked you about dinner." She smiled at him gently. "You have a wicked mouth when you drink, do you know that?

He nodded again. "I know. I'm sorry...it just kind of slips out." He let loose a long sigh as he rubbed his face with both hands, then looked at his sister sadly. "This has just been a really, really long day."

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 13<em>

Will woke early. Too early. He glanced at the alarm clock, and saw that it was just after four a.m. His bladder was screaming at him, as was his head...and his teeth. He slowly ran his tongue across the upper ones, and grimaced. _Damn_.

As soon as he moved to a sitting position, his head began to pound with a vengeance. He groaned loudly as he rose from the bed and headed to the bathroom. Five minutes later he came out of the bathroom, his bladder no longer screaming, and his teeth much cleaner. He took some ibuprofen, hoping they would work some magic before he actually got up and out of bed in a few hours.

He crawled back into bed and laid there for a ridiculously long time, before giving in to the realization that he was now up for the duration of the day. He had slept for quite a while, actually...almost ten hours, by his count. It was now almost five-thirty, and he was beginning to see light creeping into the sky beyond the windows in his room.

He got up and pulled a pair of sweatpants on, followed by a t-shirt, and headed downstairs to the kitchen to make coffee. His stomach wasn't quite sure if coffee was the right thing at the moment, but his brain needed it.

As the coffee brewed, he absently stared at the pot, letting his mind wander to the previous day. Now, his new reality was setting in. Before yesterday, his reality had been life without Elizabeth, by his choice. Today's reality was life without Elizabeth, by _her_ choice.

He vaguely recalled what Georgiana had said to him, about feeling sorry for himself. _Oh yes, I played the part last night. Threw myself a big old pity party._ She told him that he should stop being pathetic, and start trying to figure out how to get Elizabeth back. In her own way, she was giving him encouragement. _Encouragement through insult. _He smiled slightly at the thought of Georgiana, about the person she was now becoming. Although he hadn't initially wanted her to see him last night, not in the state he was in, he was ultimately glad that she had ignored his wishes and had come anyway.

He took his cup of coffee and headed through the living room to the sliders. After disabling the alarm, he moved to sit in one of the chairs on the deck, but realizing that it was wet from the rain the night before, he decided to just lean against the railing instead. He could hear the ocean better than he could see it, and the sound was hypnotizing.

His mind turned, once again, to what Georgie had said about winning Elizabeth back. He'd have to change, he'd have to find a way to get to the bottom of whatever it was that caused him to lose his faith in her. It certainly wasn't her, after all; she had done nothing to deserve his horrendous treatment of her. She was an innocent in all of this. He was the villain.

The villain. George Wickham was a villain too. And Lydia...what the hell was that girl thinking? As much as he'd like to get his hands on her, he knew she was off-limits, and totally believed that any consequences coming her way would be more than adequately handled by Elizabeth. He wondered, vaguely, if it was too late to go after Wickham for what he had done to Georgiana. The wall safe in his office held an envelope, one which contained those pictures from almost seven months ago. He was going to burn them, but at the last moment, decided not to. Granted, he hadn't looked at them since January, but he knew they were there just the same.

Would it be worth it, to chase him down? How could they prove anything now? Thinking about it was making his headache worse, so he made himself stop. He'd talk to Charles some time today, to see what he thought from a legal standpoint. If it was worth pursuing, maybe he'd broach the subject with Georgie, to see what she thought. It was her call, really.

His thoughts went back to Elizabeth. Even though she had been hurt, upset, angry...God, she was so beautiful. He had wanted so badly to hold her, to just reach out and stroke her cheek, or wrap a curl around his finger...but he knew she would never let him. He understood, he knew she was protecting herself. _Protecting herself from me_. What made him think that he could waltz into her house, and expect her to take him back?

Sipping his coffee, watching the sun begin to stretch fingers of pink and orange over the ocean, he tried to think of ways to break through to her. She admitted that she loved him still...that was something. It wasn't just a little something, either. If she still loved him, then there was still a chance. There was still hope. There had to be. He wanted to see her again, wanted to talk to her again, but he knew she'd refuse.

Suddenly, a thought popped into his head. _I'll write her a letter_. Not an email, not a text...a good, old-fashioned letter. Put pen and ink to paper. He strolled back into the house, refreshed his cup of coffee, and headed to his office with a new sense of purpose.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth had set her alarm clock for nine o'clock, knowing her dad would be over by eleven. He had promised to bring enough wood to board up the windows, and insisted that he would only need help propping the wood while he hammered away.<p>

She rose slowly, trying to focus on the tasks that needed to be completed today, instead of replaying yesterday's events in her mind. She had cried on the phone with Jane, cried after hanging up, cried until she went to bed...then cried herself to sleep. Glancing at herself in the bathroom mirror, she was not too happy with her appearance. Yes, it was very evident what she had spent the majority of the previous day doing.

Digging through the duffel bag that she had brought back from South Carolina, she pulled out her yoga pants and pulled on an old New England Patriots t-shirt. She hadn't eaten the night before, and her stomach was complaining quite loudly about it. After putting on some coffee, she opened her refrigerator, knowing already that it was empty. She quickly called her father.

"Hello Lizzy," he answered.

"Hi dad. Could you please do me a favor, if you don't mind?"

"What is it?"

"Could you bring me something to eat? A yogurt, a bagel, anything? I never did make it to the store last night, and I really don't want to put anything in the refrigerator anyway. I'm kinda hungry."

"Of course I'll bring you something. Your mother has some pastry here that she just bought from the bakery, I'll bring one of those."

"Thanks."

"Oh, and Lizzy? Your mother would like to come with me."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Oh, dad, really? Can't you talk her out of it?"

"I've tried, believe me. She's all upset about something to do with Lydia, and a key to your house...I have no idea what she's been prattling on about."

Elizabeth's stomach dropped. "Dad, don't bring her. _Please_ don't bring her."

"Oh, you know how she is...you'll just have to ignore her."

"Then don't come...either of you. I don't need help, I'll get it done myself." _Somehow_.

"Nonsense. We'll see you in a couple of hours." Before she could get another word in, her father hung up.

Will had related to her, during their long discussion yesterday, that Jane was the one that had confronted Lydia and had gotten the truth about the pictures he found in the house. She had been so overwhelmed yesterday, she hadn't even thought to ask Jane about it when they were on the phone. At some point, she'd have to call her to get the details of the conversation she'd had with Lydia.

At some point, she, too, would like to have a conversation with Lydia. It would have to wait, though. As necessary as it was, it wasn't high on her list of priorities; the damage had been done, and no amount of venting her anger on Lydia was going to change anything. The last conversation she wanted to have today was one with her mother. About Lydia, no less. Her mother must have heard something, either that or Lydia told her something...obviously not the truth, though.

Elizabeth sighed as she looked around the house, sipping her coffee, trying to figure out which room to tackle first. _The darkroom_, she decided. She needed to go to the market down the street to get boxes before she did anything. Just before leaving the house, she turned on her television to the Weather Channel, and within a few minutes, the update on Hurricane Danielle was given.

A sigh of relief escaped her when she saw that the storm would be taking the more easterly track that Jason had pointed out on the map. The Carolinas would still be hit, but would fare better than initially expected; they would probably feel winds at the top of a Category 1 range. The Cape was still expected to feel some heavy winds and rain, but at more of a tropical storm strength. Still, she knew that boarding up the windows and removing valuables from her home was necessary; the storm surge could cause high surf, which could possibly cause significant damage.

Grabbing her keys and her sunglasses, she locked her house and headed down the stairs to her Jeep. Everything was damp from the rain that had fallen the night before, but it looked as though the sun would dry everything out. As she got closer to her car, she saw something on the windshield. She realized it was an envelope, tucked under one of the windshield wipers. Pulling it out, she recognized the handwriting immediately.

She froze where she was, unable to move, just staring at the envelope. It was dry, so it hadn't been there for too long. A brief surge of anger flared up within her. _Why can't he just let me be?_ He had done it so well already, quite well in fact. For almost two weeks, he had let her be. Now that he realized his mistake, though...now that he knew, fully, what he was losing...was this how it was going to be? Climbing into the Jeep, she tossed the envelope onto the passenger's seat. _Not now. I can't do this now._

* * *

><p>"Hey Will."<p>

"Hi Charles."

"How are you? How did...how did things go?"

"Horribly. Jane was right...Elizabeth doesn't want anything to do with me."

"I'm sorry." Charles knew that Jane had talked to Elizabeth, but she only said that Elizabeth was in bad shape and was very upset. From that information, Charles had assumed that Will and Lizzy would be going their separate ways. As much as Charles wasn't surprised, he had been hoping that somehow, some small attempt at reconciliation might have occurred.

"Don't be, it's all my fault. I blew it, Charles. It's all on me. I can't blame her for not wanting anything to do with me..._I _don't even want anything to do with me."

"So that's it then?"

Will shrugged. "No...not for me. She admitted to me that she still loves me...that's something, isn't it? I have to try, Charles, I have to. I'm not calling it quits yet."

"You know that when you say things like that, especially to her...things like 'I'm not calling it quits yet'...you know what she'll be thinking, don't you?"

"Yes, she'll be thinking it's bullshit."

"Justifiably so."

"Yes, justifiably so. Are you going to lecture me too? Jane has, Georgiana has..."

"No, I'm not going to _lecture_ you, but if I was going to, you'd have to listen to it. You have to understand, Will, that just because you want this so badly doesn't mean you're going to get it. You're used to getting what you want...but this time, you might not."

"I know that, Charles. I know I fucked up, we've had this discussion."

"We both fucked up, remember? I sat with you that day, talking about those pictures, trying to figure out what had happened."

"You're not the one in love with her, who should have known better."

"No, but I'm in love with her sister, and my poor judgment about Elizabeth affected my relationship with my fiancee."

"I'm sorry. I never meant for that to happen."

"I know you didn't...it just did, and I'm not blaming you. I'm blaming myself, for not talking to Jane sooner about everything...and for not seeing through your haze of insecurity and doubt that day. I should have been able to see things from a different perspective."

"Have you talked to Jane about all this? Does she know how you feel?"

"Yes, she does...we've talked a lot. We're okay, but I still feel like shit about the whole thing." He paused for a moment, sighing deeply. "So...what are you going to do?"

"I wrote her a letter."

"You wrote her a letter?" Charles repeated, disbelief evident in his voice.

"Yes. If I call, she won't answer the phone, I know she won't. I'm not going to just show up at her door, I can't...I can't do that to her again. I'm not going to send an email or text her, for crying out loud. I thought that a letter would be more...well, personal I guess."

"Did you send it to her already?"

"I dropped it off at her house early this morning. I don't know if she'll respond...it's almost too much to hope for...but I'll hope anyway."

"I will too."

"Thanks. Um, there was another reason why I called you. I have a question, and I would like you to just answer it without barraging me with questions in return."

"Okay..."

"What is the statute of limitations in Massachusetts for rape?"

"Fifteen years...why, are you thinking-"

"No questions. I just wanted to know."

Charles was no fool, he knew why Will was asking. "Okay, well...if you need my help, let me know."

"You know I will. Thanks Charles."

Will hung up the phone and stared at the large framed painting on the wall that hid his safe. He tapped his fingers on the desk absentmindedly, and wondered if he should seek out Georgiana to talk to her about everything. Anything he did would ultimately be up to her.

Sighing, he got up and walked to the painting, moved it aside, and entered the electronic combination for the lock to the safe. It beeped three times and he heard the telltale click of the lock releasing. He opened the small door and saw the large yellow envelope inside, surrounded by other important documents that he kept stored there. Removing the envelope, he returned to his desk and sat again, staring at it as it lay in front of him.

With as much indifference as he could muster, he removed the photos and looked at them impassively, willing his eyes to stay away from the image of his sister and focus only on the men in the picture. Yes, the faces were blacked out, but he knew one of them was Wickham. The other man seemed to mostly be a bystander; there were no pictures of him actually assaulting Georgiana. Will couldn't see his face, but could see his hair, and in one picture, the man was in profile, giving Will a glimpse of an ear and some of the side of his face where the black-out hadn't covered completely.

He suddenly felt an odd twinge of recognition, as if he was seeing the other man for the first time. In a way, he was; back in January, when he had looked at the pictures, he hadn't really focused on the other man at all...he had always focused more on Wickham, since he was the one who seemed to be the aggressor. Now, though, he zeroed in on the mystery man, his eyes repeatedly scanning each picture, closely examining that glimpse of face, the hair, the posture.

His breath froze in his lungs as a snippet of conversation that he'd had with Elizabeth long ago came rushing into his head at an alarming speed. _'He kind of gave me the creeps...maybe it's because he's Bill's cousin...it must run in the family.' _She had been talking about George, about the first time he had come to her house with Charlotte to use the darkroom.

_Could it be? _He looked at the pictures again, staring at the man. The shape of his body, his posture...his hair. Will had seen him at almost every softball game of Elizabeth's that he had gone to. He was always polite, if a little standoffish. Now Will understood why.

_It's him. All this time...its been Bill Collins._

* * *

><p>Elizabeth began the painstaking work of removing all the photos from the walls of her darkroom; there was no way she'd take a chance on losing all these pictures. So many of them that dotted the walls were of Will. He was serious in some of them, but in others he looked so carefree and happy. In some he was downright silly, crossing his eyes, sticking his tongue out...he could be a goofy little boy when he wanted to be. She had taken several of him while he was sleeping one morning, and those were her very favorites. There were more, too, that Elizabeth had taken of both of them, using the timer on her camera. Pictures of them smiling into the camera, hugging, laughing, kissing...pictures of love.<p>

Those were the ones she took down first; the hardest to look at had to be the first to go into the box. After that, it was all pictures of Jane, some of Jane with Charles, a few of Georgiana, Charlotte, her parents, her aunt and uncle, the Vineyard...there were even some of Lydia. Then there were all the random ones...strangers she had met while on her little photo expeditions, lots of landscapes and ocean shots, co-workers, pictures of the softball team, wildlife...the list went on and on.

She thought about Will's words to her again, when he said that everyone has a soundtrack to their life; he was certainly right about that. For her, though, her life was here, in pictures. Yes, she had a soundtrack, but she also had a photo album.

As she turned toward the farthest wall and removed more pictures, she noticed something that definitely hadn't been pinned up by her. It was another picture of George...hidden under other pictures. Her hand rose up to cover her mouth when she saw it, and she bit back an involuntary sob.

She realized, then, that he was the one behind those pictures being left at her house. Lydia was stupid, yes, but she never would have agreed to leaving those pictures for Elizabeth to discover. No, it was obviously all George, and he had done it purely for shock value, that much was evident now. Will had said that he discovered the pictures in the bottom drawer of her dresser, buried in between the sweatshirts. George must have thought they wouldn't be discovered for a long time – who needs thick sweatshirts in the summer? – and probably thought they'd be discovered by her, not by Will. George must have had similar thoughts about leaving this other picture here, too; he hid it well enough, and probably figured it would be a long time before Elizabeth took down any of her collage and actually discovered it.

Elizabeth felt a sudden burst of anger at Lydia, and knew that they'd have to talk. Soon. She couldn't put it off, and her earlier thoughts about their impending conversation not being a priority seemed suddenly ridiculous. _It has to be a priority._ She took that last photo of George and tucked it away with the others that Will had shown her. They would be destroyed, eventually, but not until after she talked to Lydia.

Gathering up her cameras and all of her equipment, she packed everything carefully into boxes, then moved to put the boxes into the living room. Next would be her clothing...there was no way she could chance losing her wardrobe! As limited as it was, she didn't want to risk losing it.

Her cell phone began ringing, and she found it on the kitchen counter. She saw that it was Georgiana, and picked up.

"Hi Georgie."

"Hi Lizzy. Are you busy?"

"Yes...well, yes and no. I'm trying to pack up some things before the storm hits. I just completely disassembled the darkroom, now I'm working on my clothes." She wondered if Will had filled his sister in on everything that had transpired. Her question was answered before she could think on it much longer.

"I just wanted to say, I'm sorry about everything that's happened. Everything with...with George Wickham...your sister...it's all so horrible. Will is beside himself."

Elizabeth closed her eyes. "I'm sorry too. Are you...are you okay? It couldn't have been easy to hear about him again."

"I'm fine, it's fine. How are you, though? I mean, I know Will is my brother and everything, and it's probably weird for you, talking to me...but as much as I worry about him, I'm worried about you."

"Georgie, I'm alright, really." _Make it sound good, Elizabeth_. "I have a lot to keep my mind busy, what with the storm coming, and the trip to the Basin...I'm just trying to stay occupied."

"I'm sorry your trip got ruined, will you be able to go back?"

"Oh, definitely. As soon as I can, hopefully by the end of the week. I'll probably ride out the storm here, if it doesn't get too bad...or I'll go to the Vineyard, maybe to visit my aunt and uncle. When the storm hits, they'll stop the boats from running, so if I go see them, it will have to be later today."

"I remember Will mentioning your aunt and uncle, he said they were very nice."

Elizabeth felt a twinge of sadness. "Yes...they're great. He...he liked them I think."

There was an awkward silence before Georgiana spoke again. "He loves you so much, Elizabeth, he really does."

"Georgie, please-"

"No, wait. I'm not going to make excuses for him, I'm not trying to talk you into anything...I just want you to know that he loves you, and he knows he made a mistake – a huge one – and he'll do anything in his power to fix it."

"He told you about all of it? What he thought, what he imagined had happened – all of it?" Elizabeth couldn't keep a small amount of anger from her voice.

"Yes, all of it. I couldn't believe it myself, when he told me what he thought. But then, I shouldn't have found it so hard to believe, really...he did the same thing to me, remember?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes. "I know, I know he did."

"I won't bring it up again, Lizzy, I promise you...but I just have to say that he will do anything to earn your trust again. Anything. He knows he broke it, he knows he betrayed you, and I even think he's beginning to understand-"

Elizabeth interrupted her. "You said you weren't going to try to talk me into anything, Georgie! This sounds very much like you're trying to talk me into giving him another chance."

"I know it does, and maybe I am. I don't know. It's hard for me to see him – and you – so unhappy." She sighed loudly. "I'll stop, okay? I'm sorry. I don't want to make it worse for you, and that's obviously what I'm doing."

"It can't get any worse, trust me. You love your brother, and you want him to be happy, I know that. I just...I have to protect myself, I have to protect my heart. Can you understand that?"

"Yes, I can. I promise you, I won't ever bring it up again."

Elizabeth heard footsteps coming up the stairs, and her mother's shrill voice. "I have to go, my parents are here to help me out. I'll call you soon, okay?"

"Okay, Lizzy...if you need more hands today, let me know."

"Thanks. Bye Georgie."

"Bye Lizzy...good luck."

The rapid pounding on her door startled Georgiana as she hung up with Elizabeth.

"Georgie, it's Will! Open up."

"Coming!" Georgiana opened the door to see Will standing there, a large envelope in his hand. "What's the matter?" His face was flushed and his eyes looked a bit wild. He was either severely hung over or worked up about something.

He held the envelope up as he walked into the living room. "I know who he is."

"Who _who_ is?"

"The...the other man...the one who assaulted you. I know who he is."

* * *

><p>"Mum, please, I'm not having this discussion with you. I <em>refuse<em> to have this discussion with you."

"Oh, Elizabeth, why do you have to be so dramatic? Why didn't you just let him come to get his things? You sided with Charlotte, that's bad enough, for heaven's sake...Lydia is your sister. Her happiness should be your concern."

Elizabeth felt the anger, simmering there, and knew she was going to give in to it. "Do you really want to know what happened, mum?" Her voice gained volume. "Do you really want to know what your precious Lydia did?"

Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes. "Don't raise your voice to me, young lady. It's clear you're angry, but I'm still your mother."

"I have every right to raise my voice! You are upset that I supposedly _chose_ Charlotte over Lydia, but you're obviously siding with Lydia now, over me! How is that any different, _mother_? You don't even know the whole story!"

"Well, I'm sure you're about to enlighten me."

"Yes, I am. First of all, George never left any camera equipment here. None. That was a lie. It was a way for him to get into my house."

Just then, Mr. Bennet came strolling into the house, hammer in hand. "What's all the ruckus? I can hear you two outside."

"Oh, you haven't heard anything yet, dad."

Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes again. "Lizzy's going on with some nonsense about Lydia and that nice young man she's dating."

Mr. Bennet raised his eyebrows. "Yes, well...I'll just go back outside. You two carry on...perhaps a little quieter."

"No, dad, don't go anywhere, I want you to hear this too."

"I'd rather not."

Elizabeth looked at her father pointedly. "Sit down, both of you!" Her mother sat, and after some hesitation, her father did too.

"George never left any camera equipment here, mum. That's bullshit."

"Language, Lizzy, language," Mr. Bennet said quietly.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "He wanted to get into my house. Lydia took the spare key you had...remember we couldn't find it when I was getting ready to go to South Carolina? It's because Lydia took it. She let _that man_ into _my house_, and proceeded to spend the weekend here. With him."

"That's what this is about?" Mrs. Bennet asked incredulously. "All this fuss, because of that?"

"Yes, mum, because of _that_. But wait, there's more. They took pictures...lots of them. Very revealing, explicit pictures, which Lydia's _nice young man _decided to leave around the house for me to find."

"What do you mean, revealing pictures?" Mrs. Bennet asked. She looked confused, while Mr. Bennet looked irate.

"I mean _revealing pictures_, mum. _Sexually_ revealing pictures."

"Oh, I don't believe you, Lizzy. That's just ridiculous. Lydia is a good girl, she wouldn't—" She stopped talking when Elizabeth walked out of the living room and into her bedroom. When she returned, she had two of the three pictures in her hand; the one of George from the darkroom, and the one that showed some of Lydia's head. She held them low, against her leg.

"Would you like to take a look?"

"What? I...no, I don't want to take a look!" Mrs. Bennet said, one hand over her heart, before turning to look at her husband. "For heaven's sake...David?"

"I don't want to look either."

"That's not the end of it. I wasn't the one who found the pictures, Will found them. When I was in the hospital, he came here to get some things...he found them. He recognized that _nice young man_. George Wickham is a sexual predator, mum. He's a deviant. He...he hurt someone that Will knows, forced himself on her after drugging her, and took some pictures of himself assaulting her as a souvenir."

"What? Oh, now I don't believe that. I'm sure it's a case of...mistaken identity, or what have you. It can't be him," Mrs. Bennet replied. Despite her words, her voice had become slightly hesitant.

"It _is_, mum, it's him. Jane tried to warn Lydia about him...Jane knows the whole story, that's why she came to the Cape on Monday, to get the truth out of Lydia. She told Lydia what he did, what he's capable of...but Lydia didn't believe her."

"I don't believe you."

"Franny, come now. Lizzy wouldn't make this up," Mr. Bennet said quietly. "She has pictures...and you told me yourself that Jane was upset when you saw her on Monday." He turned his attention to Elizabeth. "Is this why William has been absent? Did he somehow blame you for this?"

Elizabeth sighed. "That's a whole other story, dad...I don't want to talk about it."

"Well, if he did blame you...perhaps it's good that you weren't very attached, don't you think?"

She stared at her father blankly. "Perhaps."

Elizabeth turned to look at her mother. "Everything I've said is true. Your sweet Lydia isn't so sweet, mum. She's selfish and sneaky. Her only concern has always been, and always will be, herself. How you've been blind to that for so long, I have no idea, but it's time you opened your eyes and really took a _good_ look at her...and at me, for that matter. You have put me down for so long...I don't deserve that treatment from you. I'm your daughter...it's time you started acting like my mother."

* * *

><p><em>Next time, we'll get to read Will's letter, and we'll also take a trip back to the Vineyard. Please leave a review! I'd love to hear from you. Hope to put up another chapter tomorrow.<em> _Thanks!_


	37. Chapter 37

_Just a few responses to some questions: no, there will be no 'life or death' situation that will make Elizabeth see the light and run back to Will. That's not how real life usually plays out, so it won't play out that way here either! And no, Elizabeth won't get pregnant. There will be more about Elizabeth's discussion with her parents here, and they will also have a pretty big confrontation later in the story. Just so you know, Will and Elizabeth won't actually see each other/talk again until Chapter 40. Thanks again for reading and reviewing!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 37<strong>

_Days apart: 13_

Elizabeth sat staring at the papers she held in front of her, letting her eyes roam over them again. Her parents were long gone – thankfully. Her Jeep contained the few boxes she had filled with important belongings, and her father had offered to take her clothing to store at the condo. She was hesitant to accept his offer, only because that would mean a trip over there to collect everything when she got back from South Carolina. In the end, though, she acquiesced, knowing that she didn't have room to store everything in the Jeep, and kept only a few articles of clothing that she'd use over the next few days.

She attached her bike to the Jeep's bike rack, and at the last minute, took Will's guitar from her bedroom, and the colorful beach buckets from under the deck, and put them in the car, refusing to examine her motivation for doing so.

The house was dark from having the windows boarded up, so she had turned on a few lights. She had wandered from room to room aimlessly, trying to avoid the envelope that was waiting for her in her bedroom. As much as she didn't want to read it...she _did_ want to read it. It was a tug of war for her, just like everything else that involved Will lately. Her heart and her head were pulling her in two different directions.

Finally she had caved and retrieved the envelope, bringing it to the living room and giving it a good long stare before opening it. Even the sight of his handwriting filled her with longing. Without thinking, she lifted the papers to her nose, but was unable to detect any trace of his cologne, his scent. She shook her head and admonished herself for being so weak.

So now, here she was. Staring at the papers, scanning them, but not really reading them. She sighed and took a deep breath. _No time like the present_.

_Dearest Elizabeth,_

_I'm writing this to you, completely unsure if you'll even bother to read it. I hope that you will, if only to try to gain some understanding of my actions over the past two weeks, though I'm well aware that this may be wishful thinking on my part. In no way do I believe that this letter will explain away everything that I've done, or everything that I've thought. I had to try, though, and I know you know why. Should I tell you again? I love you, and I'm sorry. I won't try to make the words sound prettier, you know I'm lousy at that. So, as simple as they sound, those six words say it all._

_The first thing I want to say is that I'm sorry that George Wickham wormed his way into your life. I feel completely responsible for that. If I had been stronger back in January, if I hadn't allowed Georgie, as well as my fears and worries about her, to dictate my decisions, he wouldn't have been able to do the damage he's done. He wouldn't have duped, and possibly hurt, your friend Charlotte; he wouldn't have become acquainted with Lydia; and he certainly wouldn't have had access to you or your home._

_That being said, I do realize that he is not responsible for what has happened between us. True, he was the catalyst, but I'm not blind to myself anymore. I know, now, that if it hadn't been him, and this situation, it would have been something or someone else, real or imagined, that caused me to turn away from you. _

_Yesterday, after seeing you, I returned home and decided to wallow in self-pity with half a bottle of whiskey. It was stupid, but seemed like a good idea at the time. I was hoping it would numb me slightly, and help me forget things, even for just a few hours. Fortunately for me, it had the reverse affect, and instead gave me the clarity I needed to think even harder about myself and my behavior. I'm going to say it again; I can't explain my behavior away, but I'll try to tell you what was going through my head at the time, and the realizations that I've come to so far._

_When I was younger, while my father was still alive, he always told me to be careful in my judgment of others. He knew, through his own experiences, that the prominence of the Darcy name would always make me a target for those who were mercenary in nature, and that I would have to be very careful about who I chose to keep in my confidence. True to form, my father was right. In one way or another, for most of my adult life, I have been viewed not always as a man, but as a means. Because of this, I have never had the ability to easily forge intimacy in many relationships, and I feel as if I always have to be on my guard around people. There are those that I'm closest to, who I've never felt that way about – Georgie, of course, and Charles, Mrs. R – and you. Not once did you ever bring attention to what I have; you've never asked me for anything, or asked me to do something for you. Despite this, I still managed to cause you an unconscionable amount of pain and grief._

_The day I came back from California, I opened up to you a little about what my feelings were for you. I told you that I thought about you all the time, and that I dreamed about you, and that I had done things with you, in the short amount of time that we'd been together, that I'd never done with another woman. For the first time, I didn't have to play a part. I didn't have to worry about expectations and ulterior motives. Our relationship was a novelty for me; you allowed me to be me, and didn't expect anything in return. _

_When I saw those pictures in your house, my initial reaction of mortification and shock immediately transformed into one of blame and suspicion. Contrary to what my heart and soul knew about your character, I let the idea come into my head that you and Wickham had orchestrated some scheme against me. Sitting in my room last night, I realized why. All this time, a part of me has just been waiting, without even knowing it; waiting for it to finally come out that you, too, only wanted something from me, something more than just me. All those weeks ago, when you told me that you were worried that you were just a passing infatuation for me, and that I would get bored with you...that fear that you had was dwelling in me, too. Subconsciously, I worried that the real me wasn't good enough for you, and that soon enough, you'd want more...expect more. When I saw those pictures, all I heard was a loud voice in my head – my own voice – saying 'I told you so.' _

_Is this rational? No. Is it an excuse? Certainly not. Is it the truth? Yes. This is it, this is the truth, these were my thoughts and feelings, as best as I can put them into words. Once again, it's not my strong suit, but I've tried. _

_Last night, in my drunken state, I told Georgie that I was a terrible person. This morning, I realized that I'm really not. How do I know? It's because of you. You wouldn't have fallen in love with me if I was a terrible person. You saw the true me; you know who I am. I'm not a terrible person; what I am is a decent person, who has done a terrible thing, a reprehensible thing, hurting the person that I care about most in the process. I took the faith you had in me, that trust that I value so much, and tossed it aside. What pains me more than anything is the fact that your heartbreak and sadness, your anger and confusion, are a result of my own personal insecurities and total lack of faith in the love that we share. While I no longer have doubts about us or my feelings for you, it is my actions, and mine alone, that have forced you to guard your heart._

_The man that left you in the hospital, the man that walked away from you – I don't recognize him, he is not me. I will regret that shameful decision for the rest of my days, and will promise you now that I will never leave you again. I know, now, how it feels to be without you, and I never want to return to this hell. My deepest hope is that you will find it in your heart to believe me and trust in me again. _

_I'm asking you now, Elizabeth – what will it take for you to let me back into your life? What will it take for your faith in me – in us – to be restored? I can't imagine that any amount of begging or groveling will persuade you, although if that's what you asked me for, I'd be down on my knees right now, begging and pleading with you for another chance. Do you want me to prove to you, somehow, that I will never leave you again? I've thought about that, and I haven't yet figured out how it can be proven. If there is a way, rest assured, I will figure it out. Perhaps we can figure it out together, and become stronger in the process. _

_My hope is that eventually, in time, the pain and the suffering that I brought on you will be relieved because you have come to realize the truth; that you feel for me what I feel for you, that we are each other's hearts, and that we love one another, and can't imagine spending the rest of our lives apart. I'm asking you for one more chance. I won't give up on us, I refuse to give up, and I pray that deep in your heart, you still see enough worth in me, and in our love, to enable us to start again. _

_You said that you still love me, Elizabeth; hearing you say that stirred hope in me, something I was afraid to let myself feel until the words escaped your lips. I can, and will, become a better man for you, a man worthy of your trust and your love. _

_Forever yours,  
><em>_William  
><em>

Elizabeth folded the letter and put it back in its envelope. So many thoughts were clamoring for attention in her mind, she couldn't think straight. He had tried to explain why he did what he did, and she was grateful, at least, that he had done that. Yesterday, when he was at her house, she wouldn't give him the opportunity; after she had told him that it was too late, that he had already given up on them, she had quietly asked him to leave. He had done so without argument, his expression filled with pain and grief. At the last minute, she had turned her back to him; it would have been too hard to watch him walk out the door.

The truth was, she _wanted_ to believe him. She wanted to trust him, wanted to love him without reservation, wanted to let him love her back. And he was right; he _wasn't_ a terrible person. He was a good man, a man with flaws and deep insecurities and doubts, who made a terrible mistake. Still, when all was said and done...her fear won out. The fear that he would run again, that he would leave her stranded...she would always be waiting for a situation to happen that would cause him to react that way again. She couldn't live like that; it wouldn't be living, really.

She picked up her cell phone and scrolled through her address book until she found the number she wanted, and pressed the call button.

"Lizzy!"

"Hi Aunt Vee, how are you?"

"Oh, I'm wonderful, how are you? How is South Carolina?"

"Well, it was fine when I left it."

"When you left it? Where are you?"

"I'm home, I came back because of the storm. Although, it's turning out to be nothing more than a nasty nor'easter at this point."

"Oh, I didn't even think about you having to come home...couldn't your dad take care of the house for you?"

"Probably, but I have so much stuff here that I was worried about...I didn't want it to get swept out into the Sound!"

"No, that wouldn't be good, would it?"

"Not at all. Um, my plan is to go back to South Carolina on Friday, my flight leaves late in the afternoon, as long as the storm stays well off the coast...do you mind if I come over for a visit in the meantime?"

"Of course not, you know we'd love to have you! And how about Will, can he come with you?"

"Um, no, he...we...," she stuttered, "we're not...we're just...we're not."

"Oh, Lizzy," her aunt said quietly, surprise evident in her voice. "Really? I'm sorry to hear that."

Elizabeth swallowed thickly. "I'm sorry too, Aunt Vee."

"Well listen, you get your little fanny over here, we can have some girl time. Every tourist that was here has completely abandoned the island. Well, most of them have, anyway. The hurricane scared them away. This is the first August in a long time that we're not completely booked. You can sleep here at the Inn or stay at our place, the choice is yours."

"Thanks. I think I'm going to throw my bike in the back of my Jeep and park it at the rec center in town, near the police station and away from the water! Then I can just bike from there to the Island Queen and wait for the next boat, it'll be along soon enough. Once I dock in Oak Bluffs, I'll bike to the Inn."

"Wait 'til I tell your uncle, he'll be thrilled! We'll see you this afternoon. Please be careful on your bike, you know what those Vineyard drivers are like."

Elizabeth smiled. "I will. I'll see you in a while."

After hanging up, she called Jane, but her phone went to voice mail, so she left a message.

"Hi Jane, it's me...I just wanted to tell you that I'm taking off for a couple of days, I'm just going to the Vineyard to see Aunt Vee and Uncle Ed. The weather is supposed to get a little worse for us starting late tonight, so I want to get over there before they stop running the boats. I can already see the surf kicking up in the Sound, so I need to get moving. Um, I'm leaving my Jeep at the rec and taking my bike. I hope to be back Friday morning, but I'm sure I'll talk to you before that. Love you, bye."

She took her extra clothing and put it in a backpack, enough for two days, and grabbed some toiletries. With one last glance around, she bid her house farewell, locked the door, and left.

* * *

><p>"Twice in one day. To what do I owe the honor?"<p>

"You're not going to believe this. You're not going to fucking believe this, Charles."

Charles grimaced. "What is it?"

"I figured out who the other man is in those pictures of Georgie. The one with Wickham."

Charles' eyes opened wide. "You what? How could you possibly figure that out?"

"It all fell into place. Wickham is related to someone that Elizabeth works with, his name is Bill Collins. They're cousins. It's him. I've met him several times, Charles, I know it's him."

"So what are you doing now?"

"Well, honestly, I've been thinking about driving to his office in Woods Hole and beating the shit out of him."

"_No_, Will, you can't do that. Don't do that."

"I know I can't, but I almost did. I actually walked out to my car, got in, and sat there with the engine running. It was tempting, believe me."

"I'm sure it was, but you did the right thing by not going after him."

"I know." Will knew that Charles was right. He knew his tendency toward knee-jerk reactions had to change, and if this was the time to start, then it was as good a time, and as good a situation, as any. _It would have been one hell of a knee-jerk reaction._

"You can't contact him in any way at all. If he knows that you're on to him, he may take off. Then we'd be back to square one."

"What do I do, then? Nothing?"

"Exactly. You do nothing. You wait. You let me take it from here. I know who to call, who to talk to, to get the ball rolling without scaring this guy off."

"She wants to do it, Charles. Georgie wants to try to prosecute them. If they can be caught, and she can help in any way...she wants to do it. She feels awful about not pursuing it to begin with, and if she can make up for that now..."

"I know it's a big deal, Will. Let me get off the phone with you so I can make some calls. Make sure you have your phone with you...I'll try to get a detective down there today to talk to Georgie, I know a few people I can call."

"Okay. Thanks, Charles, I really appreciate your help."

"No problem. I want to see those bastards hang just as much as you do, trust me."

"I know you do."

"Sit tight, I'll call you back."

* * *

><p>Bill Collins had always been a slightly nervous man. He was easily flustered, and it didn't take much for him to break a sweat. Since Monday night, that seemed to be all he was doing. Sweating profusely.<p>

His cousin George had called him Monday from New York, and had warned him that some trouble might be brewing with William Darcy. It was the last thing Bill wanted to hear, and he was jumping at every odd noise that he heard, whether he was at the office or at home. He wondered, vaguely, if Darcy knew where he lived.

His thoughts went to what George had told him. Apparently, Lydia had mentioned to George that she was curious about George's 'history' with Darcy. The very thought of Lydia knowing anything about a possible connection between George and Darcy made Bill's blood run cold.

As he sat in his office on Wednesday, a sense of foreboding overwhelmed him, as if trouble was heading his way, and would be arriving any moment. Every noise had him glancing up in panic, waiting to see who was coming down the hallway.

George had tried to reassure him that they were alright, that nothing would come of any of Lydia's babbling, but Bill wasn't so sure. If Darcy became aware that George was the person seeing Lydia, he'd be able to make the connection to Bill. Reaching down into the bottom drawer of his desk, he took out a bottle of Tums and chewed two. His acid reflux was in overdrive.

He watched the clock vigilantly, waiting for it to read four so he could leave his office and head for home. The question was, would he be back tomorrow?

* * *

><p>Charles got home from work Wednesday night and welcomed a hug from Jane. He held her tightly, wrapping his arms around her.<p>

"Oh, tight squeeze. Rough day?" she asked.

He shook his head. "You don't know the half of it. How was your day?"

Jane shrugged. "Fine, nothing exciting to report." She kissed him lightly on the lips. "Why don't you tell me what's bugging you...it's obvious something is." She reached up and lightly rubbed the crease between his brows.

He closed his eyes and sighed, enjoying her gentle touch. Giving her a soft kiss, he led her by the hand into the living room, leading her over to the couch so she could sit. "The story I told you about Georgiana, about what happened to her...there have been some developments there."

Jane looked confused. "What kind of developments?" She watched as he removed his suit jacket, tossed it on the couch, and loosened his tie. He paced nervously.

"Well, apparently, Will has been contemplating whether or not it would be worth trying to go after Wickham now, or if it would be a lost cause. He didn't want to put Georgie through all that if he would end up getting off. Anyway, he remembered that Wickham is Bill Collins' cousin."

"Oh, that's right...I forgot they were cousins."

"They have another connection other than blood, apparently. It turns out...Will thinks he's the other man that assaulted Georgiana."

Jane's jaw dropped. "What? Are you certain? Is Will certain?"

"He is, one hundred percent certain...he's positive it's him. I had to talk him out of driving to Woods Hole to confront Collins."

"What...what is he going to do now? What can they do?"

"It's all being taken care of. I just called Will, there will be two detectives at his house tomorrow morning to interview him and Georgiana. They'll probably try to surprise Collins at work, but they know where he lives too."

"Oh my God...this is all so unreal. Lizzy left me a message today," Jane said, glancing at her watch, "she's probably on the Vineyard by now."

"The Vineyard?"

"Yes, she went to visit my Uncle Ed and Aunt Vee. I'm sure she just needed a day or two to get her thoughts together. She's supposed to come back to Falmouth on Friday morning so she can head back to South Carolina in the afternoon. Should I say anything to her about what's going on?"

"You can, if you want to...but tell her to stay away from Collins, and if he tries to communicate with her, tell her to ignore him. That includes email and texts."

"I won't have to tell her to stay away from him, trust me. She does that anyway." She paused for a second. "So...how is Will, otherwise?"

He looked at her skeptically as he finally stopped pacing and sat down next to her on the couch. "Do you really want to know?"

"Of course I want to know, why else would I ask? I don't hate him, Charles...I'm just angry at him for hurting Elizabeth. I'm not wishing horrible things on him."

Charles quirked an eyebrow at her but remained silent.

"I'm not! Okay, I _was_, on Monday, and maybe a little bit yesterday, but I'm not now. I know he's hurting too, I'm trying to show a little compassion."

"He wrote Lizzy a letter."

"He what?"

"He wrote her a letter."

"What did it say?"

"I have no idea. I mean, I could probably guess, but I don't know for sure. He wants her back, Jane...I don't see him giving up too easily."

"Well, if that's what he wants...he's got a long road ahead of him."

"What will you say to Lizzy?"

"I already told you my position. I'm Switzerland. Neutral. I will support whatever decision Lizzy makes. This is something she needs to decide on her own, and as much as she's going to want me to help her make up her mind about things, I'm going to try to hold back and stick to being her sounding board."

He smiled at her. "That'll be tough for you."

Jane reached out to swat him on the arm. "Yes, it will be tough for me. I'm only going to encourage her to follow her heart. Right now, though, I think she _is_ making the right decision. She needs to regroup, go off into a corner and lick her wounds for a bit." She thought about Jason being in South Carolina. "Although, that might be difficult at the moment."

"Why?"

Jane shrugged. "Just...everything going on...the storm, the traveling...she has a lot on her plate right now, and this stuff with Bill Collins isn't going to help."

She had told Charles who Jason was after Will had left on Monday night, had filled him in on that part of Elizabeth's past. Charles had heard her mention the pregnancy, so it's not like she could hide it. Once Charles knew about everything that had happened to her, he automatically had a better understanding of why Will's abandonment affected Lizzy so greatly, and felt that much worse for keeping everything from Jane for so long.

Charles reached for Jane again, pulling her close to him. "From what I've seen, you and Lizzy are pretty tough. I think she'll be okay. And I, for one, hope that she forgives him, and they start rebuilding their relationship."

"You do?" she asked softly.

"Yes, I do, because I know how much he loves her. He knows he made a huge mistake...I really think they have what it takes to go the distance. Plus, I know that if anything ever pulled us apart, I would feel the same way. He doesn't want to live without her. I can understand that." He leaned in to kiss her softly, stroking her cheek. "I know I couldn't live without you."

* * *

><p>The boat ride to the Vineyard was fairly quiet. There were very few people going <em>to<em> the island; most were rushing to _leave_ it, mainly the tourists that had been situated in lovely beachfront vacation homes, or had other accommodations overlooking the ocean. The waves were rising, and every so often, the large ship would rise up on a swell and come slamming back down into the ocean with a loud bang, making the entire vessel shudder. Elizabeth loved it all; she stood at the stern of the Island Queen, on the lower-level deck, the water churning below her, and the wind whipping her hair in every direction as the salty spray misted her skin.

Thoughts of her trip to the Vineyard with Will swirled through her mind, and she forcibly pushed them away. She purposely avoided going to the upper deck where they had sat that day on the boat ride over, basking in the sun. Although, if she _had _decided to go up there, she wouldn't have lasted long anyway, it was too rough and windy. No, she wasn't going to allow thoughts of him...and his letter...to intrude right now. In the next day or two, she knew her aunt would ask what had occurred between her and Will, and when that happened, she would allow those thoughts back in, but not right now. Not here.

She inhaled the ocean air deep into her lungs, and instead thought back to the morning's conversation with her mother and father. It couldn't have gone much worse, really, but on the flip-side, it almost couldn't have gone any better. Finally, _finally_, she had spoken her mind to her mother. It had been a long time coming, and she had relished the opportunity to speak her piece. Her mother, on the other hand, had been shocked.

"What do you _mean_ it's time I started acting like your mother?" Mrs. Bennet had said, hands on her hips. "Is that how you thank me for all that your father and I have done for you? I will not sit here and listen to any more of this."

"So once more, it's about my behavior, and how horrible it is?" Elizabeth had yelled. "Did you hear what I just told you about your darling daughter Lydia? She came into my house and made it into her own little _sex shack_ for the weekend. Don't you have anything to say about that? How can you sit there and condemn me, criticize _me_, after everything I've just told you? Oh wait, I know. Some habits are hard to break, right mum?"

"Now, Lizzy-" her father had began.

"Oh dad, please don't '_now Lizzy'_ me. I'm tired of this...tired of everything. I have been through _hell_ the last two weeks, and I am managing, _just_ _barely_, to keep my head above water. I will not let _this woman_ drag me under and drown me."

"Oh, I've heard enough," Mrs. Bennet huffed, rolling her eyes. She stood from the couch. "David, I'll wait for you in the car." With that, she turned and stormed out.

Elizabeth looked at her father helplessly. "Am I crazy, dad? Please tell me that you understand that what Lydia did is wrong, on so many different levels."

"I know it is, Elizabeth. I would never argue with that. I can't believe there are pictures..." his voice trailed off, and he shook his head sadly before looking at her again. "Your mother...you know how she is. You just have to let it go...let it pass."

Elizabeth stared at her father. "I've been waiting for it to pass for almost seven years, dad. I'm done waiting. I'm done, _period_. I shouldn't have to deal with that type of treatment, especially from my own mother. And my sister. I will find Lydia before I go back to South Carolina, and I will deal with her on my own."

Mr. Bennet sighed, then smiled lightly, trying to give the situation levity, always his go-to tactic. "Just don't kill her, my dear."

Elizabeth shook her head. "I'm not making any promises."

After that, she had helped her father nail up a few more boards, then her parents had left. It took a good hour or two for Elizabeth to come down from the adrenaline rush she had been on when she had confronted her mother. _God, it felt good to do that!_ There was so much more she could have said, so much more that she wanted to say...for now, though, it was enough.

The ship slowly came into Oak Bluffs harbor, and Elizabeth disembarked, pushing her bike along. She hopped on and began riding down Beach Road, toward Edgartown. It was only a little over six miles, and she knew it wouldn't take her very long to get there. The nice thing about the ride was that there was a bike path here, too, that ran alongside the entire stretch of road, allowing her to remain out of the way of cars.

The wind was strong, but she made good time, arriving at the Gardner Inn in half an hour. She pulled her bike around back, and took the steps into the inn two at a time.

"Aunt Vee?" she called out as she walked in.

"Aunt Vee? What about Uncle Ed?"

Elizabeth smiled as her uncle strolled from the kitchen into the common area. He headed straight to her and wrapped her up in a huge bear hug.

"How's my favorite niece?"

"Jane? She's doing well."

Her uncle laughed and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Glad to hear it. And you, Lizzy, how are you?" he asked, playing along.

She smiled up at him. "I'm fine, uncle."

He frowned slightly and shook his head. "I think your aunt would beg to differ. She's a little concerned about you."

Elizabeth stepped away from him and avoided looking at him. "I know. I'm really fine, though." Her attention was drawn to the large staircase as her aunt made her way down.

"I thought I heard your voice!"

"Hi Aunt Vee."

Just like her uncle had done, her aunt wrapped her up in a warm hug. "How was that boat ride over? You must have been tossed about a bit."

Elizabeth nodded and smiled. "A little, yeah."

Her aunt gave her a knowing look. "And you thoroughly enjoyed it, I'm sure."

"I did!"

"Where would you like to stay while you're here? Would you like to stay at the house, or here at the Inn?"

Elizabeth didn't hesitate. "I'd like to stay at your house, if that's okay." She and Will had talked about coming to the Inn to stay sometime in the fall or winter, and she knew that if she stayed here now, it would be all she thought about. "I don't want to ride out the storm here by myself."

"Oh, I wouldn't have left you!" her aunt said, "I was planning on staying too. Either Ed or I need to be here, so it would have been fine."

"I'll stay here," Ed said. "You ladies go ahead back to the house." He glanced at the clock. "It's almost four o'clock now...in another five hours or so, we'll be in the thick of it."

"He's right, we should go," Vee said. "I've got plenty of food...and plenty of wine. And, we'll have plenty of time to chat."

Elizabeth nodded. "I'd like that."

"Go on, then," her uncle said, "get back to the house and lock up tight."

Elizabeth and her aunt both said goodbye to her uncle and headed off to their home, which was only a few miles from the inn.

"Thanks for letting me visit," Elizabeth said quietly, as they rode in her aunts car.

"Oh, nonsense. No need to thank me, Lizzy, you're always welcome here." She glanced over to her niece, and really didn't like what she saw. The drawn expression, the faint shadows under her eyes...it was a stark contrast from the woman who had beamed at her only a month ago. "I meant what I said, you know...we'll have plenty of time to chat."

Elizabeth nodded quickly. "I know we will. Can we just...can we not do it tonight? I just want to, I don't know...breathe a little." Her voice had become quiet, and she turned to look out the window. "I feel like I haven't been able to breathe, Aunt Vee."

Her aunt reached over to take her hand and gave it a squeeze. "We can do whatever you like, honey."

Elizabeth smiled slightly, despite the tears that were filling her eyes. "Thanks."

* * *

><p>Georgiana picked up the phone Wednesday night to call Matt. They talked every night, and there was no system for who called who; it was always whoever got to it first. Their phone call last night had extended well into this morning. Georgiana had told Matt everything that Will had told her; about Wickham, about the photos, everything. Matt had been shocked, to say the least<p>

"Hey, sunshine," he said softly when he answered, "How's my girl today?"

"Hi Matt. I'm...I'm fine, I think."

"You think?"

"Yes. A lot more has happened today...I can't believe everything that's going on."

"What is it? What happened?"

"Will...he kept the...the pictures, from January. He looked at them again...he's pretty sure he knows who the other man is. Collins is his last name. He's met him...he works with Elizabeth, and Will remembered that he and Wickham are cousins."

"Oh my God, Georgie, really? That's...that's unbelievable. What are you going to do?"

"Will and I talked for a while about everything." She hesitated briefly. "I want to try to get them, Matt. If it's not too late, if it hasn't been too long...I want to see them punished. I feel like I can do it now...I don't want them to hurt anyone else. I should have done this months ago...I shouldn't have been a coward."

"You weren't a coward, don't say that. It takes an incredible amount of strength to go through what you've been through, to recover from something like that. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"I don't feel like I am...if I can make up for it now, I'll feel better about it."

"What do you have to do?"

"Well, Will called Charles, and he was able to arrange for a couple of detectives to come here tomorrow. Will is going to be here, of course. I think I just have to give a statement. I'm nervous, though. What if...what if they don't believe me? What if they think what...what Will first thought? What if they look at those pictures and think that I did that with them willingly?"

"They'll believe you, Georgie. Why would you make all that up?" He paused. "I want to come to the Cape, I want to be with you tomorrow. Maybe it would help the investigation, or whatever they're going to do. I...I found you, so...maybe I could talk to the detectives too."

Georgiana smiled slightly through the tears clouding her eyes. "You'd do that for me?"

"Of course I would."

"But what about work?"

"I can take a personal day, it's not a big deal. Let me worry about my job, okay? If you want me with you tomorrow, I'll be there in a heartbeat, you know I will. Just say the word."

She hesitated only a moment. "As long as you don't get in trouble for skipping work...it would mean a lot to me if you were here."

"Then I'll be there. Early. I'll try to leave Boston by six-thirty or so, which puts me to the Cape around eight. Sound good?"

Georgiana exhaled, releasing a large breath. "Sounds perfect."

* * *

><p>After a delicious dinner of salmon and farm fresh vegetables, Elizabeth and her aunt decided to brave a short stint on the Gardner's deck. The sky had grown darker and the wind was picking up, but the full force of the storm hadn't hit yet. It would most likely occur during the night, and by then, Elizabeth was hoping she would be in a comfortable pinot noir-induced snooze; both women were well into their third glass of wine.<p>

The first drops of rain began to fall, sending them inside. They headed to the cozy living room as Elizabeth's aunt was finishing up a hysterical story, about a fairly 'noisy' couple that had recently stayed at the Inn.

"Oh, Lizzy...Eddie and I have never had anything like that happen. Other guests were complaining." She imitated one of the male guests, turning her voice deep and gruff. "They were goin' at it all night, Mrs. Gardner! The wife and I couldn't get any sleep, their dang headboard was bangin' up against our wall, over and over again!"

Elizabeth was laughing so hard she couldn't breathe.

Mrs. Gardner finally stopped laughing, taking a deep breath. "Your poor uncle...we flipped a coin to see who would talk to them. He lost, of course, then immediately insisted that we do two out of three. He still lost."

"Oh, God...what did he say to them?" Elizabeth asked, wiping tears from her eyes. _It feels so good to laugh_. Of course, the wine was helping.

"Oh, he just let them know that while he was glad they were enjoying their time here together, he wondered if they would mind enjoying themselves a little less _enthusiastically_."

This made Elizabeth laugh all over again, and it was a minute or so before she could catch her breath. "What did the couple do?"

"Well, we had no more complaints, so either we frightened them into celibacy, or they were less...gregarious in their expression."

Elizabeth giggled. "That's priceless."

Before they could continue the conversation, Elizabeth heard her cell phone ringing from her purse. She fished it out, her heart pounding. She relaxed when she saw it was Jane.

"Hi Jane."

"Hi Lizzy...how are you, did I catch you at a bad time?"

"No, of course not. I'm fine...I'm sitting here with Aunt Vee, having a glass of wine. How are things with you?"

"Oh, um, everything is fine here. I hate to bother you..." Jane hesitated to say anything to Elizabeth at the moment; she actually sounded light and happy, and Jane was reluctant to intrude on her happiness, especially since it had been a rarity lately.

Elizabeth interrupted when Jane neglected to continue. "What's up? Is something wrong?"

"Well...something isn't wrong, really...I just wanted to talk to you about a few things. You sound like you're having fun, though." The last thing Jane wanted to do was ruin Elizabeth's night if she was having a good time.

"I am. You know Aunt Vee always has the best wine, and the best stories." She watched as her aunt stood from the rocker by the fireplace and walked into the kitchen, perhaps sensing that Elizabeth might want some privacy. "So what's up?"

Jane made a decision. "You know what? It's nothing that can't wait until tomorrow."

"Jane, come on-"

"No, Lizzy, it really can wait." If Elizabeth had been in Falmouth, Jane would have told her what was going on, if only to make her aware of the possible danger that Bill Collins presented. Since she was safely tucked away on the Vineyard, Jane knew the information could wait. "I'll give you a call tomorrow, maybe we'll talk then."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Go have fun."

"It feels so good to laugh, Jane. I've managed, somehow, to forget about everything, just for a little while."

"I'm sorry I've reminded you about all of it."

"Oh, it's okay. I can't run from reality, can I?" She paused for a moment. "Will wrote me a letter."

Jane feigned ignorance. "He did?"

"Yes." There was silence for a long moment before Elizabeth spoke again. "I miss him, Jane." She felt her eyes well up with tears for the umpteenth time in the past two days.

"I know you do," Jane said quietly. "I wish I could make it go away."

"Oh, I wish you could too." Elizabeth forced false-bravado into her voice. "For now, though, I will just sit and enjoy this thoroughly tasty bottle of..." she grabbed the wine bottle from the coffee table, "...Lincourt Pinot Noir, apparently the finest Pinot Noir to be had from..." she pulled the bottle closer to her eyes, "...Santa Barbara County."

Jane smiled, knowing what her sister was about. "I wish I was enjoying it with you, Lizzy. I'd love to be there with you and Aunt Vee right now."

"I know. Maybe...maybe Friday, you and I can meet at the airport? Before I catch my flight. I'm long overdue for a hug from my big sister."

Jane felt her own eyes swimming with tears. "It's a date. I'll call you tomorrow anyway. Go have fun, give Aunt Vee and Uncle Ed a hug and a kiss from me."

"Okay, Jane I will. Love you...thanks for calling."

"I love you too. Bye Lizzy."

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 14<em>

Elizabeth lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling. It was morning, she knew that, but had no idea what time it was, because the power had gone out sometime during the night. She could easily get up to grab her watch from the dresser, but she didn't want to get up. Not yet.

The wind had kept her awake for most of the night, and what little sleep she'd had was riddled with dreams, most of which featured Will. The last one had been an extremely vivid sex dream, and she woke up feeling slightly annoyed that it had ended so abruptly, and was now rapidly disappearing from her consciousness. She could still remember little snippets of it and her body felt warm, as if he had really been there with her, holding her close, kissing her neck, moving his body over her, inside of her. Closing her eyes, she tried to bring it back into her mind, but it had already scattered into her subconscious. After a moment, she chastised herself for letting her thoughts wander down that road. It was hard not to, though; she missed him, _all _of him, it was as simple as that.

His letter was tucked into her backpack, calling out to her, begging to be read again. She had tried not to think about it last night, and had succeeded for the most part, thanks to her aunt. There was just the right amount of light conversation, mixed with just the right amount of wine, to keep her thoughts from straying into dangerous territory. Neither the letter nor Will ever _completely_ left her musings, but at least they hadn't been her entire focus all night.

Sighing, she resisted the urge to read the letter again, and made herself get out of bed. She pulled a curtain aside and glanced out the window, not surprised to see a lot of tree limbs down, some on top of electrical wires further down the street. She could already hear the buzz of chainsaws at work, but knew it would be quite a while before the power was restored. She wondered how her home had fared, and felt a twinge of nervousness. Eventually, she'd call over to the Falmouth police, to see if they had any reports of significant damage or flooding on Surf Drive.

She padded to the bathroom after checking her watch (which read eight-forty), and within ten minutes, was heading down the stairs. It was quiet, eerily so. She headed to the kitchen, and found her aunt sitting at the table, an empty mug in front of her.

"Good morning," Elizabeth said quietly.

Her aunt smiled at her. "Good morning Lizzy. How did you sleep?"

Elizabeth smiled. "I slept pretty well, actually. The wind woke me up a few times, but not for too long. How about you?" She joined her aunt at the table.

"Oh, I did alright. I'm waiting to hear from Ed, I'd like to know how he fared at the inn."

"I'm sure he's fine." Elizabeth noticed the mug in her aunt's hands. "Are you trying to get the power to come on quicker by holding onto that?"

Her aunt laughed. "Oh, I'm dying for a cuppa, but I'm assuming the power is probably out everywhere. Our coffee will have to wait."

"Sadly, I think you're right."

Her aunt rose from the table and walked to the counter. She unwrapped a delicious looking coffee cake and brought it back to the table. "At least we can eat this"

Elizabeth rubbed her hands together. "Mmmm, your homemade sour cream coffee cake?"

"Of course, made just for you as soon as you said you were coming to visit." She paused for a second. "You sounded like you needed a little comfort food."

Elizabeth smiled at her sadly. "I need more than comfort food, I think." She sighed, shaking her head. "I never thought things would happen this way," she said, staring at a random point on the wall in front of her. "I really thought that he was the one for me...that I was the one for him. It took me a little time to let myself believe it, but I did."

Her aunt reached over to grasp her hand, just as she had in the car last night. "Do you want to talk about it? It might make you feel better. It might help you think about things more clearly."

"Thinking about things is what I'm trying to avoid."

"I know. That's what the wine and the funny stories were for...I could see you needed some time. I'll be here for you whenever you're ready."

Elizabeth smiled softly at her aunt. "Thank you, Aunt Vee, for everything. How is it that you know me so well, and my own mother..." she shook her head. "Ugh, I can't go there right now."

Her aunt's brows rose. "Your mother?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "Oh, you know Fran. We had a...discussion yesterday, before I came here. It wasn't pretty."

"Was it dreadful?"

"It was...and it wasn't. It was very cathartic. I had to get some things off of my chest, and I felt so much better for saying the things I did."

"I'm sure you said some things that she was long overdue to hear. Hopefully, you'll be able to repair your relationship at some point."

Elizabeth pursed her lips. "Maybe." She fidgeted with the napkin, then took a small bite of the cake that her aunt had sliced for her. The desire to talk to her aunt, to confide in her, was strong, but she was at a loss. Her eyes filled with tears as she looked up at her. "I don't know where to start."

Her aunt squeezed her hand. "Well...why don't you start at the beginning?"

* * *

><p><em>Real life has me running crazy this coming week, so the next post may not be until Saturday...sorry! I will try to squeeze one in before that if I can. Please leave a review! Thanks ~<em>


	38. Chapter 38

_I'm a sucker for some good old fashioned begging...but don't get used to it! _

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 38<strong>

_Days apart: 15_

At 9:00 Thursday morning, there was a light knock at Georgiana's door. Knowing it was Matt, she rushed to open it. He came in and drew her into a tight hug, kissing her on the cheek.

"Good morning," he said quietly into her ear.

"Hi."

He didn't release his hold on her. "How did you sleep?"

"Okay. Not great, but okay. The wind was so crazy last night! I was tempted to walk down to the beach, but I chickened out."

"That's why it took me almost two and a half hours to get here...once I crossed the Canal, there were branches down everywhere. Lots of road crews were out, but still, it was slow going."

He released his tight hold on her, but didn't let her go completely. Instead, he leaned down to kiss her softly. "Are you ready for today?"

She nodded. "I think so. I'm nervous, but...I know I need to do this."

"I'll be right there with you, if you want me to be."

"I do want you to be there...I need you and Will to be there."

She paused and looked away from him, and Matt could see that she was uneasy about something. "What is it?" he asked, tipping her chin up with one hand, forcing her to look at him. "What's bothering you?"

Her eyes nervously darted away from his again. "I don't want you to see those pictures," she whispered.

He frowned. "Georgie, I don't want to see those pictures either, believe me. I'm not going to look at them, I have no reason to. I just want to be there to support you, that's all."

She shook her head, looking doubtful. "This is the way to get a new relationship off the ground, huh? We haven't even been dating for three weeks, and you get to hang out while some detectives question me about...about..." She couldn't finish talking, and her eyes filled with tears.

Finally, Matt led her over to the couch and they sat down together. He pulled her close and wrapped an arm around her, reaching up to stroke her hair. "Listen...soon enough, this will be over with. I want to be here, with you, while you do this."

"I felt so sure of myself when Will first talked to me about it...and now I'm so nervous. Last night, when I got off the phone with you...I started to get mad about it. He was here, on the Cape, and I didn't know. Will didn't tell me...he knew, but he didn't say anything to me."

"You told me that he explained why he didn't say anything. He thought he was protecting you."

"But...what if Wickham had come looking for me? He knew Lizzy was with Will...what if he came to find me?"

"He didn't."

"I know, but...Will should have said something to me sooner, he should have made me aware of everything. He was gone, in California, and I was here alone."

"You _weren't_ alone, remember? I was here with you. I would have protected you."

She turned and smiled slightly up at him. "I know you would have. Still...I can't help feeling that he shouldn't have kept me in the dark."

"Are you going to say something to him? If it's bothering you that much, you should."

She shook her head. "I've thought about it, but I can't. He's hurting so much because of Lizzy...and he's trying to do the right thing now, we both are, with Wickham, and Collins...I have to let it go."

Matt kissed her temple. "If you think you can let it go, then let it go." He paused. "If it keeps bugging you, though...you have to say something."

She nodded and took a deep breath. "I know."

He gave her a squeeze and another kiss. "What time are the detectives going to be here?"

"Eleven."

Matt glanced at his watch, then stood, pulling her up with him. "Great. We have plenty of time for a trip to Starbucks and a nice stroll on the beach. Let's go."

* * *

><p>While Georgiana and Matt were headed to Starbucks, Will found himself on the phone with Charles. "Do you know the two detectives that are coming here?"<p>

"I know of them, but I don't know them personally," Charles said. "I talked to an attorney that I know at the D.A.'s office that handles a lot of sexual assault and rape cases. We spoke strictly in confidence, of course. It's very likely that she'll be handling Georgiana's case, if it comes to that. She said the detectives are top notch, and have a very high arrest to conviction rate. They're from the Crime Lab Unit."

Will glanced at the clock. "They're supposed to be here in a little over an hour. I'm sure Georgie is nervous as hell, but I know that Matt's here, I saw him pull up a little while ago. I think him being here will help her."

"Not only will it help...but he's probably going to be called as a witness, or at least to give a statement of some sort, I would think."

"I didn't think of that."

"That's why Georgie will need a good lawyer. Maggie Harper is the best the D.A's office has. She's compassionate with her clients, but ruthless as a prosecutor. She'll be gentle with Georgie, but once she's in the courtroom...watch out."

Will sighed. "Thanks Charles, I wouldn't be able to navigate all this without you."

"No thanks necessary. I'll email you more information, including Maggie's number. She'll want to talk to you after the detectives are done, because at that point, you'll have a better idea of where things are heading. Call her as soon as you can, then call me _after_ you call her."

"I will."

"Good luck, Will."

"Thanks Charles."

They hung up, and Will stood from his desk to pace in his office. He was nervous as hell, not just for Georgiana, but for himself. He was determined not to let it show, though; he needed to be strong for Georgie, strong and calm.

For the first time in quite a while, he walked over to his collection of guitars, staring at them, lined up on their stands, waiting to be played. Three of the stands were empty; one of his guitars, his favorite in fact, was still at Elizabeth's house. The other two were up in Boston.

He reached for one and lifted it from its stand. At just under $2800, the Takamine was the most valuable of his acoustic guitars. He had bought it for its sheer beauty; it was made up of Hawaiian Koa, cedar, mahogany, and ebony, and had an incredibly rich, warm sound. He strummed the strings gently, and the sound instantly relaxed him. He began to play random chords and rifts, and was able, however momentarily, to break away from real life.

Soon enough, reality came back, in the form of memories of time spent with Elizabeth, singing and playing for her. He smiled as he remembered sitting with her on her bed one afternoon, trying to teach her some random chords. He had sat behind her, wrapping his arms around her, while she held the guitar. As he was trying to look over her shoulder to help position her fingers on the strings and frets, she kept turning her head to kiss and bite his neck and jaw. Facing that type of distraction, he had completely given up on teaching her. She had laughed at him, and told him she'd much rather watch him play than learn to play herself anyway. He couldn't help but wonder if he'd ever have that chance again, that chance to play for her, laugh with her. A voice in him demanded to be heard, but he refused to listen to it. It was the voice of defeat, telling him that it would never happen again, that she was gone for good, apologies be damned.

Had she even read his letter? It had been two days now. Truthfully, though...what had he been expecting? _What did you think she would do? _He honestly didn't know the answer to that question. He hadn't really gone too far beyond just writing the letter and giving it to her. The ball was in her court now, so to speak. Should he just wait, see if she would eventually talk to him?

Ironically, he realized that this was just what he had done to her; he had left her in limbo, for twelve days. He was waiting...wanting to know what was going on, but receiving no word, not a sign. Nothing. Already, he was feeling anxious and restless, and it had only been one day since he had dropped off the letter. Only one; not twelve.

_God, how could I have put her through that?_

Disgusted with himself, he unceremoniously dropped the expensive guitar back into its stand and left his office.

* * *

><p>At 11:20, Will stood in the foyer of his home, face to face with the two detectives from the Boston Crime Lab Unit. Detective Kelly Mitchell introduced herself first, before introducing her partner, Detective Howard Cooper.<p>

Georgiana remained seated in the great room, nervously clutching Matt's hand. She tried to focus on the rhythmic stroke of his thumb across the back of her hand, and not on the loud hammering in her chest. It sounded so loud to her, she was convinced that everyone would be able to hear it echoing in the room.

Will walked back in, the detectives in tow, and introduced them to Georgiana and Matt. Georgiana instantly liked them; they were soft-spoken, friendly, and not at all intimidating. She didn't know what she had expected them to be like; perhaps that came from watching too many crime shows on television. A small part of her was very glad that one of them was a woman, it comforted her just that little bit more.

"Miss Darcy," Detective Cooper started, "what we'd like for you to do is recount the details of what happened on December 31st, into January 1st, as best as you're able to. We'll start there, okay?"

Georgiana first glanced at Will, then at Matt, who squeezed her hand and smiled lightly, silently reassuring her. She turned to the detectives, who were both waiting patiently.

"Take your time, Miss Darcy," Detective Mitchell said, giving Georgiana an encouraging nod.

Georgiana took a deep breath and began.

* * *

><p>"So now, here I am. Confused. Sad. Angry."<p>

Elizabeth's aunt had watched her niece closely as she relayed the circumstances of all that had happened in the past two weeks. She had a difficult time hiding her shock when Elizabeth had told her about this Wickham, and his ties to William's sister and Lydia. She knew well enough that such people existed in the world, of course, but the fact that someone that evil had been so close to Elizabeth, and Lydia, horrified her. Lydia's behavior and role in all of this appalled her as well.

"You have a lot to think about, it seems," Elizabeth's aunt finally said.

Elizabeth looked at her, raising an eyebrow. "Thanks for pointing out the obvious, Aunt Vee."

The older woman ignored her niece's droll remark. "Did the letter he wrote to you make you see things more clearly?"

"Of course it did. I mean, he explained himself, as best as he could...but I still think there's something more there, something he hasn't been able to figure out about himself."

Her aunt nodded. "There's always more we can learn about ourselves, isn't there? He's trying."

Elizabeth looked at her aunt suspiciously. "What are you saying?"

"I'm not saying anything, Lizzy. I'm just pointing out more of the obvious. He broke your heart; he knows it; he's trying to repair it."

"I don't know if it's repairable."

"You've told him that."

"Yes, I've told him that."

They were silent for a moment before her aunt spoke again. "Absolute trust in a person...it's a difficult thing to come by. Once you have it, and can return it, it's priceless. You are gifting that person with yourself. Just the same, it can be easily broken. It only takes one thing...one moment, one action, to break something so fragile." She paused for a moment. "Once the trust is broken, it's much easier to convince yourself to keep your guard up, to protect your heart, to keep everyone at an arm's length. It's easier than opening yourself up to that kind of hurt again, isn't it?"

Elizabeth nodded a little, wondering if her aunt was speaking from personal experience, or just trying to give her insight.

Aunt Vee continued. "I agree. It's so much easier. I think, though, that having your trust broken is not the worst thing. I think the worst thing would be to let that broken trust make you a bitter person."

Elizabeth didn't know what to say.

"The worst thing would be to let yourself become withdrawn, cold and afraid. That would be the worst thing. Love comes with risks, but it comes with tremendous rewards, and for me, the rewards have far outweighed any of the heartache."

They were quiet again, only the sound of the ticking of the kitchen clock and the faint buzz of chainsaws breaking the silence.

"Have you and Uncle Ed ever...? I'm not being nosy, I'm just wondering. You two have always seemed so happy, I can't remember ever hearing you argue...you're always so affectionate with each other, so loving, so supportive. That's what I want, Aunt Vee. I want something solid, something that will last."

Her aunt laughed. "Oh my dear, no relationship is effortless. Your uncle and I, we are _solid_, as you say, but only because we have worked hard at what we have. We've had our moments, believe me. We've each made mistakes along the way. A long time ago...you were small, Lizzy, I think you were three or four years old...your uncle and I went through a very rough patch. I suppose it was different from what you're dealing with, it was a different situation altogether, and we were already married, of course...but still...as I said, trust is fragile, and it was broken."

Elizabeth wasn't expecting to hear those words, and didn't know how to respond. Different scenarios flew through her mind.

Her aunt squinted her eyes. "I can see your mind turning, Lizzy. Don't think too much on it – we've always been faithful to each other."

Elizabeth released a breath, realizing that it was the first thing that had crossed her mind.

"What happened in our marriage is between your uncle and me, but I'll tell you this; the easiest option would have been to walk away. It's always an option, isn't it?"

"Of course it is! It shouldn't be, but it is." Elizabeth again felt anger itching to break out of her. "That's what Will did, he walked away."

"I know he did," she said quietly. "You know, when you were visiting here with him last month, your uncle had an interesting conversation with him."

"Hm...I had a feeling he did. Will didn't tell me much about it though."

"No, I imagine he wouldn't have. Your uncle was pretty direct with him. William assured him that he wasn't going anywhere, that he didn't intend to run out on you."

"Pfft. He ate those words, didn't he?" Elizabeth was now standing in the kitchen, arms crossed over her chest. She felt her face flush. Her aunt stared at her for a long moment.

"Let it out, Lizzy. It's too much work to hold it in, and it's going to eat you up if you don't."

Elizabeth's hands went to her hips, and she chewed her lip. Finally, she began to speak, and it was as if someone had turned a faucet on.

"He left me, Aunt Vee. He _walked out_. I was hurt, in the hospital, and he just _left_ me there. But you know what? That's not even the worst of it. I mean, I was hurt, but I wasn't on my death bed, I knew I'd be fine. No, the worst part of it is, he knew _everything_. Everything about me, about Jason, about...," _about the baby, _she thought,"...about everything. I told him all of it. He knew what my fears were, why I was so scared to trust again, why I was scared to let myself love him. He knew what I went through, that I'd kept myself at a distance from any man who happened to show any interest in me at all. Oh sure, I put on a good show, going out on a few dates, but really, I was terrified. Absolutely terrified. If one of those guys happened to show just the _slightest_ bit of interest in pursuing a real relationship, in getting any more serious, I was gone. Checked out. No thanks! Not me! Not ready."

She paused to catch her breath, and looked at her aunt somewhat hesitantly.

"Go on, Lizzy, finish."

Elizabeth sighed, shaking her head in frustration. "I'm sorry."

"For what? For being angry? For being angry _at him_? For needing to express it? Don't be ridiculous, you have every right to be angry. I told you, if you don't vent, if you don't let it out, it will slowly eat away at you."

Elizabeth nodded and began to speak again, more calmly this time. She sat back down at the table.

"When he came along...God, I thought he was a jerk. Arrogant, judgmental...you name it, I thought it. Then...I saw glimpses of something decent in him, at different times. I started to think that I was a little hasty in how I had judged him. Here I was, calling him judgmental, and I had been the same way." She took a deep breath. "When we finally began to talk, when I finally began to see more of who he was, of what kind of man he was...I knew I was in big trouble. I found myself thinking about him all the time. Some things about him drove me crazy, you know? But he has another side to him, a side that I think a lot of people never get to see." She gave a short laugh. "Foolishly, I thought that not sleeping with him would help me to keep a barrier up, just that little bit would help me protect myself, but that was so stupid. I was already in love with him, long before we slept together, I know that now. I fell so hard, so fast."

She shook her head again and looked at her aunt with tears, once again, threatening to fall. "How could he do that to me? How could he just...doubt me like that? What made it so easy for him to stomp all over my feelings? What is it, in me, that would make him think I was capable of being so devious and deceptive? That I could do something like that, to him, or to _anyone_ for that matter?"

Her aunt began shaking her head adamantly. "Don't start with that, Lizzy. Don't put this on yourself. You know it's not you, it's him. Whatever it is within him that made his thinking, his reasoning, so skewed, whatever those issues are, they've always been there, whether he knew it or not. On some level, he probably did know, but it took something monumental – something more destructive than his sister's assault – to make him come face to face with it."

"At my expense! I know that sounds selfish, but why couldn't it have been something else? Why did it have to be me, us?"

"He loves you, Lizzy, that's why it was you. You know the saying – 'you always hurt the ones you love'. It's true. The people that we love the most cause the most intense emotional responses, don't you think?"

Elizabeth shrugged half-heartedly, understanding what her aunt was saying, but refusing to listen to the rationale behind it. She remained silent, so her aunt continued speaking.

"You know, if it was someone else that he hurt, someone that he didn't love or care so much about, he never would have done the soul-searching that he's been doing. He would've walked away, just like Jason did, without a second glance. What Jason felt for you wasn't real; if it was, if it had been, he would have realized his mistake and attempted to repair it."

"Are you siding with Will?"

"No, of course not. It's not a matter of choosing sides." She sighed. "All I'm saying is that mistakes happen. Big ones, little ones...they'll happen throughout your life, just as they've happened throughout mine. Those mistakes...those are what will give you the opportunities to learn, and grow. Successes are wonderful, but they don't teach you about yourself, and about other people, like mistakes do."

Elizabeth said nothing. She felt drained, and possibly more confused now than she was before this whole conversation started. Her aunt seemed to read her mind.

"Lizzy, listen to me. I'm not trying to make things more confusing or more difficult...I'm trying to get you to see the bigger picture. I'm not siding with William, but I _am_ advocating for your happiness. You are paramount to me; your happiness, your well-being, is what your uncle and I want most. It's only for you to decide how you will reach that point in your life when you can truly say that you're happy again."

Elizabeth was staring down at her hands, afraid that if she looked at her aunt, she'd cry again. Unfortunately, her aunt wanted her attention, and lifted Elizabeth's chin so that they were looking in each others eyes.

"You can't change what happened. It's in the past, and no one has the ability to go back and change it. The only thing you can change, the only thing you have control over, is your future. That's the thing about mistakes, Lizzy; you'll make them, the people you love will make them, but it will be up to you to decide whether you're going to learn from them, or run from them."

Elizabeth felt a tear run down her face. She knew her Aunt was talking about Will. Sure, she was making it seem like she was talking about herself, maybe, or Elizabeth, but in reality, she was talking about Will. Her aunt was trying to tell her that he was owning up to his mistake, trying to learn from it, instead of continuing to run from it.

Her aunt got up to fetch a box of tissues, placing it on the table between them. She continued speaking. "Whatever you decide, Lizzy...make sure you won't regret that decision. Truthfully, do you know what regret is?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "Sorrow, I guess, over something lost. Sorrow over something you should have done, but didn't," she whispered. "Sorrow over something you _shouldn't _have done...but did."

Her aunt nodded. "Yes, that's it. It's all of those things, but it's also realizing you've made the wrong decision, when it's too late to go back and change it."

Elizabeth sniffled. "You're telling me that Will regrets what he did." She fidgeted with her tissue. "And you're telling me that you don't want me to regret the decision I make...whatever that decision is."

"Exactly. I think William _does_ regret what he did, deeply. He knows he was wrong, he knows what his mistakes were, but he's hoping it isn't too late for you to forgive him." She paused. "Now it's time for you to make some decisions, Lizzy, decisions you won't regret when you look back on your life years from now. Can you forgive him? Is he worth it? Or is it too late?"

* * *

><p>After a long morning of answering questions and reliving days that she had been trying so desperately to forget, Georgiana sat with Matt on the deck of Will's house. Will had gone to his office to call Maggie Harper, the lawyer from the D.A.'s office that had been assigned to Georgiana's case. The detectives had left, and were heading at this very moment to visit Bill Collins at his office in Woods Hole.<p>

Georgiana still didn't have any clear recollections of what transpired that night; her last vivid memory was of standing with Wickham, sipping the glass of wine he had brought to her from the bar. After that, her next memories were of being with Matt and Julie in the car, headed to Julie's apartment. Detectives Mitchell and Cooper had been honest with her; unless they could get some type of confession out of Collins or Wickham, or somehow connect them to the pictures, their chance for securing evidence was obviously long gone. The best evidence would have been DNA; any trace of that had been obliterated long ago.

Charles was right when he said that the detectives may want to talk to Matt. They asked him about his whereabouts during the party and what he had witnessed during the evening, but specifically, they wanted to prod his memory about what he noticed about the room when he found Georgiana. He had been uncomfortable talking about it in front of her, Georgiana could see that. He kept glancing at her nervously, and finally, Detective Cooper took pity on him and asked him if he'd feel more at ease discussing it in another room. He breathed a sigh of relief as he rose from the couch, where he had been sitting next to her, holding her hand tightly, and headed to Will's office.

One thing he clearly remembered was that she was disorientated and confused when he found her, and that she had been dressed, albeit haphazardly. He remembered seeing two, or possibly three, condom wrappers on the bed and on the floor. Thinking back, he thought that maybe Julie had disposed of them, but he wasn't sure; at that moment, he was completely focused on taking care of Georgiana. She had felt a little sick, and he remembered getting a cloth and soaking it in cold water, and gently washing her face with it. When she had enough strength to walk with only a little support from him, they left the room and then the party, and Julie had driven them all back to her own apartment, where Georgiana stayed the night so that Julie could keep an eye on her.

The next morning, Julie had begged Georgiana to go to the emergency room, or go to the police, or call Will, _anything_. Georgiana had refused vehemently. The very thought of telling Will about what happened had nearly put her into a panic attack.

As she sat on the deck with Matt now, she thought back on that day, and reprimanded herself again. "I should have listened to both of you. All this...all this horrible stuff that's happening, with Will and Elizabeth, Lydia...it's all because of me, really." She stared out at the ocean. "I mean, if I had told Will the truth, had gone to the police...maybe we could have caught him – them – earlier. Chances are, Wickham never would have been on the Cape, never would have met Charlotte, then Lizzy...I was such a damn coward."

Matt gave her hand a slight tug, to get her attention. "Georgie, knock it off," he said quietly, "come on. You can't go back and fix it, so you have to stop dwelling on it. You're doing what you can now, so is Will. You should be proud of yourself for that. Stop beating yourself up."

It was quiet for a few more minutes as Georgiana's mind hopped from one thing to the next, finally coming to rest on Elizabeth.

"I wonder if Lizzy knows about Collins yet. To think that she worked with him day in and day out, and had no idea…and she was around Wickham, and didn't know who he was…I mean, what are the chances?"

Matt shook his head. "I know what you mean. Was she friends with Collins? I know they worked together, but were they friends as well?"

Georgiana shrugged. "I think he had a thing for her…that's the impression I got, though she never came right out and said anything. Will said a few things, a while back, that made me think that maybe Collins had designs on her. I can't be sure, though."

Sighing, Matt tugged her hand again. "What should we do with the rest of the day? Do you want to go for a drive, or have a quiet day on the beach? We should do something that will take your mind off all of this stuff. What do you think?"

"Why don't we just go to the beach? I'd like to stay close to home in case Will gets word from the detectives."

"Okay, sounds good to me." He rose from his chair and pulled Georgiana up from hers and into his arms. He leaned down to place a long, slow kiss on her lips. When he broke away from her, he smiled at the questioning look on her face. "Just doing my part to keep your mind off of things."

* * *

><p>After her long conversation with her aunt, Elizabeth decided to call the Falmouth Police to see if they had any reports of storm damage. The dispatcher didn't have too much information, and was only able to tell her that parts of Surf Drive had flooded, and some of the beach houses had sustained damage, but she was unsure of which ones. Right now, the road was completely blocked off to traffic. The dispatcher suggested that Elizabeth call back in an hour or so, and perhaps then she would have more information.<p>

Worrying about her house was a temporary diversion, at best. Talking to her aunt and telling her all that had transpired had only led Elizabeth to one conclusion; she needed time. Time to process everything, time to think about what she truly wanted, and time to address how she really felt about Will's actions. She was angry, that much was becoming more and more evident, and she knew herself well enough to know that she would not be able to think clearly unless she let that anger abate, at least a little.

Her aunt had finally heard from her uncle, and so the two women decided to walk to the inn, as the roads didn't seem to be very passable by car anyway. People were out everywhere, clearing away fallen tree limbs and cleaning up other debris. They were very lucky the storm had curved eastward, out to the Atlantic; a direct hit would have resulted in much more damage. Crews from the utility company were out in force, attempting to reconnect downed power lines and restore electricity.

When they finally arrived at the inn, they found Mr. Gardner outside, making a pile of branches.

"How does everything look?" Mrs. Gardner asked.

Mr. Gardner pointed up to one of the roofs peaks. "We lost some shingles there, and that branch," he said, pointing to a very large broken limb dangling precariously in a tree, "is going to be trouble if it lets go. I'll have to get up there to try to get it down."

"You'll do no such thing. We'll get someone over here to take care of it today or tomorrow. It doesn't look like it's going anywhere anytime soon."

"Yes, dear," he said, giving his wife a squeeze around the shoulders and a kiss on the head.

Elizabeth smiled at the conversation between her aunt and uncle. She thought back to what her aunt had said, about the trust being broken between them at one time. Without quite understanding why, she had been very relieved when her aunt had said it hadn't been an issue of fidelity. In her eyes, they had always had the perfect marriage; but then, she only saw it from the outside. Still, the thought of one of them being unfaithful would have been unsettling, not to mention heartbreaking.

Her parent's marriage, on the other hand, was one she would never wish for. They loved each other, she supposed, in their own way, but they had grown apart. Her father could barely tolerate being in her mother's company for long. There was no partnership, no…togetherness. They were together out of force of habit, and both were too settled in their ways to even contemplate any type of change.

After helping her uncle with clean-up, Elizabeth offered to walk into town to check to see if anyone had coffee. _Someone has to be hooked up to an emergency generator_, she thought. As she walked, her cell phone began to ring, and she felt that tightening in her stomach that she knew she'd feel every time it rang. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw it was Jane.

"Good morning," she answered.

"Hey, Lizzy, how are you? Still dry?"

Elizabeth chuckled. "Still dry. I'm working my way to Mocha Mott's, hoping they have a generator hooked up...the three of us are dying for coffee."

"Ohhh, Mocha Mott's. Get their triple espresso, you'll be all set for a week."

They both laughed. "I might need it today. The wind woke me a few times, but I managed to get a little sleep. I called the police in Falmouth, they weren't sure about Surf Drive yet, I have to call back in a little while. I hope my house is still standing."

"I'm sure it's fine...you said yourself that the storm was turning out to sea. That house can withstand a lot, it's built pretty well."

"I'm hoping. Hey, why did you call last night? I know you wanted to talk to me about something."

She heard Jane sigh. "Oh, I did, I do, but it's pretty huge. Where are you right now?"

"Almost to Main Street."

"Okay...you might want to find a place to sit for a bit, if you can."

"Jesus, Jane, now you're making me nervous. Is something wrong?" _Is it Will?_

"No...no, nothing's wrong, really. Actually, it's about Bill Collins."

"Bill? What happened to Bill?"

"Well, nothing _yet_." She sighed. "Apparently, according to Charles, Will was doing some thinking yesterday, about a lot of things I guess, and he pulled out the pictures of Georgiana...you know, from January."

Elizabeth was puzzled. "And?"

"Well, he knows that one of the men is Wickham, so he focused more on looking at the other man. I guess the blackout didn't work so well in one of the pictures, he could kind of see his face a little, his hair...anyway, after studying them for a bit, he realized that he kind of looked familiar. Then he remembered something you said, about-"

"About George being Bill's cousin," Elizabeth said, interrupting her as the puzzle pieces locked into place. Her voice was flat, toneless. She had seated herself on a low stone wall that surrounded a flower bed outside of a small diner on Main Street. Her stomach churned painfully. "Oh my God, Jane, please don't say what I think you're going to say."

"I'm sorry, Lizzy. Will recognized him. Bill is the other man that assaulted Georgiana."

Elizabeth felt dizzy and nauseous. The world seemed to tilt a little, so she dropped her head down to her knees and took a deep breath through her nose.

Jane waited a moment before speaking. "Lizzy? Are you okay?"

Elizabeth took another deep breath before answering. "Yes. I just...I'm in shock, I think. I can't believe it. What...what's happening now?"

"Well," Jane said, glancing at the clock on her desk, "there should be a couple of detectives at Will's house, to talk to him and Georgiana. From what Charles said...Georgiana is going to try to go after them, if she can. They're hoping, I think, that Collins will cooperate, and maybe give up George."

"Oh my God. I should call Georgie, she must be a wreck."

"I'm sure she is."

Jane could feel the unspoken question hovering between them. She knew that Elizabeth wanted to ask about Will, how he was handling it, but also knew that she wouldn't. If she didn't ask, Jane wouldn't offer the information.

The silence stretched on, until Elizabeth finally spoke. "It all makes sense now."

"What does?"

"All those times that Bill asked me about George being at the house, those few times he came to use the darkroom. Bill wanted to know how he was acting, if he was being nice...he was worried, even then. He knew what George was capable of. And all this time, he was capable of the same thing."

"Thank God nothing happened to you...have you talked to Charlotte? Does she know any of this?"

"No...I have to call her. We've talked about George, what their relationship was like...she said he was aggressive sometimes, but he never hurt her. She always made him use protection...thank God."

"Hm. I wonder if Lydia was that smart."

"Oh, I'm sure she wasn't. I'm going to try to catch up with her tomorrow, before I head back to South Carolina. Obviously, she and I need to talk."

"What are you going to say to her?"

"I don't know yet...I think I'm just going to fly by the seat of my pants. Whatever comes out, comes out."

Jane grimaced. Lydia was in for a world of hurt. "You have every right, you know. I kind of took it easy on her. She deserves everything she gets."

Elizabeth angled her face up toward the sun, now shining brightly, as if the storm that passed through last night had never happened. "You know what Jane? It doesn't matter what I say, you know nothing gets through to her."

"You need to say it just the same."

"Oh, I know. And I will."

Silence fell again as Elizabeth's thoughts went back to Bill. "Not to change the subject, but...I had an interesting conversation with Jason about being selected to go to the Basin. When I first found out about the trip, Bill told me that I was chosen to go...that the 'higher ups' wanted me there. Of course, as soon as I found out Jason was one of the 'higher ups', I assumed that he had something to do with it. I asked him about it, and he insisted he didn't...he said Bill recommended me."

Jane couldn't follow her sister's line of thinking. "Is that a big deal?"

"Well, no, not really...but why would Bill tell me that they specifically asked for me? I wonder if he was trying to get me away from here, without me knowing it. I mean, I got taken off the grant and switched to the carbon project...then all of a sudden, an opportunity comes up to travel."

"You're not thinking he was trying to protect you or something, are you?"

"No...well, maybe he was, in his own messed up way...he always seemed to be nervous about George coming to my house. Still...if it's really him in those pictures? I hope he caves, and he rats out his nasty cousin, and they both spend the rest of their miserable, perverted lives in a stinking prison cell."

"Me too."

Elizabeth sighed. "I should get moving. I can see Mott's from here, and it looks like people are walking out with hot coffees...our aunt and uncle are going to wonder what happened to me."

"Did you get a chance to talk to Aunt Vee?" Jane asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure if Elizabeth would want to talk about it.

"I did. She helped, I guess. I don't know, honestly. I have a lot to think about, and right now, there's so much going on...my mind feels like it's being pulled in too many different directions."

"Just get through this next week in South Carolina, then you can come home."

"If I have a home! I have to call the police to find out."

"Well...text me and let me know what's happening."

"I will. Thanks for calling me to tell me about Bill. Let me know if anything develops, okay?"

"You know I will. I'll see you tomorrow at the airport, okay?"

"Okay, I should be there by three or so, my flight leaves at four-twenty."

"See you then. Love you Lizzy."

"Love you too. Bye Jane."

Elizabeth quickly dialed the police department as she finished her walk to the coffee shop, and was relieved to hear that none of the beach houses sustained any significant damage. Part of the road was flooded, but the water line didn't rise high enough to damage Elizabeth's house, if the dispatcher had the tidal surge height correct. Thankfully, it didn't seem like she had anything to worry about.

Carrying the coffee tray, she began walking back to the inn, and finally, she let her aunt's words from earlier in the morning replay in her mind. She knew she had some soul-searching of her own to do.

_What do I want? What will make me happy?_

Those weren't even the questions, really. It wasn't a question of figuring out what she wanted, or what it would take to make her happy; she knew Will played a prominent role in both of those answers. No, the question, now, was this; was she going to let her fears build the wall around her heart even higher, or was she going to take a chance, and let Will tear the wall down again?

* * *

><p>Bill heard the unfamiliar voices at the front of his office building, talking quietly with Mary. Nervous flutters filled his stomach, and instantly, beads of sweat began to form on his top lip and across his forehead. Soon, there was a knock on his door, and before he could answer, a man and a woman walked into his office, both with police badges pinned to their jackets.<p>

"William Collins?" the woman asked.

"Yes...yes, I'm William Collins. What...what can I do for you?"

"I'm Detective Mitchell, this is my partner, Detective Cooper. We're from the Boston Police Department, we'd like to ask you a few questions if you don't mind."

Bill's heart was pounding in his chest so hard that he thought it would burst. "Oh, ugh, certainly, okay, um, regarding what, may I ask?"

"Regarding a New Years Eve party that you may have attended with your cousin, George Wickham," Detective Cooper said. "We have reason to believe that a crime was committed at the party, and we also have reason to believe you may know something about it."

"Oh, well, no, I wouldn't know _anything_ about a...a crime committed at a p-party. I don't even remember _going_ to any New Years Eve party."

"Well, we think you do. We have some pictures we'd like you to look at that may stimulate your memory." Detective Cooper pulled out the pictures of Georgiana that had previously been locked away in Will's safe. He laid two of them on the desk in front of Bill, putting the one that showed some of Bill's face directly in front of him. "Look familiar, Mr. Collins? Do you remember the party now?"

Both detectives took note of how Bill's face paled, and how his hands began shaking as he held the picture, staring at it. He looked up at them uncertainly, before looking back down at the picture, then looking away. The office was silent, with the exception of Bill's nervous breathing.

"We can do this here, Mr. Collins, or we can do it in Boston. It's your call," Detective Mitchell said. "If you'd be willing to answer some questions, tell us some things about your cousin, let us know where we can find him...it will make this much easier on you."

Suddenly, the dam burst. Bill stood up swiftly, startling the detectives.

"It was him, it was all _him_. I didn't know what I was doing...I was drunk, I barely remember it. George kept talking to her during the party, he noticed her the moment he walked in, said she would be his by the end of the night. I tried to distract him, tried to keep him away from her...but the more nervous I became, the more liquor I drank." He stopped talking briefly, taking a huge gulp of air. Sweat was pouring down the sides of his face. "He lured her in there, put something in her drink. She was completely out of it. I...I didn't know what to do." Slowly, he sank back down into the chair and dropped his head into his hands. "I didn't...I didn't know what to do, I couldn't stop him."

"Did you try, Mr. Collins?" asked Detective Mitchell.

Bill raised his head again, shaking it slowly. "I didn't, I knew I couldn't. I was in that room, with him, and knew that if I said anything to anyone, I'd be held just as responsible. I never touched her! It was only George."

"No, by the looks of things, you only watched. Quite attentively, it seems," Detective Cooper said. "Stand up, please, and come out from around the desk."

Bill did as he was asked. He noticed Mary at the door, her mouth open, a horrified look on her face. "Mary, please...go." She turned and walked away slowly.

Detective Cooper walked behind Bill and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. As he began to pull Bill's wrists behind him, he began to speak.

"William Collins, I'm placing you under arrest for the rape of Georgiana Darcy. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law..."

* * *

><p>Will looked at the caller ID as his cell phone rang later that afternoon, and saw an unfamiliar number...with a Boston area code. Immediately he answered.<p>

"Mr. Darcy?"

"Speaking."

"This is Detective Cooper from the Boston PD. We just wanted to let you know, we took William Collins into custody this afternoon. He's being held in Boston right now."

Will let out a huge breath. "Wow. How...how did it happen so fast?"

"Well, when we showed him the pictures, he confessed almost immediately. He's going to give us some information on his cousin, maybe even where we can find him, so it looks like things will be escalating now."

"I can't believe it...thank you."

"Don't thank us to soon, Mr. Darcy, he still has to go to trial. If today is any indication, I think he'll be cooperative. The statement he gave today will stick, he wasn't coerced. He spoke quite freely, actually."

"How do you look for Wickham? What happens next?"

"You let us worry about that. You'll have some other things to think about now. We'll be talking to the D.A.'s office soon, but you should give Ms. Harper a call as well, I'm sure she's waiting to hear from you."

"Yes, yes...I will. Thank you, Detective Cooper...pass on my thanks to Detective Mitchell as well."

"Will do. Take care Mr. Darcy."

"Yes, you as well."

After Will hung up, he sat for a moment, letting the reality of what just happened sink in. It was done. Well, almost done. As good as done, from the sounds of it. _Collins caved_. Of course he did, the spineless piece of shit. He would have to go tell Georgie and Matt, who were down on the beach. Georgie needed to know as soon as possible.

He didn't quite know how to feel. Part of him wanted to celebrate, fist pump, and dance around the room. The other part of him was somber at the thought of what lay ahead for his sister. His thoughts shifted to Elizabeth, and he wondered if she knew anything about Collins, about what was happening. _Jane would have told her_, he thought.

God, he wished Elizabeth was here with him right now. What he really wanted was to hold her, feel her arms around him, hear her voice telling him that this was it, that finally, this would all be coming to an end, and that everything was going to be alright. That was all he really wanted, and his elation quickly turned to sadness when reality intruded, reminding him that what he wanted, and what he actually had, were two very different things.

* * *

><p><em>So, since I've been posting fast &amp; furious for a while, it's getting to the point where my posts have just about caught up with my writing. So, I'll try to post as frequently as I can until then. After that, it will be once a week posting. Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing, I appreciate it! I might be able to squeeze in another post on Wednesday...we'll see... <strong>:)<strong>_


	39. Chapter 39

_Happy 4th of July to anyone enjoying the holiday in the good old USA today! Here's a chapter to celebrate..._

_This chapter also finishes off Part 5 of the story. Next chapter will be posted on Saturday. Thanks again for reading and reviewing!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 39<strong>

_Days apart: 15_

Elizabeth said a long goodbye to her aunt and uncle, hugging them tightly and thanking them both profusely for allowing her to seek a temporary refuge with them. Her aunt had held her hand just before she pedaled away, and gently reminded her that decisions like the one Elizabeth had to make shouldn't be made in haste. Elizabeth had only nodded, afraid to speak. It seemed she was always on the verge of tears lately, and it wouldn't take much to make them spill. She gave her aunt one last hug and whispered another 'thank you' before riding away to Oak Bluffs.

The boat ride back to Falmouth was calm and serene, as opposed to the thrashing that the boat took on the way over. Once again, though, there weren't many passengers. Her head was spinning, filled with thoughts of everything that had occurred over the past couple of days. She had read Will's letter again last night, before going to sleep; had read it several times, actually. Her dreams had been filled with him, but unfortunately, she had also dreamed of Wickham and Lydia. That was more of a nightmare, she supposed.

She sighed as she thought of what the day ahead held; lots of phone calls, and lots of talking. Her first priority was to get her Jeep and get back to her house to check for any damage. She had called the police again this morning, and they assured her that the part of Surf Drive where her house was situated was open to traffic; only the section by the public beach was temporarily closed off.

After that, she'd call Charlotte and Georgie, and then she'd have to find Lydia. She'd have very limited time to get these things accomplished; she needed to catch the 1:30 bus to Boston. Her mind drifted to Bill Collins, and everything that she had found out about him and his cousin. If anything good could come out of the beautiful mess that her relationship with Will had turned into, she guessed this would be it. _George_ _Wickham and Bill Collins getting caught, hopefully going to jail._ It was amazing to her that all of this time, she had been working side-by-side with one of the men who had assaulted Georgiana. Whoever coined the phrase '_it's a small world_' knew what they were talking about. Yes, it was a small, sad world sometimes.

* * *

><p><em>Maggie Harper <em>_sounds__ like a barracuda,_ Will thought. He was on the phone with her early Friday morning, discussing some of the next steps in Georgiana's case.

"Mr. Collins gladly gave up the whereabouts of his cousin in New York. As far as he knows, he's currently residing in a hotel. We have the name of the hotel, as well as the name of the company he's taken employment with. Rest assured, Mr. Darcy, we'll find him."

"What does my sister do in the meantime?"

"She just waits, for now, until we contact her. It may be several days, depending on how quickly we can find Wickham, and what he's willing to tell us when we do. If he outright denies everything, we'll have a battle on our hands. His cousin sang like a canary, which is helpful. Also – I'm not sure if the detectives told you this – but they searched the bedroom that Wickham stayed in at his cousin's home in Falmouth. They found several pictures of women, tucked under the mattress. A few of them, of one woman in particular, were fairly explicit in nature. The others weren't, they were just head shots, mostly. One was of your sister, and we're hoping to find out from Collins who the other three women are, if he knows them. Obviously, we'd like to talk to them."

_Explicit in nature_. Instantly, Will assumed that those had to be of Lydia. He wondered, though, if any of the other pictures were of Elizabeth. If Wickham had taken the time to stash pictures in Elizabeth's dresser, would he have taken the time to steal a few of her too? Of course he would have. That means the authorities would eventually be contacting her.

"Well, I appreciate you keeping us informed. Please let me know if anything further develops."

"We'll do that. You probably won't hear much over the weekend, so you and your sister should try to relax. The next few weeks may prove to be very exhausting, especially for her."

"I know. I'll make sure she takes it easy. Thanks again, Ms. Harper."

"You're welcome. Enjoy your weekend."

As will hung up, he sat back in his chair and closed his eyes, rubbing one hand over his face. _Relax. Right. _He wanted to walk over to Georgiana's house, but thought to call Charles first.

"Hey Will," Charles answered.

"Hey Charles. How are you?"

"I'm fine. How about you? How's everything going? How's Georgie?"

"I'm alright, I suppose. Georgie's doing okay. Matt didn't stay last night, he had to head back to Boston, but I think he's coming back tonight for the weekend. He's a good support for her."

"That's good. Have you heard anything today?"

"Actually, I just got off the phone with Maggie Harper. I told you last night that Collins confessed to everything, right? Well, today she told me that they searched the bedroom at Collins' house, the one Wickham stayed in, and found a few pictures. Some were explicit...my thought is that those are of Lydia. She said there were a few other pictures, too, of other women – including Georgie – but those were just...well, normal pictures, I guess. They're going to ask Collins if he knows who the other women are."

"What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that at least one of them has to be of Elizabeth. And maybe Charlotte, too. I feel like Elizabeth needs to know...if I'm right, and he had a picture of her – stuffed under his fucking _mattress_ – she needs to know."

"I'll talk to Jane. I think she talked to Elizabeth yesterday, to tell her about Collins."

Will sighed. "What a mess."

"Exactly."

"How is she? Did...did Jane say how she was doing?"

Charles closed his eyes. _How should he answer that? What should he say?_

Will noticed his hesitation. "I'm not trying to put you on the spot. The last thing I want to do is cause more problems for you and Jane. I just want to make sure she's okay."

"I know, I know. She's holding up, from what Jane says. I guess they're going to meet at Logan later, just to see each other for a bit."

"Oh...Logan? She's going back to South Carolina?"

"Yes." He paused for a moment. "So, I'm assuming that you haven't heard from her at all, then? No response to your letter?"

"No, nothing. Honestly, Charles, I was fooling myself if I thought she was going to come running back to me over a letter. It's going to take much more than that. I mean, I don't even know if she read the damn thing. Maybe she just burned it, tore it up, or shoved it into a bottle and sent it out to sea! Now _that_ would be fitting."

"Come on, Will, cut it out. I'm sure she read it."

"Oh really? How can you be sure?"

"I don't know...I just can't imagine that she'd pitch it without reading it first. She wanted explanations from you, right? I'm assuming that's what the letter contained...so I'm sure she read it."

"I explained, I apologized...I told her how much I love her, how much she means to me. I even told her I'd beg her to give me another chance if she wanted me to, if that's what it would take. I'm hoping that maybe _something_ got through to her, just enough so that she'll talk to me."

"Just give her time. You needed it too, at one point, remember?"

"Nice dig. Thanks for that."

"Shut up, it's not a dig, it's a reminder. You needed time, she needs it too. Deal with it."

"I will. I am." _But I don't want to. I want to see her._ "I should go, I have to get over to Georgie's to talk to her about everything. I'll touch base with you over the weekend."

"Okay, sounds good." He paused for a second. "I'm rooting for you, you know. I want this to work out for you and Elizabeth, I really do. I just have to be careful that I don't say too much, or do the wrong thing...I can't risk alienating Jane again, Will. She's too important to me."

"You don't have to explain yourself, Charles, I understand. I'll try not to put you in that position. If I do, tell me. You know me...I'll push it sometimes, so you just have to tell me to fuck off."

Charles gave a short laugh. "I'll try to be a little nicer than that."

"Thanks. I should get over to Georgie's, I'll catch up with you over the weekend. Have a good one."

"You too."

He walked out of his house, across the lawn, and over to Georgiana's. She let him in, and he looked around the small living room appreciatively, liking how she had made it her own.

"You know, you've really done a lot with this place. It doesn't look the same at all, except for the furniture."

She smiled faintly. "Thanks. It's been fun, adding my own little touches. It's good therapy."

He looked at her then, and though she was smiling, her eyes were serious. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I am. It's just...it's constantly on my mind."

"I know, mine too."

"I've been thinking," Georgiana said slowly. "I know that we talked, and agreed that you would handle everything that's going on with this. I appreciate it, you know I do, but...I think I should be the one that talks to the police, and the D.A.'s office."

Will looked at her closely, confusion evident in his expression.

She shook her head. "Not because I don't think you're capable, I know that you are, and I know that you have my best interests at heart. It's just...I want to be the one who takes care of it, who closes the book on it. I need to do this, I need to be strong and stand up for myself. My days of cowering are over, Will. I want to be the one to face those men, if it comes to that, and watch them suffer the consequences for what they did." She paused for a moment. "Do you understand? It's like closure for me. This will be the end of all of it, hopefully."

Will smiled a little, and nodded at his sister. "I do understand, completely. I'm glad that you want to handle everything. You have a lot of people in your corner, you know that. I'll make sure Maggie knows to contact you, and not me, from now on. I did just talk to her, though, so I need to tell you what she said." He paused, clearing his throat. "She told me that Wickham had some pictures at his cousin's house...you were in one of them, but it wasn't like those other pictures, from January. I think he must have taken it from Elizabeth's house."

Georgiana looked horrified. "He had another picture of me?"

"Yes, and a few of other women as well...I think one might have been of Elizabeth, but I don't know for sure yet. They're going to question Collins first, and I'm sure they'll let me know what he says."

Georgiana turned away from her brother briefly, and when she turned back to him, her eyes were flashing. "This is why you should have told me he was here! I can't believe he had a picture of me." She stopped talking, but her heart was pounding in her chest. "You should have told me, Fitzwilliam. It was the right thing to do."

His eyebrows raised slightly. "I'm sorry, Georgie. I thought I _was_ doing the right thing, I really did."

"I know, but still...it upsets me that you didn't tell me." She kept her voice calm. "If he had...done something, come after me, or made his presence known to me somehow...I don't know what I would have done. I probably would have freaked out."

"I thought about it, I really did. Once I found out that he was around...he had been here since May, possibly even before that. Elizabeth met him at a party Memorial Day weekend. The only thing I was counting on was the fact that he had stayed away from you so far."

"But he might not have even known I was here, back then."

"No...I'm pretty sure he did. He had been to Elizabeth's house a couple of times in June, he must have seen pictures of me. He knew. I'm sorry, Georgie. I just...I figured that if he hadn't made a move yet, he probably wouldn't. I was thinking that he knew it would have been a nail in his coffin."

Will could see that she was angered by his inaction. "I'm sorry. I can't say it enough. I wasn't thinking clearly. Everything was so screwed up in my head, obviously. Look at what I did to Lizzy, what I thought..." he shook his head as his voice trailed off. "I messed up the best thing in my life. Maybe permanently."

Georgiana's anger softened slightly. "There's been no word from her at all?"

"No. I'm not expecting any miracles...I'm trying not to get my hopes up. I just want to know that she read my letter, that's all. Charles seems to think she would have, but I don't know. I hope so. I guess I just have to wait."

"Waiting has never been one of your strong suits."

He chuckled softly. "Yeah, I know. Charles said she's going back to the Basin today. She doesn't come home until the 14th, so I guess I just have to...wait. Patiently."

Georgiana rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I know. I have no patience." He sighed. "I should just go to South Carolina." He said it initially as a joke, as a jest, but once the words were out of his mouth, they flew into his ears and lodged in his brain.

"Will-"

"I know what you're going to say, Georgie. Give her space, right?"

"_Yes_."

Will shrugged.

"Seriously Will? I thought you were trying to be less impulsive."

"I _am_ trying to be less impulsive. I haven't left yet, have I?"

Georgiana closed her eyes briefly. "I don't think it's a good idea."

"I just want to know if she read the letter, that's all."

"Then text her!"

Will shook his head. "No. She can ignore a text...she can't ignore me if I'm standing in front of her."

"You don't even know where she's staying!"

"No, I don't...but I'm sure I can find out."

Georgiana knew her brother well enough to know that he had already decided, and no amount of attempted persuasion would get him to change his mind. "You're being very selfish, Will. You do know that everything could backfire, right? You need to _respect_ her wishes, not completely disregard them. She might get pissed off, slam the door on your face, and tell you to leave her alone."

"You're right, she just might do that. And if she does, I'll have no one to blame but myself, right? Maybe she _won't_ slam the door on my face, though...maybe she'll talk to me. I'm willing to take my chances. I just...I need to see her, Georgie."

* * *

><p>Thankfully, all was in order at Elizabeth's house. She could see the line in the sand that marked where the tide had risen to, and was glad to see that it hadn't gotten too high. Most of the damage to the other beach houses seemed to be confined to missing shingles or pieces of decking coming loose. No one had any issues with flooding at all, at least not at this end of the road.<p>

After unloading the Jeep, bringing in all her belongings, she made a quick call to her father. She chose to call him on his cell phone instead of at home, therefore eliminating the chance of having to deal with her mother. He didn't answer, so she figured he was probably at the library. His voice mail came on and she left him a message, asking if he could get over to the house sometime over the weekend to remove the boards from the windows, as she didn't have the time to do it now. Now, it was time to find Lydia.

Knowing well that Lydia's weekends usually began on Thursday nights, Elizabeth knew the best place to find her would be at home, recovering from a late night. On her way to Lydia's house, Elizabeth called Charlotte and filled her in on everything going on. She told her about her break-up with Will, but focused more on Wickham and Collins. Charlotte was horrified when she found out George's history, and Collins' role in Georgiana's assault.

Elizabeth had to ask the obvious. "Are you sure nothing ever happened between the two of you that you have questioned yourself about?"

"Nothing, Lizzy, I swear. I told you once before, he could be aggressive, but not in a violent way. He was just...demanding, sometimes. Sexually demanding. God, this is embarrassing."

"Charlotte, come on, it's me."

"I know, I shouldn't be embarrassed. I never did anything I was completely uncomfortable with, but...I did let him take some pictures once. They weren't too provocative...not like the ones he took of Lydia. In the back of my mind, I didn't trust it. Or him, I should say...I didn't trust him. I didn't want those pictures to come back and haunt me."

"I hope they don't haunt Lydia." Elizabeth sighed. "What about protection? Were you always careful with that?"

"Always," Charlotte said. "No slip ups, ever. No condom, no sex. He knew that was the rule."

"Good girl."

They were quiet for a minute, each lost in their own thoughts. Charlotte finally broke the silence.

"What about you and Will? Any chance there?"

Elizabeth had grown to hate that question, mainly because it was reverberating through her own mind _all the time_. She was tired of trying to figure out how to answer it. "Honestly, I really don't know."

"You should think about it hard, Liz. Men like him don't come along too often."

"Ha – men like him? Untrusting, hurtful men? Come on, Charlotte, they're a dime a dozen."

"Oh, you know what I mean. He worships you, I could tell he did from the start. He's not an asshole that repeatedly hurts you and then comes looking for another chance. What he did was huge, but geez, think of it this way...you're getting all the big shit out of the way. After this, it'll be smooth sailing."

Elizabeth laughed, she couldn't help it. "Always look on the bright side, right?"

"I'm serious, Lizzy. If you guys can get through this, and come out on the other side with your love intact...think how much stronger you'll be. Don't let him get away that easily. I'm not saying you should rush back into his arms, because I don't think you should. What I _do_ think is that you should work at whatever it is that pushed you apart to begin with. If it's him, and his issues, and he _knows_ it's him and his issues...well, that's half the battle, isn't it?"

Elizabeth had had enough of the serious conversation. "What are you, a part-time advice columnist now? 'Dear Charlotte'?"

"Hm. Divorce gives you perspective on things."

Elizabeth sighed. "I guess it does. Thanks Charlotte, I appreciate it."

"Sure you do. Next time, just tell me to shut up."

Elizabeth smiled. "Okay. Hey, I have to go...I'm pulling into Lydia's driveway...and her car is here, so I have to mentally prepare myself! I'll call you when I'm back from South Carolina."

"Okay. Have a safe trip, talk to you soon. Bye Lizzy."

"Bye Charlotte."

Elizabeth left her Jeep and walked to the front door. One of Lydia's housemates answered. "I'll go get her," was all she said.

Elizabeth could hear muffled conversation coming from down the hallway. The house was a disaster, and looked – and smelled – more like a college dorm room. There were empty beer bottles everywhere, along with overflowing ashtrays, and right in the middle of the coffee table sat an enormous water bong. _Nice_, Elizabeth thought.

Lydia came out, attempting to fix her unkempt appearance and wipe the dried mascara off of her face.

"Oh, Jesus! You didn't tell me it was Elizabeth!" she yelled to her housemate.

"Good morning to you too, Lydia."

Lydia sighed loudly. "What do you want?"

"You know why I'm here, so let's not relive the gory details." She pulled out the three pictures that George had conveniently left behind at her house. "Look familiar?"

"Give me those," Lydia said, as she tried to snatch them out of Elizabeth's hand. She wasn't quick enough.

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, Lydia, these are mine. George left them for me, after all. Do you know why?"

"Because he was a fucking pervert, that's why. Lying bastard."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. "I'm glad you're finally seeing the light, but that's not why he left them. He wanted me to find them. So why the sudden change of heart?"

"Why? He hasn't even called since he went to New York. I've left, like, ten messages for him, and he hasn't called once."

"Ohh, you poor thing."

"Shut up Lizzy, I know you don't feel sorry for me."

"Actually, Lydia, I do. I feel sorry that you were stupid enough to get fooled by him. He didn't want you, he just wanted a way to get closer to _me_. You were just a pleasant little diversion, an easy lay." Elizabeth's stomach turned as she said the words, but in her heart, she knew it was true. Those times that he was at her house, the way he looked at her...she knew, now, that he had wanted her. Not Charlotte, not Lydia, but her. "He wanted you because he knew you were someone he could control, someone he could talk into doing all these lovely things with him." She waved the photos around. "Do you think your roomies would like to see these? Maybe you could brag a little more, like you bragged to Jane about where you screwed him in my house."

"Don't you dare show anyone those damn pictures. And so what, I _screwed_ him in your house. What's the big deal? It's just sex. Oh, I forget, that's an unfamiliar thing for you."

"Nice try, you're not going to get to me that way. I'd choose my supposed _unfamiliarity_ over your sluttiness any day of the week. At least my picture won't be splashed all over some filthy magazine, or on the internet."

"I don't care if those pictures end up anywhere! If your own _boyfriend_ thought it was you giving George a blow job, what do you think everyone else will think?"

For a moment, Elizabeth was stunned into silence. It was then that she realized that Lydia was truly beyond feeling any remorse, and that this whole conversation was a total waste of time. Her shoulders drooped, and she exhaled a huge breath of air. When she spoke again, her voice was quiet.

"I don't know why I even bothered."

Lydia just stared at her, not sure of what to make of her sister's change in demeanor. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Coming here, trying to make you see what a mess you've made. I don't know why I bothered."

"I've made no mess, _that's_ why you shouldn't have bothered." Although her words were defiant, her voice gave away her hesitancy.

"That's what you think, because you can't see beyond yourself. You're an insensitive, selfish, stupid girl, Lydia. Someday, it'll come back to bite you in the ass." Elizabeth's voice remained calm, almost indifferent.

Lydia rolled her eyes.

Elizabeth shook her head. "You can roll your eyes all you want, but I want you to answer a question for me. Did you always use protection with George? Did you make him wear a condom every time?"

Lydia's face flushed.

Elizabeth smirked. "Congratulations. You've pretty much had sex with everyone he's ever had unprotected sex with. I bet you that's a _long_ list. Let's see...you know what else?"

"What?" Lydia's voice was completely lacking in confidence now.

"I'm sure George took _a lot_ of pictures of you, plenty of which show your face as clear as day. He probably kept those for himself. You better start watching the internet, they could pop up anywhere. He can hack into your email system too, so watch out for that. Oh, one last thing."

"Shit. What?"

"Mum and dad weren't crazy about the pictures. I'm sure you'll hear all about them from mum."

Lydia's jaw dropped. "You didn't."

"I did!" Although Elizabeth hadn't actually _shown_ her parents the pictures, she thought it was only right that Lydia got to fret about it for a while.

"I can't believe you did that!" Lydia whined, true panic evident in her voice.

"I can't believe you shacked up in my house all weekend with a sexual predator. I guess we're even." Elizabeth's voice was flat and expressionless, and she realized that she was at her limit. She paused for a minute as she gathered her final thoughts. "I'm finished with you, Lydia. I don't want anything to do with you. I'm sorry to say it, I know you're my sister, and I hate that this is how our relationship has turned out, but...I just don't like you. Honestly, there's not much to like." As she turned to walk out the door, she dropped the pictures on the floor, stepping on them as she silently left the house.

* * *

><p>"Hello, Mary, this is Will Darcy. How are you today?"<p>

"Oh, Mr. Darcy, it's nice to hear from you. I'm just fine, thank you. We've had quite a horrendous day here."

Will knew what she was referring to, of course, but chose to play dumb. "I'm sorry to hear that. If you'd like me to call back..." he let his voice trail off.

"Oh, no, I'm fine. What can I do for you?"

"Well, I was hoping you could help me out with something..."

Ten minutes later, Will was off the phone and on his laptop, booking a flight for the next day into Georgia. From there, it wasn't a very long drive over the state line and into Beaufort. He reserved a rental car and a room at the Beaufort Inn, which seemed like it was walking distance to the house where Elizabeth was staying, according to the internet map he was looking at. The inn looked nice and had a decent rating, so he took their last available room.

When all the arrangements were made, he sat back at his desk, thinking about what he was doing. He thought about what Georgiana had said, about him being selfish and making it worse by showing up there. Part of him – a huge part – knew that she was right, but another part of him was telling him that if he just _saw_ her, if they could just _talk_ to each other, face to face...it would change things. All of this heartache and pain could have been avoided if he had just talked to her to begin with. Instead, he chose to run away, making everything so much worse. Now, he admitted to himself, he was terrified that she was doing the very same thing.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth landed in Savannah with a heavy heart; her plans to see Jane at the airport had been thwarted by obligations that Jane couldn't get away from at work, and her phone call with Georgiana had been slightly awkward. The last conversation they'd had weighed heavily on Elizabeth's mind; granted, Georgiana hadn't mentioned anything about Will this time on the phone, but the memory of that conversation was the elephant in the room.<p>

Jane had told Elizabeth about the pictures found in Collins' house, and Elizabeth had filled Jane in on her conversation with Lydia. Jane, true to her nature, thought that Elizabeth was much too easy on Lydia. Still, she was glad that Elizabeth felt better for saying what she had to say, even though she could still sense Elizabeth's despondency over how far gone her relationship with Lydia truly was. It was sad for Jane, too; the three girls had been so close for so long, but Lydia's behavior over the past year or two had turned steadily worse, and it was time to sever ties, at least temporarily.

Georgiana had repeated Jane's story about the pictures, almost word for word. They talked a little about Collins, as Elizabeth couldn't help but express her sorrow and anger over finding out that he had been involved with Georgiana's assault. They talked, then, about the investigation, and about the fact that Collins had completely caved and admitted his participation in the crime, and was able to give the authorities the whereabouts of his cousin. That, at least, had made Elizabeth breathe a sigh of relief; soon, perhaps, this nightmare of Georgiana's – and Will's – would be over. She couldn't help but hope that they would eventually be able to move past everything that had happened to Georgie.

Before Elizabeth had boarded the plane in Boston, she had spoken to Megan, who was thrilled that Elizabeth was returning.

"I have so much to tell you," Megan had announced over the phone, causing Elizabeth to laugh.

"What could possibly have happened in the short time that I've been gone?"

"Oh, tons. We went out Tuesday night, to a really great bar in the middle of town, it was such a dive! There was this band playing...oh, never mind. I can't tell you on the phone, just get back here. I'll see you at the airport."

Walking out into the arrivals area of the airport in Savannah, she saw the smiling faces of Megan and Lisa, waiting for her. They both gave her a welcome back hug, and they all headed back to Beaufort.

For the entire one-hour ride into South Carolina, Megan didn't stop talking. After the initial pertinent questions about Elizabeth's health and the status of her home were out of the way, she launched into a narrative of what had happened while Elizabeth was gone. Apparently, the whole crew went out to a little bar in Beaufort on Tuesday night, and Megan had met a very attractive, very single member of the band that had played there. They had been inseparable since.

"I thought you just wanted to have a little fun while you were here?" Elizabeth asked, her eyebrows raised.

"I am having fun. Oh, it's nothing serious, we just like to hang out together. I mean, how can it be serious? I have to leave in another week. It's just been fun, hanging out with him for the past few days."

"And nights," Lisa chimed in.

"Yeah, nights too," Megan said, grinning.

Elizabeth responded with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that! What happens in Beaufort stays in Beaufort, remember?" Megan said, grinning. "We haven't been able to do much field work during the day because of the storm, but we did go to the Estuarine Research Reserve facility here, what a place! It's huge. Anyway, Elliot's band is playing at another bar in Beaufort tomorrow night, we should all go."

"Oh, I don't know..."

"Oh, come on Liz, we had a blast when we all went, you'll love it. They play great music."

Elizabeth hesitated. "Who is 'we all'?"

Megan sighed. "_Every_one went." She knew full well what Elizabeth was asking.

"It really was fun," Lisa said, "Paul thought Elliot's band was fantastic. I even got him up to dance, which is a rarity. You should go, Liz, it'll be a nice way to unwind before we buckle down on Monday. This next week is going to be crazy, we're going to have to make up for a lot of lost time."

"I know," Elizabeth said. The thought of going out appealed to her, but she didn't really want to socialize on that level with Jason, if he was part of the 'we all'. Maybe she could just avoid him; after all, she did make her feelings pretty clear to him before she left. "Alright, let's do it. I could use a little dancing."

Megan looked at her then, and Elizabeth could see the questions waiting to be voiced. She knew they would be forthcoming as soon as the two of them were alone.

She wasn't wrong; later that evening, once dinner was finished and the two women were alone, getting ready to retire, Megan asked more questions about her trip home.

"How was it? I mean, did you...were you able to get things, um, resolved? With your status, I mean. Did anything change?"

Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders. She had told Megan next to nothing about her relationship with Will and what had happened between them, and really didn't want to get into it now. "Everything is still a mess."

"I wish I could help."

"I wish you could too. You know, I feel like I just need time away...but it really does no good, because he invades my mind anyway. A change of scenery does nothing. Even having Jason here...at first, it was a distraction, but now...he doesn't even matter."

"So...are you, like, with this guy? Broken up? On a break? I don't get it."

Elizabeth gave a short laugh. "I don't get it either. We're apart, but he doesn't want us to be."

"But you do."

"I wish it was that easy, as easy as just saying, 'I don't want you anymore', and bam – it's done."

"So...you _do_ want him." Megan was obviously confused.

"I don't know what I want, that's just the problem. I mean, I know what I want in the grand scheme of things...I just don't know if I can trust that he's the one that will be able to give it to me."

"He screwed you over pretty badly, huh?"

Elizabeth was momentarily shocked at her initial reaction to Megan's simple question. Her first instinct, which she had to squelch, was to actually defend him. _What am I thinking?_

"Been there," Megan said, before Elizabeth even had a chance to reply. "Guys can be selfish pricks, no doubt about it. My last boyfriend was cheating on me for over a month before I found out. When I caught him, he was just like, 'oh well, later babe.' I mean, what the fuck is that all about?" She paused, looking at Elizabeth with a pained expression on her face. "Did I hit the nail on the head?"

"No...no, it was nothing like that. Honestly Megan, it's too long and complicated. Constantly thinking about it is bad enough right now, I don't want to talk about it too."

"That's okay, I get it." She settled herself into bed. "We'll go out tomorrow night, have a good time, have a few drinks, and dance up a storm. Pardon the pun."

Elizabeth smiled. She was looking forward to it and dreading it, all at once.

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 16<em>

Will watched Elizabeth from across the bar. She was having fun, he could see that, and he thought for a brief moment that he should just leave, and let her have the time she needed. She would eventually find out that he had been here though, he was sure of that. When he had arrived at the house in Beaufort, the older man that had answered the door had looked at him skeptically. After answering several questions about himself and why he was there, Will was able to plead his case well. The man, Thomas, had finally relented and told him where Elizabeth had gone with her co-workers. Will knew that Thomas would definitely mention Elizabeth's visitor to her.

He knew that he was completely disregarding her wishes. At least, he thought he was. When he was at her house on Tuesday, she didn't tell him to leave and give her some time, she just told him to leave, period. That was as good as saying a permanent goodbye, he supposed.

_But had she read the letter?_ If she hadn't, she wouldn't know how he felt, wouldn't know that he was slowly discovering things about himself, things that weren't necessarily pleasant, but that he needed to learn just the same. He needed to tell her that, needed her to know it. He was aware of the irony in the situation; his impulsive behaviors and thoughts, and his inability to control them, were part of the reason they were not together now. Yet here he was, in South Carolina, behaving impulsively...so that he could tell her that he was trying to change his impulsive behavior.

His eyes never strayed from her. He drank her in, noting that she looked tired, but beautiful. Even from this distance, he could see her eyes and how they sparkled. Not for him anymore, but it didn't matter, he loved them anyway, loved the way they drew him in, until she was the only person in the room that he noticed.

One of the two women with her pulled her over to the jukebox that was against the wall, blaring out tunes. He watched as they scanned over the songs, gesturing to each other. A band was supposedly playing tonight, but they weren't due to go on for another half an hour. He had to figure out a way to approach her, without scaring her off. As he watched, the woman that Elizabeth was standing with started jumping up and down, and Will could hear her saying loudly, "yes, yes, that's it!"

He watched as she rolled her eyes at the other woman and laughed. For a moment, she looked serious, and began looking around the bar. Will wondered if she could sense that he was watching her, and he very quickly turned his back toward her. God, he felt like a stalker. After a moment, he glanced over his shoulder toward her, and saw that she was looking at the other woman again.

The song that was playing on the jukebox ended, and the new song started. The woman pulled Elizabeth out onto the floor to dance, and he watched as another woman and two men joined them. When the words to the song started, he realized the woman had played it for Elizabeth, and it made his stomach lurch.

"What are the chances that they would have this song on that jukebox?" Megan yelled over the opening notes.

Elizabeth shook her head, smiling. "What are the chances?" Megan had chosen '_the anthem_.' That's what she had called it, anyway. At least it was a more updated version, done by a band that she liked.

As soon as the crowd on the floor realized what song it was, everyone started singing along, men and women alike.

_At first I was afraid, I was petrified  
><em>_I kept thinking I could never live without you by my side  
><em>_But then I spent so many nights just thinking how you done me wrong  
><em>_And I grew strong, I learned how to get along  
><em>_And so you're back, from outer space  
><em>_I just walked in to find you here without that look upon your face  
><em>_I should have changed my fucking lock, I would have made you leave your key  
><em>_If I'd known for just one second you'd be back to bother me  
><em>_Ohhhh now go, walk out the door, just turn around now, you're not welcome anymore  
><em>_Weren't you the one who tried to break with me with desire, did you think I'd crumble  
><em>_Did you think I'd lay down and die?  
><em>_Oh not I, I will survive, yeah, as long as I know how to love I know I'll be alive  
><em>_I've got all my life to live, I've got all my love to give  
><em>_I will survive, I will survive, yeah yeah...*_

Elizabeth found herself belting out the lyrics right along with everyone else, and decided to just let herself cut loose for a bit. She deserved it, after all. Paul grabbed her hand and twirled her around, before taking her and dipping her, almost to the floor. Elizabeth was laughing as he pulled her back up and released her, then turned to do the same to both Megan and Lisa.

She sensed that Jason was next to her, could tell that his body was turned slightly toward her, but she refused to look in his direction. She still felt the odd sensation that she was being watched, but pushed it away.

Suddenly, she felt a hand, first on the small of her back, then as it slid around to her waist. She looked up abruptly, and was astonished to see that Jason was smiling down at her, his hand on her as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Even though she had indulged in a shot or two – not of tequila, however – and had consumed a few beers, she was sober enough to know that he was out of line, and she let him know it too.

"Back the fuck off, Jason."

"He raised his hands, trying to look innocent. "I just thought we could dance."

"Fine. You dance over there," Elizabeth said, pointing to a spot on the floor about five feet from her. "I'll dance here. Don't touch me."

Will had watched Elizabeth dancing with her friends briefly, but had walked away when an idea had suddenly come to him. He sought out the bar manager, and after a brief conversation, the manager led him backstage to where the band was hanging out, tuning their guitars and having a beer before going on stage.

Will addressed them all as a group. "Anyone interested in making some extra cash?"

* * *

><p>Elizabeth, Megan, Paul, and Lisa had all settled at a table toward the back of the bar. Jason, thankfully, had decided to leave after the incident on the dance floor. Elizabeth wasn't sorry to see him go, he had made her very uncomfortable, and jolted her out of her temporary good mood. The jukebox was now turned off, as the band was about to start, but the entire place was incredibly noisy. Megan was bursting with excitement; she couldn't wait for Elizabeth to watch Elliot, and was going on and on about how talented he was, how cute, how funny...her praise of him was unending.<p>

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, and once again, her heart pounded. _How long until that stops?_, she wondered. It was probably Jane, she reasoned, or Charlotte, checking up on her. Her heart lurched painfully when she saw it was a text from Will, and the little paperclip icon next to his name indicated that there was an attachment of some sort. Slightly buzzed, she let her curiosity get the best of her, and opened it up.

There was no message, only a generic picture of the nighttime sky. _It must have been a mistake_, she thought. _Surely he didn't mean to send me this_. But what if it wasn't a mistake? If he _did_ mean to send it, she couldn't understand why; it meant nothing to her. Sure, they had done plenty of star-gazing, but she couldn't immediately recall anything significant happening during one of those times. She became lost in her thoughts, trying to puzzle everything out in her semi-inebriated mind, and didn't even realize that Megan was talking to her.

"What did you say?" she asked, still not really paying attention.

"I said, I have no idea who this guy is, maybe they have an opening act or something."

Elizabeth didn't even bother looking up from her phone, she just continued to stare at the picture. The crowd had become quiet as the soft sounds of the acoustic guitar started, but still, she was completely focused on her phone, searching her memories, something that would make the picture meaningful in some way. It wasn't until she heard the voice of the man on stage that she looked up, and her eyes opened wide at the sight of Will.

"He's hot, though, whoever he is."

Elizabeth realized that Megan was still talking, quietly. The people in the bar were completely silent, listening to the man on the stage as he began to sing.

_When I look into your eyes, it's like watching the night sky  
><em>_Or a beautiful sunrise, there's so much they hold.  
><em>_And just like them old stars, I see that you've come so far  
><em>_To be right where you are, how old is your soul?  
><em>_Well I won't give up on us, even if the skies get rough,  
><em>_I'm giving you all my love, I'm still lookin' up._

_And when you're needing your space, to do some navigating  
><em>_I'll be here patiently waiting, to see what you find.  
><em>_'Cause even the stars they burn, some even fall to the earth  
><em>_We got a lot to learn, god knows we're worth it.  
><em>_No I won't give up..._

_I don't want to be someone who walks away so easily,  
><em>_I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make.  
><em>_Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use the tools and gifts we got, yeah  
><em>_We got a lot at stake.  
><em>_And in the end you're still my friend, at least we did intend for us to work,  
><em>_We didn't break we didn't burn,  
><em>_We had to learn how to bend without the world caving in,  
><em>_I had to learn what I got, and what I'm not, and who I am._

_I won't give up on us, even if the skies get rough,  
><em>_I'm giving you all my love, I'm still lookin' up, I'm still lookin' up.  
><em>_Well I won't give up on us, 'cause god knows I'm tough enough  
><em>_We got a lot to learn, god knows we're worth it.  
><em>_No I won't give up, no I...I won't.**_

The crowd burst into applause at the end of the song, and immediately, Will was up on his feet, handing the guitar over to someone else, saying something in his ear and shaking his hand. He looked out into the crowd, and his eyes skimmed over everyone until they settled on Elizabeth.

"Wow, he was great, huh? What a beautiful song." Megan was talking again, but Elizabeth wasn't really paying much attention to her. She needed to move, to get out of that bar, but when she stood, she felt everything tilt slightly. She shook her head, now regretting that she had agreed to do shots with everyone. Megan grasped her arm, gently holding her.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Elizabeth shook her head, slightly alarmed that Will was slowly making his way toward them. Someone in the crowd had stopped him, thankfully. "No, no, I have to leave. I can't believe this, I can't believe he's here. I have to go." Anger welled up inside of her as she loosened herself from Megan's grip and pushed away from the table, steadying herself.

"You can't believe who is here?" Realization dawned in Megan's eyes. "Is that the guy?" She looked up in time to see Will slowly coming toward them. "Holy shit, that's him, isn't it?" When she turned back, Elizabeth was already gone.

* * *

><p><em>Hmmm...next chapter is a doozy. See you Saturday! Please review if you can!<em>

_Songs:_

_*"I Will Survive" by Cake (this is not your mother's version! Original by Gloria Gaynor) _

_**"I Won't Give Up" by the beautiful hobo that is Jason Mraz_


	40. Chapter 40

_Ugh, I thought I was never going to get around to this today! Real life keeps getting in the way. We're here at the beginning of part 6, and as I said, the posting is slowly catching up to my writing. Someone had asked how long the story will be...I'm thinking about 60 chapters, give or take a few. Thanks again to everyone who continues to read and review, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Part 6<strong>

**Chapter 40**

_Days apart: 16_

Elizabeth walked out of the bar and took a deep breath. She stood in the parking lot for a moment, trying to get her bearings. It was raining, but she didn't care; the cool drops were a welcome sensation on her overly-warm face and arms. As she began walking across the lot, she heard the musical sounds of the band as the bar door opened, and then it was silent again as it closed.

"Elizabeth."

She knew he would follow._ Ignore him. Ignore him._

"_Elizabeth_." As he said her name again, she could tell he was much closer this time, and then she felt his hand grip her upper arm lightly. She jumped, startled, yanking it out of his grasp.

"_What?_" she said angrily, walking away. "What do you want?"

"I just want to talk to you," he said, keeping pace behind her.

"Well I don't want to talk to you."

"Will you just stop for a minute, please?"

She did stop, and she spun on him, catching him off guard. He collided with her, and had to hold onto her to steady both of them. She pulled out of his grasp once again, taking a step back.

"How did you even find me? Who told you where I was?"

Will just shrugged, refusing to give up his sources.

She looked at him with a mixture of disgust and ire. "Forget it, I don't want to know." She glared at him, her eyes lit up with anger. "So, is this your big master plan for proving to me that you've changed?" she asked, gesturing toward the bar. "Showing up out of the blue and singing me a fucking song?"

Will was surprised at the vehemence in her voice; he had never seen her so angry before. When they had talked Tuesday, she had been so calm. _Not now_.

"No, I...there is no master plan...I just wanted to see you."

"Did you ever stop to think about what _I _want? Did that even enter your mind? Don't you think I would have_ told_ you if I wanted to see you? Why is it always about what _you_ want?" She was unable to take her eyes off of him, as he stood there in the rain. Her voice softened as her anger shifted to a gnawing, raw ache. "Jesus, Will, why can't you just give me room to breathe?"

She felt overwhelmed suddenly and a sob threatened, begging for release, but she forced herself to stop it from escaping. Tears clouded her eyes, mixing with the raindrops, blurring her vision of him. Despite everything, despite the fact that he was crowding her, suffocating her, something inside of her had warmed at the sight of him, and she didn't want to move away.

"You didn't tell me...you didn't ask me to give you room to breathe," he said softly.

He was standing close enough that she could smell him, smell the faint scent of the cologne that she loved. She could see the stubble growing in on his jaw, and knew just how it would feel if she let her fingertips caress it. She saw the shadows under his eyes, and knew exactly how his skin would taste if she let her lips drift across them. As her eyes left his face, they strayed to his hair, to the drops of water clinging to the dark brown waves, and she knew just how soft they would feel if she reached up to run her hands through them.

An all too familiar heat sparked in the pit of her stomach, and at that precise moment, she decided that she wasn't going to think anymore, wasn't going to be angry, empty, or heartbroken. She was going to pretend that George Wickham and those horrible pictures didn't exist, forget the past two weeks and all that had happened, and live for the moment, _this_ moment; _she_ would be impulsive and take what _she_ wanted...and right now, what she wanted was him.

Will was caught completely off guard when Elizabeth stepped toward him, closing the gap between their bodies. She raised her lips to his and kissed him, tentatively, until she felt him respond, which he tried not to do, at least at first. After a brief moment he stopped trying to resist, and reached out to hold her waist as he let himself kiss her deeply. Slowly, he pulled away from her and forced himself to take a step back, although it was the last thing he wanted to do. That one brief kiss had ignited his entire body.

"Lizzy-"

"Where are you staying?" she asked, sounding breathless.

He looked at her for a long moment before answering. "At the Beaufort Inn. Look, I don't think this-"

She moved toward him and cut off his words with another kiss, this one much more confident and hungrier than the first. He became absolutely lost in it, lost in _her_, unaware of anything else around him. Her arms snaked around his neck while his wrapped around her waist, pulling her as close as possible. She broke the kiss, but only to move her lips to his neck, to suck and bite at him, and he groaned at the sensation before she moved back to his lips again. The rain had picked up and they were soaked now, but both were completely oblivious to it.

Neither were aware that the bar door had opened. Megan stood for a minute, watching them, then turned and walked back into the bar.

"Where's your car?" she whispered against his ear.

"Elizabeth, we need to-" he said, his voice barely audible over the rain.

She moved her mouth to his and very decidedly bit his bottom lip, making him jump, but then she pulled it into her mouth, running her tongue across it and sucking on it gently before kissing him again. His entire body shuddered, and his arms tightened their hold.

"Let's go," she said against his lips, as her hands worked their way under his wet shirt, stroking his skin.

Less than fifteen minutes later, after the most physically torturous car ride of Will's life, they were tumbling into his room in a tangle of kisses and caresses, clothes being pulled off and thrown in every direction. They didn't even make it to the bed, she wouldn't let them get that far. She leaned back against the wall next to the door, pulling him with her, one hand relentlessly stroking his erection while the other was wrapped around his neck, tugging him closer. When she hooked one leg over his hip, he didn't hesitate, refusing to let his mind interfere with the demands of his body. Instead, he lifted her slightly against the wall, hooked one arm under the leg wrapped around his hip, and sank into her.

They both exhaled loudly, and he felt her breasts brushing against his chest, the hardened peaks creating an intoxicating friction between their bodies. He bent forward to kiss and suckle her neck, before lifting his lips to hers and kissing her roughly. Elizabeth returned the kiss in equal measure, and he finally pulled away to catch his breath and look at her, as he slowly began to thrust in and out of her. Her eyes were closed, but he wanted to see them, needed to see that deep green color that had always invaded his dreams.

"Elizabeth, look at me," he said, his voice uneven and hoarse. "Open your eyes."

Instead she lowered her head, hiding her face below her curtain of hair, and raked her nails across the back of his neck before gripping his shoulders tightly, making him suck in his breath and push into her harder. He tried again.

"Look at me," he said, his voice a little stronger now. Still, she refused to meet his gaze. Finally, he was able to grasp her chin with one hand and force it up so he could see her. Even then, she kept her eyes closed, her breathing coming faster and harder as she was getting closer to climaxing. He leaned forward to kiss her again. "I love you," he whispered against her lips, until he was repeating it over and over again, in time with the increasing cadence of his deep thrusts.

Even then she refused to open her eyes, and as he felt her body tensing, felt her muscles tightening on him, he moved away from her lips so that he could watch her face as she came. It was then that he saw a tear squeeze out from under each of her tightly closed eyelids. The sight of those lone tears, slowly tracking down her cheeks, completely undid him.

"No, no, please don't cry, Lizzy, please don't-" his voice was stifled by the feeling of her climaxing around him, causing him to clutch her leg tightly as he thrust once, then again, before spilling inside of her. As soon as he was able, he moved his lips to her cheeks, kissing away her tears. "Please don't cry, love, please don't cry," he whispered softly, his voice breaking. She didn't respond, didn't react at all to his plea; her only action was to lower her head to his chest. They were both breathing heavily, and he knew he should probably move, but he was loathe to break their connection. She still wouldn't look at him, wouldn't raise her eyes to his.

After a few moments, when their breathing was just about back to normal, he released her leg from his grasp, and slowly pulled out of her. Instead of backing away from her, he pulled her away from the wall, toward him, so that she was completely up against him. He lowered his mouth to her shoulder, kissing her there gently, while his arms encircled her and lightly stroked over her back. His mind had reeled at the sight of her tears, and was now spinning with all the possible implications of what had just happened.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth laid in the bed next to Will, listening to his breathing, knowing by the sound of it that he was sleeping deeply. After the urgent interlude against the wall, he had led her over to the bed. She could tell, as he pulled her down next to him, that he was expecting them to talk, of course. Each time he tried to initiate any type of conversation, she would kiss him quiet, distracting him thoroughly. It worked; she had effectively ended any possibility of verbal communication for quite a while, choosing to keep her mouth, and his, busy with other tasks for as long as possible.<p>

After they had sated themselves for the second time, he had once again attempted to talk to her, but she had held her fingers to his lips, shushing him and telling him to go to sleep, that they would talk in the morning. That was probably the most she had said to him since they left the parking lot; talking wasn't what she was with him for, not right now. It wasn't what she wanted.

What she _had_ wanted, desperately, was the feel of him wrapped around her, moving inside of her, his body overwhelming hers. She knew, the moment she faced him in the parking lot, that she would be in his bed before the night was over. Her body craved his, and whether it was the booze or lust or love, or maybe a combination of all three, she knew she would give in to the craving. Even when he was on the stage, singing that _fucking_ song, every nerve in her body had been standing at attention.

She had drifted off to sleep for a little while, but now, with him sleeping soundly next to her, she admonished herself harshly. She had never been one to give in to impulses; in fact, she was always the one to think things through in painstaking detail, always weighing the pros and cons of every situation. No, this lack of impulse control was supposed to be _his_ issue, not hers. _How did I let myself end up here? _

She slowly rose from the bed so as not to disturb him, and quickly and quietly got dressed. As she stood at the door, she heard his voice echoing in her head, telling her he loved her, over and over again. She turned to look at his beautiful face, barely visible in the low light of the room. Every feature of it had been committed to her memory, every hard line of his body, the smell and taste of his skin; it was all there, permanently imprinted on her brain.

With one last long glance, she swallowed back tears and let herself out.

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 17<em>

The morning sunshine woke Will as it slowly brightened up his room at the inn. It took a moment or two before the events of the previous night flooded back into his memory. As they did, he immediately rolled over and reached for Elizabeth, but she wasn't in the bed. _Was it all a dream? _He sat up and looked around, at his clothes strewn about on the floor, and at the pillow next to his, which definitely had an indentation where her head had rested. _Nope, not a dream. Very, very real._

He sighed and sank back to his pillow. He knew, without even checking, that she wasn't in the bathroom. No, she was gone; had left, he supposed, sometime during the night while he was sleeping, or very early this morning. Reaching over, he grabbed the pillow next to him, lifting it to his face. It still smelled lightly of her, and inhaling the scent both calmed him and made him restless.

Once again, his mind began to randomly list the implications of what had happened between them last night. His first hope was that what they had shared had meant something to her; did it mean she wanted him back? Her words in the parking lot had suggested (quite firmly) that she wasn't ready for that, not yet. Her actions, though...they suggested, at least, that she was thinking about it. On the flip side of that? His biggest fear was that she had decided against him, and being with him last night was her way of finally saying goodbye, forever.

He knew that she hadn't wanted to talk; it wasn't difficult, after his first few attempts at conversation, to figure that out. She had made it perfectly clear what she wanted, and though he wasn't about to deny her anything she asked of him, he really hadn't thought that she would leave while he was asleep, without giving them a chance to talk. He fully expected her to be there, in his bed, in his arms, when he woke up. Disappointment and a sense of loss flooded him, and he tried to keep it at bay. He knew he'd go find her this morning. After the events of last night, they _had_ to talk.

The feel of her...he couldn't find the words to describe what it felt like to hold her again, and be the recipient of all that passion that always simmered just below the surface. But then, his thoughts turned to the fact that she had avoided meeting his gaze, and that she hadn't responded when he told her he loved her, or when he had gently kissed away her tears. Was she, truly, saying goodbye?

He sighed again heavily, as the uncomfortable weight of frustration settled in his chest like a brick. He glanced at the clock, and saw that it was only 8:30. He climbed out of bed, knowing that he would be knocking at her door very soon.

* * *

><p>"I was worried you were going to be MIA," Megan said to Elizabeth.<p>

Elizabeth had walked the very short distance from the inn to the house during the early hours of the morning, had collapsed into bed for a few sleepless hours, and was now getting dressed after a very welcome hot shower. Megan was sitting on the edge of her bed, looking at Elizabeth carefully.

"Sorry. I should have told you...something. I'm sorry if you were worried."

"Well, I have to be honest with you...I saw you in the parking lot. I went out to make sure you were okay...it didn't look like you were disappointed to see him. You seemed to be getting along pretty well, actually."

Elizabeth felt her face warm. "We were fine."

"If you were _fine_, then why did you come walking in the door at five a.m.?"

She sighed. "I really don't want to talk about this, okay?"

The truth was, she couldn't talk about it, because she had no idea what to say, how to feel, or what to do. Her mind kept wandering to what Will must have thought when he woke up this morning alone. She knew, without a doubt, that it would only be a matter of time before he showed up here. If he was able to find her at that bar last night, he knew where she was staying. In hindsight, she should have stayed at the inn, and dealt with him, and the situation she had created, there. Having to deal with it here, with everyone around, was not going to be easy. Or private.

"Okay, I won't push it. Bend my ear if you feel the need, though, okay?"

Elizabeth managed a light smile. "Okay. Thanks."

"Don't forget...we have a meeting at 10:00."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose up into her forehead as her mouth dropped open slightly. "Oh, shit. Shit! I forgot about that." It was almost 9:00 now.

"Jason reminded me when he left the bar last night." Megan pursed her lips. "Any idea why he left so early?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "I really don't care." She knew exactly why he had left early, but didn't feel like getting into that conversation either.

There was a knock at their bedroom door. Both women said "come in" at the same time, and Lisa smiled as she poked her head in.

"Good morning ladies. Um, Liz, you have a visitor."

Elizabeth's heart started to pound in her chest. "Oh, okay. Is it-"

"Yes, it is." She glanced at Megan quickly, and Elizabeth instantly knew that Megan must have said something to Lisa about the little she knew of Elizabeth's history with Will.

Elizabeth's stomach was flip-flopping all over the place. "Okay, I'll come out. Could you tell him I'll just be a minute?"

After Lisa closed the door again, Elizabeth sat on her bed, not moving.

"Hey, come on, he's just a guy," Megan said. "Go out there and do what you need to do, say what you need to say. Say what you _mean._"

Elizabeth grimaced. "Such inspiring words of wisdom."

Megan smirked. "Hey, they might not be the words of some poet or something, but that's all it really comes down to. Say what you mean, mean what you say. Tell him how you really feel, so there's no questions or doubts after. If you love him, tell him. If you never want to see him again, tell him. Just make sure you mean it, because regret is a crappy thing to live with."

Elizabeth nodded, thinking about what her aunt had said to her about regret. "Thanks Megan."

* * *

><p>When Elizabeth walked into the living room, she and Will stared at each other for a long, awkward moment. Once again, Elizabeth felt that warmth as she looked him over. He looked tired, and still had shadows under his eyes, but he looked good.<p>

Will had decided, on the short drive to the house, that he had no right to be upset that she had left him this morning; he was the one who had shown up out of the blue. Instead, he decided to try to gain something positive from the whole encounter...and that was, that she wasn't immune to him, at least on some level. He still held claim to a piece of her heart, and that was enough to keep him going.

"Come on, we can go out back," she said softly.

Elizabeth led Will through the house, out into the backyard. This was about as much privacy as they would be afforded; there was no way Elizabeth was going to go back to the inn, or go for a ride in his car with him. Standing in the backyard was about as private, and as neutral, as they were going to get.

A wall of humidity hit her as soon as she walked onto the deck. It was saturating the air already, making it sticky and uncomfortable. They each sat in a deck chair, and Elizabeth fiddled with the fringe on the cushion nervously. She could tell he was staring at her, waiting for some sign that she was ready to have a conversation.

Finally, she raised her eyes to his. "Why did you come here?"

He looked at her for a long moment. "I wanted to see you. I told you that already."

She shook her head lightly, looking away from him.

"If that's not a good enough answer, I can give you a few more. Let's see...I wanted to see you, I love you, I miss you, I need you..." his voice trailed off.

For a moment, she felt like someone else had taken over her body. A burst of anger surged inside of her, and it was nothing like the anger she had felt when she was talking to her aunt three days ago. That was nothing compared to what she felt now.

"_This_ is what I was talking about last night, Will! It's all about _you_, and what _you_ want." Her voice rose, and it was as if the conversation they had started in the parking lot, the one that Elizabeth had very decisively ended with a kiss, had never been interrupted. "You're right. I didn't ask you to give me room to breathe, but I did ask you to leave, remember? I didn't ask you to leave for a few days. I asked you to _leave_."

She stood up from the deck chair and paced, needing to move. It was obvious he was going to remain silent. His eyes were glued to her, but his mouth remained stubbornly closed.

"I can't believe you came down here, followed me to a bar, got up on that stage and sang a song to me. Honestly, what were you thinking? That you'd sing me a song, and everything would be okay?"

"No."

She continued on as if he hadn't spoken. "It wasn't so long ago that you asked me to leave you alone. You know what? I did. Why can't you do the same for me? Why did you have to write me a letter? Why-"

He cut her off. "Did you read it?"

"Yes, I read it!"

He looked at her expectantly, but said nothing.

"What, William, what do you want me to say? Did you think that the letter would make everything better, and that maybe the song would just be the icing on the cake?"

"Of course not. I just...I wanted to know if you read it."

She stopped pacing for a moment and leaned against the railing of the deck, turning her back on him as she looked out over the yard. "Yes, I read it," she said, her voice softer this time.

It was silent for a few long moments, until she turned to face him and spoke again.

"When I was hurt playing softball...the next day, Friday, when I got home from the hospital...you called me from Boston, when you found out I was going to drive up there with Jane. You told me not to, you told me you didn't want to see me, or talk to me. _Not yet_, you said. I listened to you, Will. I stayed away, I didn't call, I didn't nag you or pester you or write you a letter." She took a deep breath. "God knows I wanted to, so badly, because I felt like...I felt like I was dying inside. But I didn't, I let you go. I let you have your time, and your space, and do you know what the worst thing about that was? I didn't even know why you needed it or wanted it, because you wouldn't talk to me, you wouldn't tell me! But I gave it to you anyway, and it was the hardest thing I've ever done. At least _you_ know why I'm hurting, why I'm angry. Now it's your turn to give me what I need."

An incredulous, short laugh escaped Will, which surprised her. He ran one hand through his hair before beginning to speak. "All I wanted was to know that you read that letter, that's all I came down here for...to _see_ you, and to ask you that one question, and maybe talk about things. Anything. The song..." he let out a grunt of frustration, "that was stupid, I admit it. I shouldn't have done that...even though I meant every word. As far as giving you what you need, though...I thought I did that last night. You made it pretty obvious what you wanted and needed, and it certainly wasn't _room to breathe_. Not right then."

She flinched. "Last night was a mistake. That's why I left this morning, it was a mistake."

His eyes opened wide, and she could see that she had hurt him, even though he quickly schooled his expression to hide it. He shook his head slowly. "You can call it that if you want, but that's not what it was to me, and deep down, I _know_ that's not what it was to you." His voice became very quiet, and a long sigh escaped him, and his eyes softened a bit. "Waking up, not having you there this morning...that was lousy. Just the same, I will _never_ look at last night as a mistake, I won't ever regret it. It wasn't a mistake, not to me." He paused. "You love me, you said those very words just five days ago. _That's_ why last night happened, whether you want to admit it or not. _That's_ why I'm not giving up."

"Fine. I wanted you last night, I did. I admit it, because it's pointless to try to deny it. You didn't instigate anything, it was all me. _I_ wanted it to happen, and I knew that it would, as soon as I saw you. But it's done, it's over with."

"And the bonus is...you got to walk away from me this time, right?"

Her mouth dropped open. "That's not what this is about."

"Whether you planned it that way or not, that's what it's coming down to. I came here to see you, to talk to you. That's it. You can't tell me that when you were kissing me, encouraging me to take you to the inn, refusing to let me talk, that you didn't realize you'd be building my hopes up. Only a blind person wouldn't see that. I wanted to talk, you wanted to have sex."

"You didn't seem to be opposed to the idea."

"Of course I wasn't, why would I be?" He threw his hands up in the air in exasperation, and his voice grew louder as he closed the distance between them. "The woman I love was welcoming me back into her arms! How could I walk away from that, from you? There was no way I could turn you away, and you _knew_ that I wouldn't. So now I need to know, Lizzy...was last night just a result of a little too much booze? Was it a sign that maybe, _maybe_ you're considering giving me another chance? Or was it just a way for you to get me out of your system for good, so that you can say goodbye, and not look back? I need to know."

She risked a glance up at him as he stood staring down at her. "I don't...I can't answer that. I...I don't have an answer for you."

Internally, he breathed a huge sigh of relief, and the anxiety he had been feeling slowly seeped out of him. There it was...one of the answers he was hoping for. If she had decided outright that this was it, that this was goodbye, she would have said it then.

"Okay," he said quietly.

"Okay?"

"Yes, okay. He slowly raised his hand to touch her hair, and wrapped a single curl around his finger. "Okay."

Elizabeth heard the slider to the deck open, but Will was blocking her view of it.

"Elizabeth?"

Her face fell. _Jason_. Perfect timing. Will's hand dropped as she stepped out from behind him. She could see that Jason's eyes were pinned to him curiously. "Right here," she said nervously.

Jason's eyes finally left Will and rested on Elizabeth. "Is everything okay?"

"Um, yes...everything is fine. We're just talking."

"Okay, well...if you're sure." His gaze returned to Will. "Look, pal, maybe you just should take a step or two back from her."

Will turned to him, eyebrows raised. "Thanks, _pal_, I'll certainly think about that."

Jason's eyebrows furrowed. "I just think you're crowding her a little, that's all. Give her some space."

Will let out a sardonic laugh. "Yeah, I'm gonna work on that. Could you leave us alone please?"

Jason looked at Elizabeth. "Elizabeth?"

"It's okay."

Jason gave a quick nod and went back into the house, but Will noticed that he was hovering in the kitchen, by the window, watching them. He shook his head.

"Who the hell is that?"

Elizabeth swallowed. "Um, that's...he's just one of the Basin employees."

"He's protective of you," he said, his voice quiet again.

"Well, I'm sure it's because he doesn't know you."

"No, I know. It's okay, I'm glad there are people looking out for you down here. It makes me feel better."

Elizabeth glanced to the slider, and saw Megan standing there, pointing to her watch. She rolled her eyes. "I have to go."

"Now?"

"Yes, now. I have a work meeting scheduled, we have a lot to do this week."

"Okay." He reached up to rub his face with both hands. "Um, I'll be leaving soon. I have an early afternoon flight back to Boston."

She nodded, not sure what to say.

His lips curved up slightly as he looked into her eyes. "I really just wanted to see you. I know that sounds...pathetic, but it's really why I came. I just...needed to see you. I can't explain it." He reached out a hand and tugged gently on a lock of her hair again, and had to restrain himself from pulling her closer and burying his face in the soft chestnut curls. "No matter how you feel about it, I'm not sorry about what happened last night. I can't be. As for...everything else...you know how I feel, you know how sorr-"

"Stop, Will, enough."

"Okay, okay."

"I know how you feel, you've told me, your letter told me...you've apologized. I _know_," she said emphatically. "Now that you've...seen me, you have to give me time, and space. Let me work through this. When I want to talk to you, _if_ I want to talk to you, I'll let you know."

"_When._"

"_If._ Please, don't push me anymore." The hand he had wrapped in her hair moved to caress her cheek, and she felt her face warming at his touch.

"I won't," he said quietly.

He leaned closer to her, and she knew he wanted to kiss her, and she knew she would let him, she couldn't resist it. _Just this one last time_. It wasn't a deep, passionate kiss, it was soft and gentle and loving and entirely too brief. "Bye Lizzy."

"Bye Will." Her heart pounded as she said the words, and it felt like it was breaking all over again.

Instead of going through the house, he walked off the deck, into the yard, and worked his way around to the front of the house. Just as he was getting to his car, the guy that had stepped out onto the deck came out the front door. He started to speak as he walked toward Will.

"Hey, I just wanted to apologize for intruding. Things were getting a little loud, I wanted to make sure everything was okay."

Will shrugged. "No problem, I'm glad Elizabeth has someone looking out for her down here."

"Well, we go way back, you know? She...she didn't mention that she had a boyfriend when she got down here, so I wasn't sure what to think when I saw you two out on the deck."

Will looked at him curiously. "If you go way back, then you know she's a pretty private person."

"Still," Jason said, "I'm surprised she didn't say anything..."

Will heard a particular tone in the man's voice, and his guard was instantly up. He studied him a little harder. "How did you say you knew her again?"

"Oh, I knew her a long time ago. We went to school together in Boston." He stuck out his hand. "Jason Portman."

Elizabeth watched Will and Jason out the front window of the living room, knowing already what was happening. Her stomach fluttered wildly as she waited for Will to react. She saw Jason's hand out, so he had obviously just introduced himself, but Will didn't move to shake it. Instead, she watched as Will moved closer to him, standing almost chest to chest with him. Although Jason was tall, Will had about three inches on him, and whatever he said made Jason drop his hand and back up a few steps, before turning away and heading back toward the house.

Will followed behind him, and when Jason entered the house, Will stopped at the door, holding it open. His eyes lit on Elizabeth, and she saw that he looked extremely agitated.

Jason looked at her, and though his voice was calm, he looked ruffled. "We need to have that meeting, El. Don't take too long."

"_Don't_ call me that," she said pointedly as he walked past her. She turned to the door.

"Can you please come outside for a second?" Will asked.

She nodded, already feeling like she had a pretty good idea of what was going to come flying out of his mouth. If he even so much as _suggested_ that she was involved in any way with Jason, she'd blast him.

Will took Elizabeth's hand and led her over to his car. He leaned against it, and she stood in front of him, pulling her hand from his. "Are you okay?" he asked, concern evident in his eyes now.

"Yes...why?"

"Why do you think? You've been here, with him, all this time?"

"Yes, and what's that supposed to mean?"

He looked confused. "It's not supposed to mean anything. How did this happen? How did you end up working with him? Did he arrange it?"

"No...at least, I don't think he did. I asked him outright, and he said Collins arranged it."

"Oh, Jesus, Collins. I...I should have told you about-"

"The pictures," she said, interrupting him. "I know about them already. I talked to Jane and Georgiana, they both filled me in. I know all about the pictures...I know about everything."

"I still should have said something...last night, I guess."

"I didn't give you the opportunity. And I could have said something too."

"Still...I could have told you today...obviously, my mind was somewhere else."

"Obviously," she said, looking away from him. "I can't believe he was involved, that he was the one with Wickham."

"Me either. I can't believe it took me so long to realize it." He sighed loudly and closed his eyes. "If he had hurt you...or Wickham had hurt you..."

"They didn't. I'm fine." _He did hurt me, because he hurt us._

Will nodded, his expression somber, before glancing at the house again. "How often do you have to work with him?" he asked quietly, nodding toward the house.

"Not often. He's one of the supervisors, so I do have to interact with him occasionally. I set him straight right away, so-"

"What do you mean, you set him straight? Did he come on to you?"

"Well, no, not really...he just wanted to dredge up everything from all those years ago, and frankly, with all the shit I was dealing with already, I couldn't deal with any more. I was at my shit limit."

Will looked at her sadly. "I'm sorry."

"Oh, _please_ stop telling me you're sorry," Elizabeth said, rolling her eyes and shaking her head in exasperation. "I _know_ you're sorry."

He shrugged. "This is a new thing to be sorry for. I'm sorry you have to associate with him."

"It's only been for work...nothing else."

Will looked at her curiously. "I know that, you don't have to tell me that." He shook his head. "Do you honestly think that I would think that you'd be...with him?"

"Well, you thought I had been with Wickham, so..." She regretted voicing her thoughts as soon as the words slipped out.

Will's head snapped back as if he'd been slapped. "Jesus, Elizabeth," he said softly.

She couldn't miss the pain in his expression. "I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. I shouldn't have said that." _But it's true_.

"No, don't apologize. I deserved it, right? Let's face it, it wouldn't be a stretch for me, would it? I'm all about jumping to conclusions." He stared off at nothing for a moment before he went on. "That thought never entered my mind when I realized who he was. God, I wanted to break his arm when he introduced himself."

Elizabeth shook her head. "Wouldn't solve anything."

"I know. That's why he still has two functioning arms."

"What did you say to him?"

"I told him that it would be a cold day in hell before I shook his hand, and to back up and walk away before I kicked his ass all over the front lawn."

Elizabeth sighed, although part of her wanted to smile. She held it back, refusing to give him an inch. No more than the inches she had already given, that is. The fact that they were standing here talking, as if nothing stood between them, felt oddly normal...and felt like way too many inches.

He grunted. "Pretty hypocritical, huh? My guess is that he doesn't know much about us and our, um, relationship."

"No, he doesn't, and he never will."

Will nodded, and gazed at her for a long moment. He reached toward her, grasping one of her hands lightly, and was thrilled when she didn't pull it away. "Okay, well, you need to go back into your meeting I guess."

"I do."

"I'm not going to call you...I won't bother you, I won't write any more letters. Just...promise me you'll call me, or text me, or email me..._anything_...if you want to talk to me. Will you at least promise me that?"

Elizabeth felt the pressure of his hand gently squeezing her fingers. "I can't, Will...I don't want to make any promises."

"Okay, I understand. If that's the case, I at least want you to know that you _can_ call me, anytime, day or night. Don't ever hesitate."

"Okay."

He nodded once. "Okay. Bye Elizabeth." He lifted her hand to his lips, kissing it lightly on the knuckles before turning it over to place a warm kiss on her palm. He hesitated a moment, staring into her eyes. "I love you."

She pulled her hand from his. "Will-"

"I'm not going to _not_ say it. I love you."

Her eyes were pleading with him to stop. "Bye Will."

"Bye."

He watched as she walked into the house, and he was hoping that she would turn and look back at him, but she didn't, and the door closed firmly behind her.

* * *

><p><em>Home again, home again<br>__One day I know  
><em>_I'll feel home again.  
><em>_Born again, born again  
><em>_One day I know  
><em>_I'll feel strong again,  
><em>_Lift my head._

_Many times I've been told  
><em>_All this talk will make you cold.  
><em>_So I close my eyes, look behind  
><em>_Moving on, moving on.  
><em>_So I close my eyes, look behind  
><em>_Moving on._

_Lost again, lost again  
><em>_One day I know  
><em>_Our paths will cross again.  
><em>_Smile again, smile again  
><em>_One day I hope  
><em>_To make you smile again  
><em>_I won't hide._

_Many times I've been told  
><em>_Speak your mind, just be bold  
><em>_So I close my eyes, look behind  
><em>_Moving on, moving on...  
><em>_So I close my eyes  
><em>_And the tears will clear  
><em>_Then I'll feel no fear  
><em>_Then I'll feel no weight  
><em>_My paths have been made straight.*_

Will shut off his iPod with a sigh as the flight attendants walked through the cabin, making sure everyone had their seats up and their electronics off.

_Yes, home again_, he thought, as the plane slowly descended toward Boston. The thing was, it didn't feel like home. Home was Elizabeth, and the further the plane traveled away from her, the lonelier he felt. In fact, he felt more alone now than he had over the past two weeks, and he knew exactly why. Being without her had created this huge void in him; having her in his arms again last night, making love to her, had temporarily filled it, but now that he was away from her again, it grew even larger. Instead of satisfying a need, their short time together had only created a more potent one.

Later, as he walked into his empty brownstone, he thought about what he needed to do, the changes he needed to make, the insight into his own mind, his own heart, that he needed to gain. He was aware of the man that he needed to become, for himself, and for her, and _knew_ that it was in him to become that man. After that, it would all be up to her. One thing was for certain...if he was given the chance to love her again, he would _not_ screw it up.

In the meantime, though, he would do what she asked. He would wait, patiently, for her to choose her path.

* * *

><p><em>So...did anyone see that coming? I'd like to know...please leave a review! Hope to post again on Monday. Thanks ~<em>

_*Song: "Home Again" by Michael Kiwanuka_


	41. Chapter 41

_Mixed reactions to W & E's little 'encounter'...interesting to read. This next chapter is pretty quiet...will try to post again mid-week. Thanks for reading!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 41<strong>

_Days apart: 18_

_Regrets collect__ like old friends  
><em>_Here to relive your darkest moments  
><em>_I can see no way, I can see no way  
><em>_And all of the ghouls come out to play  
><em>_And every demon wants his pound of flesh  
><em>_But I like to keep some things to myself  
><em>_I like to keep my issues drawn  
><em>_It's always darkest before the dawn._

_And I've been a fool and I've been blind  
><em>_I can never leave the past behind  
><em>_I can see no way, I can see no way  
><em>_I'm always dragging that horse around  
><em>_Our love is questioned, such a mournful sound  
><em>_Tonight I'm gonna bury that horse in the ground  
><em>_'Cause I like to keep my issues drawn  
><em>_It's always darkest before the dawn.*  
><em>

The only sound Elizabeth could hear was the music pouring through her earbuds from her iPod. During that quick few seconds between songs, though, when the music was silenced, she could hear the familiar sound of her feet pounding the pavement, and the steady rhythm of her breath being pulled into and pushed out of her lungs.

She had been running for almost an hour now, keeping up a ridiculous pace, one at which she had no business pushing herself. The sun was just coming up over the horizon. When she had left the house, before anyone else was awake, it was still fairly dark, but the sky had that beautiful grayish-purple hue, hinting that dawn was about to break. Even then, the earliest birds were chirping their greetings, and at one point she came to a sudden stop, watching as a coyote trotted across the road not too far in front of her.

Sweat was pouring down her face and her tank top was completely glued to her body, but it was a welcome feeling, one that she had missed. It had been entirely too long since she indulged in a good long, exhausting run; she needed it today, needed to feel the mind-clearing endorphins as they worked their way into her foggy brain, providing clarity.

She gradually slowed to a stop and turned off her iPod, pulling the tiny buds from her ears. She bent over for a moment, resting her hands on her thighs, as she took in giant gulps of air. Straightening up again, she took in her surroundings and began to walk, cooling her body. The world, at least this tiny little corner of it, was waking up to a new day.

_Regrets collect like old friends__. _She liked that first line from the song she had just listened to; regret seemed to be the word of the moment. Her aunt had spoken of regret, so eloquently, just last week. Elizabeth had tried to define what regret was during that long conversation. _Somet__hing you shouldn't have done, but did, _she remembered saying. _I definitely __shouldn't__ have done what I did Saturday night. _Even Megan had talked about regret. Then she and Will had discussed it just yesterday, although she hadn't used that exact word when she talked to him; no, she had referred to their physical interlude as a 'mistake', though he clearly didn't see it that way. And now...in actuality...the more she pondered it, the more her mind had pushed the words 'mistake' and 'regret' away, quite forcefully.

She had spent every waking moment dwelling on everything that had happened Saturday night, and it had led her to at least one conclusion; she wasn't being very honest with herself. All that crap she had thought about before she had basically thrown herself at Will, all that stuff about pretending Wickham didn't exist, pretending that the past two weeks hadn't happened, being impulsive for a change...that was all bullshit. She had been feeding herself a total line of _bullshit_. Yes, she'd had a few drinks, and had tossed back a few shots, but seeing him on stage had sobered her almost immediately. And that song! Oh, as aggravated as she was about him singing it, she had _listened_ to it, had hung on every damn word. It was a beautiful song, and he knew it would get to her, even though she refused to admit it to him. He knew.

It was disconcerting, this self-imposed quandary she found herself in the middle of. All of this heartbreak and pain that she was feeling, all this distrust and insecurity…most of it was due to him and his actions. Yet, she chose to seek comfort and some respite from all those feelings…with him. She was willing to admit that what had happened was something she _wanted_ to happen because she missed him, and she wanted to feel close to him again, feel the security of being in his arms, even if it was just for one night...or a few hours. After all, it wasn't like she went out with her friends seeking male companionship for the evening; far from it. No, it was because it was _him_, standing in front of her, his eyes pleading with her…she realized that not only did she want to bring comfort to herself, she wanted to give it to him as well.

The hard part, now, was figuring out what came next, and dealing with the repercussions. At least she had the rest of the week here, in this beautiful place, to try to put things in perspective, and decide what she was going to do. Then, she would talk to him. She would.

And just like that, one brick at the top of the wall around her heart teetered and slowly toppled.

* * *

><p>"Well, if it isn't my long lost cousin."<p>

Richard's droll voice carried over the phone and into Will's tired brain as he sat in his office in Boston on Monday morning. "Hey, Richard. How's it going?"

"It's going fine. How are things with you?"

Will sighed. "Things are...okay."

"Well, I'm about to make your day."

Will's eyebrows rose slightly. "Hm. I'll be the judge of that."

"I'm coming to Boston."

"Oh."

Richard laughed. "Try to contain yourself, Darcy, your excitement is overwhelming."

That made Will laugh. "Sorry...I thought you were really going to give me something good. Not that I wouldn't like to see you..."

"Yeah, yeah, stuff it. Miss Hanscom and I are coming...do you remember our conversation about that?"

Will closed his eyes, sighing. "Yes, I remember. She's coming out to see the corporate headquarters."

"Yes, this week. We're flying out Wednesday, flying back Friday. Short trip."

"Is Lauren coming with you?"

"No, she can't. She'd like to, but in all honesty, her morning sickness – or, rather, all day sickness – has been so horrible that she's afraid of being on a plane for six hours. That's why I'm making it a short trip."

"Listen, you don't have to come, you know. I'm sure Stephanie can fly out here by herself. I can spend Thursday with her, I'd like to hear about some of her plans and ideas for the design firm. It will give me a better feel for how she does things, where her head is at, I guess."

"Hmm. True...you haven't really had a lot of time to get to know her. Maybe that's a good idea."

"I've had _no_ time to get to know her. Just let me know what you decide."

Will thought about the whole situation with Georgiana, and knew that Richard would have to be told about everything that had transpired back in January, as well as everything that was happening now. He knew that any trial that involved a Darcy would make the Boston papers, and possibly some others that had a higher national circulation. That was no way for Richard to find out about it. Before he said anything, though, he would have to talk to Georgie to see how she wanted to handle it, it was ultimately up to her.

"I'll do that. I'd hate to leave Lauren alone at this point, she's miserable, and all I'd do is worry about her the whole time." He cleared his throat. "So how's...everything else?"

Will sighed. "The same. Everything that happened between Elizabeth and me was completely my fault. I'm at the point now where I'm trying to figure out how to fix it."

"Not by smashing glasses against walls, I gather."

"No, wise ass, not by smashing glasses. I wasn't thinking clearly then, at all. Everything was so screwed up in my head...anyway, I'm getting it sorted out."

"Have you talked to her?"

"Um, yeah, some." He wasn't about to go into detail with his cousin about the conversation he'd had with Elizabeth last week, the letter he wrote, or about his visit to South Carolina. "Hopefully I'll hear from her again."

"I hope you do. Just give her some time, maybe that's what she needs."

"Yeah, I know. I'm trying." _And so far, failing miserably._

"I'll make a decision about Boston and let you know by tomorrow. Is that okay?"

"That's fine. Hey, if you have a chance, snap some photos of the FRD office space and send them to me, I'd like to see how it's coming along."

"Will do. I'll talk to you soon."

"Bye Rich."

Will sat staring at his cell phone for several minutes after his conversation with Richard had ended. He figured he should call Georgiana again; he had talked to her briefly when he got back into Boston last night, but Matt had been with her and he didn't want to take up much of her time.

He picked up the phone and called, and when she answered, she sounded half asleep.

"Hey Georgie. I didn't wake you, did I?"

"No, I'm up. Matt didn't leave 'til late, so I'm just having a hard time coming around this morning. Maybe another cup of coffee will do it."

"How are things with Matt? Everything good?"

"Yeah, so far. The timing of everything is kind of...weird, I guess. We're finally getting together, and now all this other stuff is happening...but at the same time, it's like he's always been there. I don't know how to explain it."

"Well, he has kind of always been there, hasn't he? He seems like a nice guy, Georgie."

"He is."

Will could tell she was smiling when she said those last two words. He didn't want to pry too much into her relationship with Matt; it was her business, and he knew she had a good head on her shoulders. If Matt treated her well, then he was okay in Will's book.

"Listen, I'm calling for two things. The first thing is easy...your birthday is coming up."

"It is?"

"Ha ha. Did you think I'd forget?"

"Well, no, but you have a lot going on right now."

"So do you."

"Listen, I wasn't going to make a big deal out of it. It doesn't seem like it would be...appropriate."

"If anything, I think it's _more _appropriate this year."

"With the investigation going on? I hardly think so. Plus, you and Elizabeth-"

He cut her off. "Well, think again. The sad state of my love life has nothing to do with your birthday. I know the investigation is a big thing, but you have a new job, you have a new boyfriend, you've got your own place again, you're pursuing those...those bastards that hurt you...I think you have a lot to celebrate."

"It just doesn't feel right."

"I'm not saying we have to have a huge bash, but that doesn't mean we have to completely overlook it either. How about a small dinner party or something? Just a few of us. You know Mrs. Reynolds will want to come visit, and I'm sure Julie will want to see you. Maybe some of your other friends from Boston, too."

"I don't know, Will. It feels selfish. Can I think about it?"

"Of course you can. It's _not_ selfish, though. It's your birthday, it only comes once a year, and I really think it's important for you to celebrate this one. You have a lot of good things going on right now, a lot of positive things." He glanced at the calendar on his desk. "The 23rd is on a Monday, so think about the Saturday night before that, the 21st. I'll even take care of everything, you won't have to lift a finger."

"You're too persistent for your own good."

"So I've been told."

"I promise I'll think about it and let you know. What else did you have to talk to me about?"

"Richard."

"What's wrong with Richard?"

"Nothing's wrong, I talked to him this morning and everything is fine. Lauren's having a rough time with morning sickness I guess, but other than that, they're okay."

"So...what about him then?"

"Well, I've been thinking...he needs to be told about what's going on, what happened to you. If Wickham and Collins go to trial, it will be in the papers. Not just the local ones, either. I would hate for him to hear about everything from a newspaper or from someone else who heard something."

"Hm. You're probably right," Georgiana said softly.

"Richard loves you, Georgie, you know that. If anything, it's one more person in your corner, supporting you. He'd do anything for you."

"I know. You're right, he should know I guess."

He could sense her hesitation, and had a feeling that he knew what it stemmed from. "Listen, if you want, I can tell him. He might be coming to Boston on Wednesday for a couple of days, he's bringing the architect that we hired to run the design firm with him. If he comes, I can make it a point to talk to him while he's here. It's up to you."

"Okay, yes…I - I want you to talk to him. I'm sorry, I know it's not your responsibility, but—"

"Georgie, I don't mind, honestly. It might be better if he hears it from me anyway."

"Okay. Thanks Will, I appreciate it." It was quiet for a moment, until Georgiana spoke again. "Speaking of Boston, I was thinking that at some point, it might be easier if I'm there, you know, staying there. I'm not sure...I guess I have to wait to hear what Maggie thinks."

"Has she been in contact at all?"

"No, but I'm expecting a call from her today. I think they were sending the detectives into New York to look for Wickham over the weekend, she told me she'd update me at the beginning of the week."

"Okay, good. Let me know if you hear from her."

"Will?"

"Hmm?"

"You haven't said anything about South Carolina."

"I know."

"Did it...not go well?"

_How to answer that? _"Umm...it wasn't what I expected."

"Oh." Georgiana paused, and Will could tell she was trying to figure out how to interpret his response. "Is that good?"

"Well, it wasn't all completely bad. I did see Elizabeth, we did manage to talk, a little...and that's about it. I really can't say if anything has changed, I think it's too soon."

"Well...maybe that means there's still hope."

Will closed his eyes and sighed deeply. "Maybe."

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 19<em>

"Why is your sister coming over? I'm really not in the mood for her tonight."

Charles shrugged. "It's her birthday. She's only stopping for a quick visit, she's meeting some friends out or something. I promise I'll push her out the door if she starts to get too comfortable. I didn't invite her, she just called and said she was on her way over."

"Did you get her anything?"

"I did. Well, we did. A scarf. I actually asked my secretary to run out and get it...how's that for being cliché? I told her to buy something expensive, and believe me, she took me seriously."

Jane shook her head. It had been a long Tuesday, and they were both tired. On top of that, Jane was preoccupied with thoughts of Elizabeth, worried about her sister's state of mind. They had talked briefly on Friday, but not since then. Jane would try to call her tonight, she decided.

As they straightened up the kitchen, having just finished dinner, the doorbell rang. Charles dropped the dish towel he had been using on the counter and gave Jane a quick kiss on the forehead. "Why don't you pick out a nice bottle of wine, and we can all have a glass. Then I'll send her on her way, I promise."

Jane nodded. "Okay." After Charles walked out of the kitchen, she leaned against the counter for a minute, mentally steeling herself for Caroline. She grabbed the cheapest bottle of wine they had, along with three glasses, and joined the siblings in the living room.

The smell of Caroline's perfume drenched the air, and Jane grimaced, discreetly rubbing her nose. "Hi Caroline. Happy birthday."

Caroline smiled at her, walking toward her and giving her an air kiss on both cheeks. "Oh, thank you Jane. It's so nice to see you, it's been much too long."

_Not long enough_, Jane thought. "You know how it is, that busy nine to five routine. Oh, wait, that's right, you don't know."

"Jane," Charles interrupted, taking the wine bottle from her, "why don't you set the glasses down. I'll pour." He grabbed a corkscrew, popping the cork quickly, and poured the wine even quicker.

Handing a glass to Jane and Caroline, he then held his slightly aloft in a toast. "Happy Birthday, Caroline."

Caroline beamed at her brother. "Thank you, Charles." They all took long sips of their wine as they sat down.

Charles presented Caroline with her gift, which she appropriately oohed and aahed over.

_As well she should_, Jane thought, eying the Hermes scarf. She laughed inwardly at the color – a rusty orange blend that Caroline seemed to favor. Charles must have made mention of her pallet preference to his secretary.

They made small talk as they finished their wine, Jane letting the brother and sister do most of the talking. She sat next to Charles on the couch in companionable silence, lightly stroking his back as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. She was completely lost in thoughts of her own. Feeling a light squeeze on her knee, she looked up into Charles' blue eyes.

"Caroline asked a question about the wedding, honey." He looked at her softly, knowing her mind was elsewhere, and that she really hadn't been paying attention to their conversation.

"I'm sorry, Caroline, my mind drifted. What was the question?"

"I was simply asking about your dress. Who is designing it for you?"

Jane resisted the desire to roll her eyes, and instead shook her head. "No one, I'm not having a dress made. I know what style I want, there are several that I've found in bridal magazines that will suit me fine...it's a very uncomplicated, simple look."

Caroline looked shocked. "Really? You're buying...off the rack?"

"Off the rack, out of the catalog...whatever works. I'm easy that way."

Caroline's face was pinched, as if she had chewed on something sour. "Oh. I see. Well, what have you done about the catering for the reception? If you insist on having the wedding on the Cape, you should at least bring in a caterer from Boston, so that you can offer your guests the very best. The word around town is that Jeremiah Wilson is all the rage for catering, his restaurant down on the waterfront is exquisite, and I've heard the food is the latest in _nouvelle cuisine_. He's quite the trendsetter."

Jane felt mischievous. "Oh, I bet he is. Really, though, we don't need a caterer, not for a cookout. Charles _did_ tell you we're having a cookout, didn't he? All the burgers and dogs you can eat. Oh, and kegs. Lots of kegs of beer, so that people can just serve themselves, and we can play beer pong."

Charles' eyebrows flew up and he had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. How Jane could remain so serious when she said things like that was beyond him. Her face was expressionless. Caroline, on the other hand, looked absolutely mortified.

"You're not serious."

"I'm totally serious. Casual food is all the _trend_ on the Cape. The dress is casual, too. In fact, we're encouraging people to go with 'beach casual,' meaning bathing suits are acceptable. So if you feel like it, Caroline, knock yourself out and wear a bikini." She squeezed Charles' hand and gave him an exaggerated flirty smile. "We'll be changing into our bathing suits as soon as the ceremony is over, so we can take a plunge into the ocean together as man and wife. It's kind of like a cleansing ritual, you could say. It's all the _rage_ at Cape weddings, everyone does it."

"Oh, how gauche," Caroline replied quietly, her hand fluttering to her chest. She looked like she was about to vomit.

Jane leaned forward, enthusiasm pouring out of her. "Noooo, it's fun, you'll see! In _fact_, family members are expected to join in too, so...make sure that body of yours is bikini ready."

Caroline quickly downed the rest of her wine, then glanced at her watch as she stood, obviously anxious to leave. "I should be going. I'll just...use the bathroom quickly, and be on my way."

Jane smiled brightly. "Take your time."

The minute Caroline was gone from the room, Charles let out a sigh, followed by a long, soft laugh. "I don't know how you do it. I will never take you on in a game of poker."

Jane dropped her head against the back of the couch. "Ugh. I'm sorry, that was really immature, but I couldn't resist. She makes it so easy."

"It wasn't immature...it was actually pretty enjoyable. Caroline will be the only person showing up at our wedding in an orange bikini and a sarong."

Jane giggled. Charles leaned his head back next to hers, and they turned to face each other, holding hands. "Thank you for putting up with her for a little while." He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it softly, staring into her vivid blue eyes. "Where were you before? You obviously weren't paying attention to us."

Jane reached up with her free hand to absentmindedly run her fingers lightly across his lips, before dropping it to her lap again. "I'm just worried about Elizabeth, that's all. I need to call her, we haven't talked in days. She was so sad on the phone Friday...dealing with Lydia really took its toll on her, I think. And all this stuff with Will...I know it's killing her that they're apart. I can hear it in her voice, even when she doesn't say anything about it. She's devastated, and I don't know what to do to help her."

"You're doing it. You're there for her, that's what she needs right now. Someone strong to lean on."

Jane was silent for a moment. "It's funny...Lizzy and I were talking, a day or two after you and I got engaged...she said that you were my soul mate." She squeezed his hand. "When I said the same about her and Will, she was hesitant to agree...she said that sometimes she felt like she had been with him forever, other times it felt like she barely knew him. Something like that." Jane sighed. "I know she's in pain because of what he did, what he thought. I know he hurt her. But now, it's like the pain is shifting. She misses him, and I think it's more painful for her now to not have him in her life. How does she tell the difference? What if...what if he really is her soul mate?"

Charles leaned toward her and kissed her nose. "If he is...they'll find their way back to each other. We just have to let it happen, they'll figure it out." What Charles didn't say was that he was afraid to interfere in any way, at all. He would be there for Will, just as Jane was there for Elizabeth, but he was hesitant to involve himself any further than that.

Jane nodded. "Can we go to the Cape this weekend? Lizzy gets home Saturday, I really want to see her. And we have to go see my parents, we can't avoid it any longer. My mother is going to have a fit when she finds out the wedding is less than four weeks away, especially since the invitations went out two weeks ago."

"Well, it's not like she has to do anything, we're taking care of everything." Jane raised an eyebrow at him. "Okay, well, _you're_ taking care of everything," he said, leaning in to give her a light kiss. "You're right, though, we need to let them know. This weekend should be fine, we can head up after work Friday. I'm having dinner with Will Thursday night, the senior architect from his new design firm is flying out from California."

Caroline chose that moment to walk back into the room, interrupting Charles. She had been standing completely still in the hallway, listening shamelessly to her brother's conversation with his fiancée. If she had heard correctly, and she thought she had, Darcy and the Bennet chit had broken up. _What an unbelievable stroke of luck to be here, tonight, while they discussed it!_ She couldn't have received a better birthday present. Now she'd have to find out just where they were going for dinner, and perhaps make a surprise appearance.

If there was any chance, any at _all_, that she could put herself in Darcy's path once again, she'd take it. _This could very well be that chance_.

After they bid Caroline a final 'happy birthday' and sent her on her way, Charles disappeared to take a shower. Jane attempted to reach Elizabeth, but she didn't answer her cell. She left a message, asking her to call if she had a chance tonight, or possibly tomorrow night. Jane knew her sister was busy, but wanted to stay in touch with her, especially since Jason was in South Carolina too. She couldn't believe that on top of everything that Elizabeth was dealing with, she had to deal with that creep too.

Jane sighed, tapping her phone as she laid it on the coffee table. She looked up as Charles walked back into the room, eyes opening wide when she saw that he wore only a towel draped around his waist. He walked straight over to her, and as he did, her eyes traveled lazily down his body, then back up to his face. "I thought you were going to take a shower."

"I am. With you. Let's go." He reached out with one hand, the other holding the towel, and tugged her up, pulling her against his body. "We need to relax and focus on ourselves for a little while."

Jane smiled up at him, staring into his eyes, as blue as hers. She pressed her hips suggestively up against him. "Just for a little while?" Her hands smoothed over the skin of his chest. "I'm not sure that will be long enough."

Charles lightly wrapped his free hand around the nape of her neck, pulling her lips to his, giving her a long, deep, sensuous kiss. When he pulled away, her face remained tilted up, her eyes closed. She swayed against him, and he smiled at the vision in front of him. "A little while...a long while...we have all night." With that, he tugged her down the hallway.

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 21<em>

Will sat at his desk in his office at RJD Properties on Thursday, waiting for Stephanie Hanscom to arrive. A car had been sent for her, and she was due at any moment. She had flown in from San Francisco late yesterday, and after a brief conversation on the phone, they had agreed to meet this afternoon. Will would give her a tour of the offices, introduce her to his VP of operations here in Boston, and give her a quick overview of RJD's interests. Will felt that she should have a basic knowledge of FRD Design's parent company, at the very least.

Richard had taken advantage of Will's offer, and had decided to remain home with Lauren. They had had a lengthy discussion on the phone this morning, and Will had filled him in, entirely, on what had happened to Georgiana on New Year's Eve, as well as everything that was happening now. Needless to say, it had been a long conversation. At first, Richard had been stunned into silence. When he finally did speak, he sounded as if he was in shock.

"Jesus, Darcy…why didn't you tell me about any of this sooner?"

"I'm sorry, Richard...Georgiana didn't want you to know. Really, the only reason you're finding out now is because it's all coming to a head. With Wickham and Collins both here, locked up, things will probably start to move along a little faster."

Will had gotten the call he'd been waiting for from Georgiana on Monday afternoon. Maggie Harper had called to let her know that the authorities had caught up with Wickham in New York yesterday, and he was arrested and processed into the system there. Once the authorities felt that they had what they needed, he would be brought back to Boston, and depending on his representation by legal counsel, she expected his arraignment to be early next week. From what Georgiana had been told, the detectives had uncovered a large stash of Rohypnol, a drug that was often referred to as the 'date rape' drug, in his hotel room. They had also confiscated a laptop and several video tapes, as well as a box of photos, most of which were similar to those he had taken of Georgiana. The police were going to try to begin the process of figuring out who the women were, based on past reports of unresolved sexual assaults, as Wickham had apparently lived in Boston for quite a long time.

"Do you think she'd mind if I called her?"

"I don't think so. She just asked for me to fill you in on everything...I think she just didn't want to have to talk about it all over again."

"No, that's fine, I understand. I just wish I had known, I would've done something for her, or been there for her in some way."

"In all honesty, I think she needed to do it her way. I've been with her, and Alice has known all along, she's been a big help." _Elizabeth too._

"Well, if she needs me, if _you_ need me, for anything, all you have to do is ask, you know that, right?"

"I know. Thanks Rich."

"Alright, I'll let you go. Don't scare Stephanie too much with that Darcy scowl, make her feel welcome."

"Shut up." Despite the harsh words, Will was smiling, and Richard knew it.

"Bye cuz."

"Talk to you soon."

* * *

><p>Caroline peeked around the corner from the posh lobby of the restaurant, hoping to catch a glimpse of Darcy's table. She knew her brother was here with him as well. Earlier this afternoon, she had called Charles to ask him about something fairly inane, just to get him on the phone. Finally, when he mentioned that he had a business dinner to attend in the evening, she had managed to finagle the name of the restaurant out of him by suggesting numerous places to eat.<p>

"Caroline, Will already decided on Menton. He's introducing the architect that will be running his design branch to some of the VIP's of the company."

"Oh, how dreadful for you Charles. It sounds very boring." She didn't dare show any interest in what he was saying, afraid that he would catch on to her. Unfortunately, he clammed up anyway.

"It's not, actually, these dinners are usually very interesting."

"Well then, enjoy yourself, though it sounds simply mindless to me. I'll talk to you soon. Oh, and thank you again for the _gorgeous_ scarf, I just _love_ the color. It was quite sweet of you and Jane."

"You're welcome. Bye Caroline."

"Bye Charles."

The toughest task definitely lay ahead. Getting back into Darcy's good graces was going to be difficult, at best. Their last conversation, at the Arts Alive Benefit back in July, was not exactly a friendly one. He had completely brushed her off, as if she was so much lint on the sleeve of his finely-tailored tuxedo. _Now, though...the tide has changed. _She chuckled to herself, enjoying her little joke. _The tide has certainly changed for that __little sun-worshiping beach chit._

From what she had overheard Tuesday night at Charles' house, all the agony over the demise of Darcy's relationship was being felt by Eliza Bennet, and Eliza Bennet only. Caroline recalled hearing Jane say something about Darcy doing something, something that hurt her. It was clear that he must have come to his senses and realized that she had little, if anything at all, to offer him. Well, except the blatantly obvious, that is. Even that could become average and uninteresting after so long, if one had nothing else to offer.

_This turn of events will definitely work in my favor_, Caroline thought. The mere fact that Darcy had woken up to reality, and had remembered the fact that he _i__s_ a Darcy, for heaven's sake, was a good sign. He would be more apt to forgive her for her previous transgressions, especially since now, he'd probably _agree_ with everything she had said to him in July.

She felt almost giddy with excitement. Earlier in the day, she had done a little 'pre-dinner' plotting, by contacting the woman who was responsible for the gossip pages and society goings-on for the Herald. The reporter had listened attentively as Caroline – the 'unnamed source' – explained that Fitzwilliam Darcy was once again on the market, having finally tired of his beach babe from the Cape. She had also clued the reporter in to the fact that he would be out on the town tonight, enjoying dinner at Menton.

The mere mention of the name Fitzwilliam Darcy had the reporter salivating. She knew that the intensely private man was considered to be hot property, as any gorgeous bachelor worth millions would be. Another thing that was widely known by most reporters when it came to Fitzwilliam Darcy; as much as he hated having his photo taken, he was never rude about it. He might not smile for the camera, but he didn't try to shove it down the anyone's throat either. He dealt with the attention, but never looked for it. Lately, for the past seven months or so, he had been completely absent from the Boston social scene, with the exception of the Arts Alive benefit a few weeks ago. Fitzwilliam Darcy, once again out on the town? Big news for Boston society, and welcome news for all those single Boston socialites.

Caroline spied a familiar face entering the restaurant, and made as if she was just passing through the lobby, on her way back to her table. She made a show of recognizing the reporter as she walked in.

"Oh, Justine, how lovely to see you darling! What brings you out tonight?"

"Miss Bingley, it's nice to see you. Oh, I'm just poking around, looking to see if anyone worth noting is out and about tonight." She pulled out a small notepad from her jacket, as well as a camera. "Are you entertaining tonight? I seem to recall you having a birthday this week, am I right?"

Caroline rolled her eyes in false modesty. "Oh, you flatter me! Such a good memory! I did have a birthday this week, and as a matter of fact, the celebration continues. Darcy and I are having a lovely dinner with a new business associate of his."

"You're here with Fitzwilliam Darcy?"

"Of course I am."

"So...are the rumors true? Is his relationship with the woman from the Cape..." she looked down at her notepad, "...um, Elizabeth Bennet, is that relationship over?"

"It certainly is. Frankly, not soon enough. Everyone knew it would just be a matter of time before she became tiresome. Now, if you'll excuse me, darling, I must get back to the table, but it was just _wonderful_ to see you." She leaned in close to the reporter. "Oh, and if you take pictures, _do_ be discreet, you know how that irritates Darcy."

The reporter nodded, smiling. "You know me, Miss Bingley...I can blend with the best of them. Thanks for the tidbits."

"Anytime, darling, anytime." She winked at the reporter and headed into the restaurant, spotting Darcy instantly. His seat had him facing the lobby, but he didn't see her. The first thing she noticed was the gorgeous blonde woman sitting to his left. At first, she thought it was Jane, but as she got closer, she knew it wasn't. Charles sat to the woman's other side, and two other men, as well as another woman, were also at the table.

Darcy was carrying on a conversation with the woman, and for a moment, Caroline thought all of her hard work was for naught. She struggled to keep herself calm and collected as she approached the table. When she was no more than a dozen feet away, Charles and the blonde began laughing at something Darcy had said, and he joined in, laughing softly. As she approached the table, he finally glanced up and saw her. His face instantly turned to stone, and he looked away from her and towards Charles.

"Charles," she heard him say, gesturing with his head toward Caroline.

Charles looked up. "Caroline," he said, standing quickly. The rest of the table fell silent. "What...what a surprise. What are you doing here?"

"Hello Charles," she said, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "I was in the neighborhood, and thought I'd stop in to say hello." She turned to Will. "Hello Darcy, how are you?"

Will felt his blood pressure rising. The last thing he expected was an appearance from Caroline. He had not seen her since the benefit, and that had been fine with him. He wanted nothing to do with her. "Fine, Caroline. You?" He only asked to be polite in front of his staff; he could really care less.

"Oh, I'm well, thank you. It's so nice to see you back in town, it's been weeks." Caroline was a bit surprised at his greeting. Could it be that he was still angry at her? No, he couldn't be, not if he had finally embraced the truth about that little nobody from the Cape. He wasn't even looking at her, though.

Will's reply was a quiet grunt and a nod. Thankfully, Charles stepped in to fill the awkward silence. "Everyone, this is my sister, Caroline Bingley." He made the introductions, and it was then that Caroline realized that the stunning blonde was Darcy's new associate.

"It's very nice to meet you all." She gestured toward an empty chair. "Would you mind if I joined you?"

Charles' eyes widened. "Actually...can I..." he gestured toward the lobby, "...can I talk to you privately?"

Caroline pasted on a smile. "Of course, Charles."

"Excuse us, please." Charles grasped her elbow firmly and led her to the front of the restaurant. Caroline looked around for Justine, but didn't see her anywhere. _Thank God_.

"What the hell are you doing here, Caroline?" Charles asked, finally releasing her arm.

"I thought I would come to say hello."

"We're having a business dinner, it's not a social event."

"It certainly looks social to me. That is definitely not Eliza Bennet hanging on Darcy's every word."

Charles glanced back toward the table, and saw nothing but two people having a normal conversation. "What are you talking about?"

"They look quite cozy. Though...rumor has it that Eliza and Darcy have gone their separate ways."

Charles' eyes widened. "Where did you hear that? Who told you that?"

"Oh, you can't keep things quiet in this town for long, Charles."

"Listen to me, Caroline. Don't go around talking about things that you have no knowledge of. You're already on Will's shit list, don't make it worse for yourself."

"Well, now that Eliza is out of the picture, maybe Darcy will see the light."

Charles looked at her incredulously. "Do you mean...do you mean _you_? Sorry Caroline, I hate to break it to you, but Will is still very much in love with Elizabeth Bennet. That's not going to change. Even if he wasn't...you wouldn't stand a chance. It's time you realized it, Caroline. You and Darcy will never be. So, forget whatever you've _heard _about him and Elizabeth, it's a load of shit."

Caroline looked confused. "But...you said..."

Charles stared at her, waiting for her to finish. "I said what, Caroline?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. Forget it. You're right, I shouldn't have barged in. I'll go. Just...tell Darcy I said goodnight."

"Okay...sure. Bye sis. Have a good night."

* * *

><p><em>Days apart: 23<em>

Elizabeth sighed as she climbed the stairs to her little beach house, inhaling the familiar smell of the salty air. _It's so good to be home. _She let herself in and dropped her bags, and began opening windows, letting the fresh air in. It was a gorgeous afternoon, but the Cape was in the throes of the dog days of summer; lots of heat and humidity, with barely a breeze to speak of, even on the beach.

Her final week in South Carolina had been nearly flawless. The weather had been perfect, her team had completed a record amount of research in an abbreviated amount of time (due to the storm), and everyone had remained on good terms, never bickering, even though they were under a tremendous amount of stress. It was just what she needed to take her mind off of everything else.

Even Jason had mostly kept his distance. Elizabeth assumed that he thought that Will was her boyfriend, and Jason eventually confirmed her assumption. Toward the middle of the week, he had approached her, and had the nerve to ask why she didn't tell him she had a boyfriend.

"I'm not even going to dignify that with an answer," she had replied.

"Why not?"

"_Why not?_ Because I don't owe you anything, _that's_ why not. My having or not having a boyfriend is none of your business. You made it clear to me that you were hoping for some kind of...something from me; a reconciliation, a second chance, I don't know exactly what. I made it _extremely_ clear to you that I was not interested in anything of the sort, and I _never_ will be. That's all you need to know about me, Jason. After Saturday, we'll never see each other again, which is just as it should be, just how I want it to be."

She was so glad she had spoken her mind, and as she reflected back on the words she had hurled at him, she realized that it had felt good to say all those things. Megan had unknowingly imparted some wise advice to Elizabeth a week ago; _say what you mean, mean what you say_. As far as Jason was concerned, she had followed that advice to the letter. For the rest of the week, until she left today, he had stayed away from her, only speaking to her when it was necessary and pertained to work. In one respect, she had to give him credit; he was brilliant at his job. That much she'd say...but that was it.

Elizabeth had finally caught up with Jane during the week. The concern in her voice had been evident, and though Jane encouraged Elizabeth to talk about her emotions and her thoughts, Elizabeth couldn't bring herself to discuss what had happened over the weekend. She knew that eventually she would tell Jane, but in a way, she was almost afraid to, thinking that Jane would see her as weak. Knowing Jane, she'd find a way to spin it to make it look like it was Will's doing, and truthfully, that didn't make Elizabeth feel any better about the whole thing. Granted, he had shown up unexpectedly, but it was Elizabeth that had pushed to take things to another level.

She was excited to see her sister today, although she wasn't thrilled at the prospect of meeting her at her parent's condo. Her mother would be distracted by the news of Jane's engagement, though, and would probably leave Elizabeth alone. At least, that's what Elizabeth was hoping. While she was there, she'd be able to pick up her clothes, and hopefully make a quick exit with a plan to meet up with Jane later.

As she walked around her house, snippets of her conversation with Lydia kept working their way into her mind. She was truly and thoroughly disgusted by what Lydia had done, here, in her house. Stopping in the living room, she glanced at the couch, with its matching chair. She loved the bright pattern, the way it lent itself to making the house feel like a cottage.

Moving into the bedroom, she eyed the bed warily before making a decision. _Out with the old, in with the new_. On Monday, she would order a new mattress, and would begin looking for a new living room set. In the meantime, she'd have to settle for new sheets and a new mattress cover on the bed. She just couldn't deal with the thought that Lydia and George had been _here_, on her bed, on her couch...God, if she could tear the shower out, she'd do that too.

On the drive to her parent's house, Elizabeth worked at calming her nerves. She wasn't looking forward to seeing her mother, or her father really, at all. It was the fear of the unknown; would her mother be sullen and give her the cold shoulder, or would she start defending Lydia all over again, and accuse Elizabeth of being an ingrate? Thankfully, Jane and Charles would be there to act as a buffer.

She had to admit, she was a bit ambivalent about seeing Charles. Will had confided in him when he had found the pictures, Elizabeth knew that. She also knew that, according to Will, Charles had tried to convince Will to talk to her, to straighten everything out, but in the end it had done no good, and Charles had managed to be persuaded into believing what Will had believed.

At first, she was angry at Charles too, angry that he would think such horrible things, but her anger at him had dwindled away fairly quickly. They didn't know each other well; and in the face of Will, his best friend, telling him what he was sure had happened, it probably hadn't taken much for Charles to think the same. Elizabeth knew, too, how much Jane and Charles had been affected by the problems between her and Will, and the last thing she wanted was to come between them. Jane loved Charles, completely, and he obviously adored her.

As she pulled into the condo parking lot, she was relieved to see that Jane's car was already there. Walking into the condo, the first thing she heard was arguing, coming from the kitchen.

"Don't show her, mum, please! Why is it that you always want to see her miserable? I don't understand it."

"Oh, Jane, for goodness sakes. Your sister brings her misery on herself, she doesn't need any help from me. That Jason couldn't tolerate her, obviously, and now this Will Darcy…do you see this woman he's with? Look at the way she's dressed, her style, her flair. Why would he choose flip flops and shorts over this? You thought I was nagging when I said that Lizzy had to spruce herself up a bit to keep him interested, but do you see this? It didn't take him long to move on."

_This woman? What woman?_

Charles spoke up. "Mrs. Bennet, the woman in the picture is a business associate of Will's…in fact, I was sitting to her left during that very dinner, I'm just not in the picture. There were several other people there as well."

"Jesus, mum, do you believe everything you read?" Jane asked, anger evident in her voice.

At that moment, Elizabeth walked into the kitchen, her eyes immediately going to her mother. "Hi mum," she said flatly, before her eyes sought out Jane.

"Lizzy," Jane said softly, her eyes brightening. She immediately walked to her sister and wrapped her up in a huge hug. The sisters stood there, embracing quietly, for a few long moments. When they separated, both were glassy eyed. "How are you?" Jane asked, holding her sister's hands as she looked her up and down.

"I'm well, Jane." Seeing her sister's doubtful expression, Elizabeth smiled lightly. "I'm doing okay, I really am."

Jane squeezed her hands before releasing them. "It's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you too." She turned to Charles. "Hello Charles, how are you?"

"I'm fine. It's nice to see you."

"You too." They shared a small smile, and Elizabeth knew things would be fine between them.

"So mum, do you have something to show me?" Elizabeth asked, turning to her mother again.

"I'm not so sure you want to see it, Lizzy. I hate to say I told you so," her mother said in a condescending tone.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Just give me the paper." Her mother handed it to her, folded just right, so only the short article and picture were showing. She stared at the picture for a few moments, feeling a slight surge of jealousy at the sight of Will with a beautiful woman. Forcing her eyes from the picture, she read the short write-up quickly.

_Our lovely roving reporter Justine was tipped off (anonymously, of course) that a certain Mr. FD was single again, and no longer cavorting with the chestnut-haired beauty from the Cape, whom he has reportedly grown tired of. Our chatty little bird mentioned that he would be dining at Menton on Thursday night, and it seems she was right on the money. FD was seated with a stunning blonde, and seemed to be enjoying his conversation with her._

Elizabeth's stomach lurched when she read that. _Grown tired of?_ She knew it was just a gossip page, a rag, but it still tugged at her. If she hadn't overheard Charles say that the blonde woman was a business associate, and that he was at the dinner too, she knew herself well enough to know that despite everything, her mind would be running wild. She continued reading.

_But then…surprise! A certain s__ingleton (and well-known FD admirer) that was spied in the lobby __alluded to being his latest love conquest. Our lovely Justine doubted the veracity of __that__ story, however, when she saw said singleton being escorted from the restaurant by her very handsome __(and thisclosetobeingmarried) barrister brother. It seems our 'burnt orange bachelorette' was 'burnt' in more ways than one. Better luck next time, honey...it really wasn't much of a contest._

Elizabeth suddenly felt the urge to laugh. "Neither of you have read this?" she asked, looking from Jane to Charles. They both shook their heads. "Did Caroline show up at the restaurant by any chance?"

Charles closed his eyes and sighed. "Please don't tell me she made it into the paper."

Elizabeth said nothing, but had to bite her lip stop herself from giggling outright. She handed Charles the paper, and Jane leaned against him so she could read as well.

Charles groaned as he read the part about his sister. Jane put her arm around his waist and squeezed him tightly, smiling. "At least they said you were handsome." Her smile quickly turned to a frown. "You do know that your sister is delusional, though."

"Yes, I've known that for quite a while now."

Mrs. Bennet chimed in again. "Elizabeth, I think you're fooling yourself if you think this man won't move on quickly…that woman may have been his business associate, or some such nonsense, at that dinner, but I can guarantee you that once dinner was over, he had his fill of dessert."

Charles' eyes flew open wide, and he began to stutter out a response to her statement. "Mrs…Mrs. Bennet, that's not true. That's not how Will is, and besides, he and I went out for a drink after dinner."

"Charles, you don't need to defend Will for me, I'm not-"

Charles interrupted her. "I'm not defending him for _you_, Lizzy, I'm just defending him. Mrs. Bennet, you can't just make assumptions like that…he's not a cad." He glanced at Elizabeth. "He loves your daughter very much."

Elizabeth's eyes flew to Charles' face in surprise.

"If he loves her so much, why did he fly the coop so quickly?" Mrs. Bennet asked Charles. "If he thought such horrible things about her, there must be a reason." She turned her cold gaze on Elizabeth. "What exactly did you do to make him think you were some kind of loose woman, Lizzy? Did you cheat on him? Something you did—"

Jane exploded on her mother. "That's it, mother, you have gone too far! You should be ashamed of yourself! Do you hear what you're accusing your own daughter of? These things you're saying…maybe you should be saying them to _Lydia_, she's the daughter that needs to hear it, not Lizzy."

Elizabeth sat there, watching her sister defend her, feeling herself on the verge of tears. What had she ever done to make her mother think so poorly of her?

"Oh, it's always Lydia's fault," her mother said. "The poor girl is just trying to find herself some happiness, she's just trying to find a good man, and all you and your sister can do is come down on her for every little thing."

Suddenly, Elizabeth's father appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. They all glanced at him in surprise, especially Elizabeth, who didn't even realize he was home, she had assumed he was out somewhere. His face was red and his eyes were bright.

"That's enough, Frances," he said, his voice low and firm. "I have heard _enough_."

* * *

><p><em>Uh oh, Mr. Bennet is maaaaad. To be continued...please leave a review! Thanks!<em>

_*song - "Shake It Out" by Florence + The Machine_


	42. Chapter 42

_Posting a chapter today, as I know I'll have no time tomorrow. Thanks to everyone for reading and leaving me reviews...I really appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 42<strong>

_Days apart: 23_

"Dad," Elizabeth said, startled to see him standing in the doorway.

"Hello, Lizzy," he said quietly, his green eyes softening as he looked at her. He walked over to her and gave her an enormous hug, squeezing her tightly. "How was the rest of your time down south?"

"It was great."

"Wonderful. I can't wait to hear all about it, but it seems we have some other things to take care of first." He turned his eyes to his wife. "Elizabeth has put up with this long enough, and frankly so have I."

"Should we...should we leave?" Charles asked, uncertain as to whether or not he and Jane should be part of the discussion that was about to take place.

"No," Elizabeth, Jane, and Mr. Bennet replied simultaneously.

"You're part of the family now, aren't you Charles? It's best to get acclimated right away," Mr. Bennet said, a hint of humor in his voice. "There's no better way for you to be welcomed into the fold, and I've been sorely lacking in male companionship for many years. No, you'll be staying until the bitter end."

Charles looked at Mr. Bennet, completely unsure of how to take what he just said. Was he trying to be funny? Or, God forbid, was he serious?

"Dad, we don't need to discuss anything right now," Elizabeth said, "I'd rather just get my things and leave."

"I'm sure you would, but there's no time like the present, my dear."

"Oh David, let the girl leave. The last thing I need is to get worked up over some drama that your favorite daughter has cooked up." Mrs. Bennet was unforgiving in her stance over the whole situation with Lydia. "She always wants to blame Lydia for everything, and the poor girl isn't even here to properly defend herself."

"That's just what I'm talking about!" Mr. Bennet practically yelled. "Lydia deserves all the blame in this, Frances, don't you see it? Do you understand what she did?"

Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes at him.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, Frances, I'm not one of your daughters," Mr. Bennet said angrily. "It's time you and I sat down and had a serious conversation with our youngest daughter. Right now, though, you need to understand something. Your treatment of Elizabeth has got to change. Why you continuously blame her for things not of her doing is beyond me."

"And what do I blame her for, exactly?" Mrs. Bennet asked, sounding exasperated.

"You blame me for everything," Elizabeth said quietly. There was no anger in her voice, just tired acceptance. "You blamed me for Jason leaving me, even though you only know half of the story."

"Oh, I know enough," Mrs. Bennet said. "He was wonderful, a wonderful boy. He came from a good family, he was smart, he was going somewhere...and all of a sudden he was gone. You must have done _something_, Lizzy-"

"Here we go again," Elizabeth muttered. "Round two."

"Don't be fresh," her mother warned.

"Do you want to know what happened mum? I'll tell you all of it."

Jane looked at her sister wide-eyed, not quite sure what 'all of it' meant. There was no way she was leaving now, not if Elizabeth was going to say what Jane thought she was going to say.

"I came home from classes one day," Elizabeth said firmly, "to find Jason packing all of his things. He told me he was tired of living a 'domestic life'. He felt tied down. Not because of me, mind you, because I never put any pressure on him for anything. Living together was his idea, but I agreed to it because I loved him, and thought that eventually, we'd get married."

Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes again.

"God, you look like Lydia when you do that," Elizabeth said in exasperation. "Anyway, he left. Never called me, never looked back. Had a whole new life arranged, waiting for him in California. And then you know what happened?" She paused and took a deep breath. "I...I found out that I was pregnant."

Her parent's reactions were almost identical – their eyes widened, and both of their faces displayed twin expressions of shock.

"Yes, I was pregnant. Denny finally got Jason's phone number, but that...that _wonderful_ boy...wouldn't return my calls. "

"Denny? Lydia's Denny?" Mrs. Bennet asked quietly.

"Yes, Lydia's Denny."

"What happened...did you...?" Mr. Bennet couldn't form a complete sentence.

"I miscarried, dad."

He closed his eyes and let out a tremendous sigh. Mrs. Bennet stood frozen, unable to move or respond.

Jane had moved closer to Elizabeth, and reached out to put an arm around her waist, squeezing her lightly. Elizabeth was thankful for the contact, thankful that her best friend and staunchest ally was there to support her.

"Jason never called me, mum. I called him and left him a message, telling him I was pregnant. I called him again when I miscarried. He never called me, not once." She cleared her throat. "He was in South Carolina, I worked with him while I was down there."

"What?" Mr. Bennet asked, clearly stunned. "He was there?"

"Yes, he was. It's funny, he just thought we'd get past things, and maybe make another go of it. He knew I wasn't married, so he kinda figured, why not? He's the same selfish bastard he was all those years ago." She turned to her mother. "To go through that, and know that I had absolutely no support – from either of you – was devastating. Mum, you just...you just wanted to blame me, for all of it. You were so convinced that I ran him off...but even if I had, why would you turn against me, your own daughter? Why was my having a man in my life so much more important to you than my happiness and well-being? And dad, you...you didn't outright blame me, you didn't see things the same way mum did, but you just brushed off that whole period of my life like it was a teenage crush that meant nothing. You refused to recognize that it was anything more than that."

Mr. Bennet looked broken. His shoulders were hunched, and his face was pale. When he looked up at his daughter, he had tears in his eyes. "I'm so, so sorry Lizzy," he said, his voice hoarse with emotion. "I had no idea...you went through all that alone."

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, not alone. I had Jane," she said, glancing at her sister, "and Denny. Aunt Vee and Uncle Ed helped too, but I never told them I was pregnant. They still don't know. It was really Jane, though, that got me through it. She helped me to finally understand that Jason left because of Jason, not because of me. I wasn't to blame for his immaturity and selfishness. For a long time, though, I was convinced that I wasn't worth his love, that I wasn't good enough for him, for anyone. And you know what mum? After he left, you made me feel the same way. That's why I had to stop talking to you. It was bad enough that I had lost faith in myself, but having my mother lose faith in me was so much worse. You were supposed to be there to pick me up, not push me down."

"Dad...you _saw_ mum treating me like that." She looked at her father, his eyes shiny with unshed tears. "You always chalked it up to 'mum being mum'. You always said, 'oh, you know how your mother is Lizzy. Just ignore it.' The truth is, _you_ wanted to ignore it. You just wanted to turn your back on her behavior, and pretend it wasn't happening, because it was so much easier than...well, than doing this. Talking about it." Elizabeth took a deep, steadying breath. "The only thing I will take responsibility for is letting this go on for so long. We should have had this conversation years ago, but I turned my back on mum's behavior too. It was so much easier."

Mrs. Bennet stood there, silent tears rolling down her cheeks. She slowly lowered herself into a chair at the table. She remained silent, so Elizabeth took it as a cue to continue. _I might as well put it all out there._

"Will was the first man I have let close to me since Jason. I finally allowed myself to trust him, to love him, and everything exploded in my face. Those pictures, mum, that I had of Lydia in my house with George Wickham...she slept with him, _in my home_, and that...sick bastard left those pictures there for me to find. But Will found them, and he recognized George. He recognized him as the man who raped his sister...and when he saw those pictures...the...the images weren't clear, exactly, and he thought it was me. So, for you to ask me what I did to make him think I was some...some kind of _tramp_...do you know how that makes me feel? What he thought, what he..._inferred_ from those pictures had nothing to do with me, and everything to do with his own past, his own...his own issues. He didn't talk to me about it, didn't ask me about the pictures, he just left. Walked away. Just like Jason did."

"But...but Charles just said that Will loves you. Very much," Mrs. Bennet said, obviously confused.

Elizabeth nodded. "He says he does."

"You don't believe him?"

"It's not that easy."

"Do you love him?"

Elizabeth nodded again, her eyes filling with tears. "But it's not that easy."

"Then why...why aren't you-"

Elizabeth cut her mother off. "I'm not saying anything else about my relationship with Will. I may have already said too much." She sighed and closed her eyes, resting her head on Jane's shoulder for a moment, trying to rein in her emotions.

Charles had effectively blended in with the background, leaning against the kitchen counter, remaining completely silent and stone-faced. He looked a bit shell-shocked as well.

"The thing is, mum, you have to stop seeing Lydia as this child that can do no wrong. She's a woman who has made extremely bad choices, and doesn't care one bit who those choices have hurt. She chose to do those things with George, in my home. Granted, Will's reaction to what he saw wasn't her fault, but if she hadn't done those things to begin with...we probably wouldn't be having this conversation. I tried to talk to her last week, and it did no good. Sadly, I think it's going to take something big, and unfortunately, something bad, to get through to her."

Mr. Bennet finally sat down at the table as well, next to his wife. He dropped his head into his hands, shaking it lightly, before looking up at Elizabeth. "We've really let you down, Lizzy. Not just you...Jane too," he reached out to grasp Jane's hand, "and Lydia. All three of you girls. We haven't been very good parents to you, have we?"

His question, his thoughts, just hung in the air. No one said a word.

* * *

><p>Will sighed, resisting the urge to light a match and set fire to the newspaper that he held in his hand as he sat as his desk Saturday evening. <em>Fucking Caroline<em>. This really wasn't what he needed at the moment. Things were steadily piling up, and he felt like he was being buried at the bottom of the pile.

It had been only six days since he left South Carolina, but it felt more like a month. He had finally dealt with some long-neglected issues at the office, and though everything was now on an even keel, he reflected that it probably hadn't been the best week for Stephanie Hanscom to come out for a visit. Despite that, her short trip had gone remarkably well, and he was suitably impressed.

On top of all the work stuff was his concern with the arraignment, and everything that was looming on the horizon for Georgie. He had these deep-seated fears that some kind of far-fetched legal technicality would arise from out of the blue and somehow set both men free. Every time he thought about the battle that Georgie was facing, those fears would dance around in his head, and it was hard for him to tamp them back down. He had to, though, as Georgie was supposed to arrive in Boston sometime tomorrow to stay with him; he needed to make sure he projected confidence when he was with her.

That being said, for the most part, he _was_ confident, Maggie Harper made it clear that they had every reason to be. It was just...those worries were there, lurking. The conversation he'd had with Richard this week, about everything that had happened to Georgiana, was no picnic. As cocky and brash as his cousin appeared to be, he had a soft spot when it came to Georgiana, and he was horrified at what she had been through.

As busy as Will was during his days, that only left the nights – the very long, sleepless nights – to delve into everything that had taken place in South Carolina. He had to admit, he felt better about things now than he did when he boarded the plane on Sunday, but that wasn't saying much. Of course, not knowing what was going through Elizabeth's head was the worst part. That, and the memory of those tears running silently down her cheeks – that vision of her had haunted him all week. He had felt like someone had twisted a knife in his gut.

What he needed, what he wished for the most right now, was just some _time, _time away from everyone and everything. It was an unrealistic, selfish wish, though, and he knew that. If he was to create a mental to-do list, the top line would read '_examine self_.' Some things he could work on right away – self-control being one of them – but some things would take some much deeper digging. One thing, or one person, rather, that he would need to focus on would be his father. For some reason, his mind wanted to shy away from going there, but he knew that he had to. He had already realized that his feelings of insecurity, and his inability to place complete trust in people, even those he loved wholeheartedly, were fundamentally linked to the guidance his father had given him as he was growing up. It went beyond a lack of trust, though...there was something else, there had to be, and he needed to get to the root of it. How that guidance had spiraled into something different, he didn't know, but he had to figure it out.

Right now, though, he couldn't think about it, he didn't have _time_. Why? Because of the damn newspaper in his hand, that's why. He never would have noticed the article if Mrs. R hadn't called him to ask about it. Reading the gossip pages wasn't something he made a habit of, and he wasn't about to start now.

"You and that nice Elizabeth haven't broken up, have you?"

"Honestly, I don't know what we are right now. Things are sort of a mess."

"Why? Did you do something?"

_Just get right to it, Alice. _"I...I made some mistakes. I'm hoping it's not too late to right them. I don't think it is...it's just...it's _me_. I do things, say things..._think _things...I don't want to get into the particulars, but suffice it to say that I really, really screwed things up."

"Fix it."

He smiled wanly at her stern tone. "I'm trying. You know, you're not usually one to read the rags, Mrs. R."

"I don't, but my sister does. She called me straight away to tell me you were in the paper." Her voice softened. "I don't like to read about you in those pages."

"I don't like to read about me in those pages either."

Mrs. Reynolds was silent, and Will was beginning to think that something was up. "Alice?"

"I'm right here."

"What's the matter?"

"Well...just talking about you being in the paper...I'm worried for Georgiana. She's trying to be so strong. I'm afraid of the toll this will take on her. She's come so far..."

Will understood, more than anyone, what she was worried about. "I know. Georgie's tough, though, probably a lot tougher than you think. She's come a long way, and she has tons of support, you know that. This is something she wants to do, something she _has_ to do. We just have to be there to make sure she's okay. Did you know she's been seeing Matt Evans?"

"Yes. I remember him...vaguely. She seems very happy about that."

"She is. They've only been dating for a few weeks, but he seems like a pretty solid guy. They've known each other for a long time, actually, so I know she trusts him."

"That's good."

"She's coming to Boston tomorrow, Matt's on the Cape now with her, he's bringing her back with him. She thought it would be easier to be here, instead of there, when everything started moving forward. The arraignment is Tuesday."

"So soon?"

"Not soon enough."

"I suppose."

It was quiet for a moment before he spoke again. "How would you like a visit tomorrow? Maybe Georgie will bring Matt along so you can meet him."

"I'd like that, William."

Will smiled. "Me too. I'll call you to let you know when we're on our way."

"Okay. Can you promise me something?"

Will's eyebrows rose. "I can try."

"Promise me that with everything that's going on with Georgie, you won't forget about the important things going on with you, too. I know you, you'll throw yourself into this, into taking care of her, and other things will get pushed to the side. Don't let Elizabeth be one of those things."

"I won't," he responded quietly.

"I've never seen you so happy, William. Do what you can to get that back. Promise me that."

"I promise."

"Thank you. Now then, I need to get some baking done if the three of you are coming for a visit tomorrow." Her voice was all business again. "Call me to let me know what time you'll be here."

"I will Mrs. R. See you tomorrow."

"Bye William. See you tomorrow."

When he hung up the phone, he thought about Alice Reynolds and his relationship with her. She was such a solid part of his life, and the closest thing he had, now, to a parent. She was never judgmental, never condescending, never condemning. She just listened when you talked, and when she finally put her two cents in, she always said something that made you think a little more carefully, a little harder than you were before. She didn't just toss out comments or criticism, she handed out words of wisdom.

Will smiled, shaking his head, before moving on to his next phone call, pushing the button that would dial Charles' cell. He knew that he and Jane had left for the Cape last night, but he needed to talk to him about the damn newspaper article.

"Will?"

"Hi Charles."

"Shit, I'm sorry. I know what you're calling about, and I had no idea...Jane and I have been talking, Caroline was at my place on Tuesday night, she might have overheard us talking, we were...well, we were discussing..._everything_, but I thought she was in the bathroom. I don't know how else she would know, because I mean it's obvious that she's the damn source for this, and she planted herself at Menton, waiting for the opportu-"

"Charles?"

"Yes?"

"Your sister is a royal pain in my ass."

Charles exhaled. "I know. I'm sorry, I'll talk to her. I've already done some, um, damage control, though, so don't worry about that end of it."

Will was puzzled. "What do you mean, 'damage control?'"

"Well, Jane and I came to her parent's place today to tell them we were engaged, and-"

"How did that go?" Will interrupted.

"Fine, fine. Anyway, um, Elizabeth came over too, and her mother showed her the article and the picture."

_Oh no._ "Oh, Jesus, of course she did. Leave it to Mrs. Bennet. What did Elizabeth say? Did she think-"

"I explained that it was a business dinner, that Stephanie was a new associate. Elizabeth read the article, and she actually laughed a little when she read the part about Caroline."

"Thank God she didn't take it seriously." He smiled to himself. "I can imagine her finding that bit about your sister amusing. It was the best part of the whole piece."

Charles chuckled. "Yeah, Caroline made herself look foolish. Again."

Will became serious again. "You know...with your wedding coming up, things need to be straightened out with her. I thought she and I came to an understanding at the benefit last month...apparently not. I'm telling you, Charles, I'm not dealing with this kind of shit from her any more."

"I know, I know. I'll talk to her."

"I would appreciate that." He cleared his throat. "Um, how...how is Elizabeth?"

"She's...okay. She and Jane are spending some time together tonight. Today was kind of...well, emotional."

Will was instantly concerned. "What do you mean? Is she okay?"

"I think she is...look, you know I don't feel right telling you things, but...I can tell you that I think she said a lot of things to her parents today that they were long overdue to hear."

Surprise registered on Will's face, and it bloomed into a smile. "Really? It's about time." _I'm proud of her_, he thought, though he didn't say it out loud. "Wow. How did your future in-laws take it?"

"I've never seen Mrs. Bennet so quiet. Mr. Bennet...he was a little taken aback. I just don't think he realized how lacking he was as a father."

Will nodded quietly.

"Hey, Will...speaking of the wedding. Jane and I were talking on the way to the Cape...you know, you and Lizzy are the only wedding party we have. Do you...are you okay with doing that still?"

"Being your best man?"

"Yes."

"Of course I am. Why...is Lizzy uncomfortable with it?"

"I don't know...Jane is going to talk to her tonight. I just don't want you to feel weird about it."

"_Not_ being your best man will feel weird. I think Elizabeth and I can make it through the day, we can be civil to each other."

"Have you talked to her, at all?"

"A little, last weekend."

"Oh. Oh, that's good."

Will could hear the questions in his best friend's voice, but knew he wouldn't reveal what happened when he was in South Carolina. "I'm still trying to puzzle things out on my own, Charles. Plus, with the arraignment coming up this week...I just feel like I have a lot on my plate. Poor Stephanie, she came out for a whirlwind tour, and got sent right back to California."

"Yeah, she seemed alright with it though. Smart woman, her designs are brilliant. At least the ones I saw were. She seems raring to get started."

"She is, she's getting her staff together...it's all falling into place. They're almost done with the office space too, Richard sent me some pictures. It looks great. You know, he was responsible for sorting through all the candidates we had for the position, so I have to hand it to him, he did a great job."

"I'm glad it's working out."

"Thanks. Anyway, back to the wedding...nothing is going to stop me from being your best man, and I couldn't imagine anyone but Elizabeth standing up with Jane. We're all adults, we'll handle it."

"Okay, thanks. That's a relief."

"I don't have to plan a bachelor party, do I?"

"Please don't. I don't want one, I think I'm too old for that. I just want to get married."

Will smiled softly, suddenly feeling the loss of Elizabeth that much more. "Married to your angel."

"Yes," Charles answered, "married to my angel."

* * *

><p>"What?"<p>

"I slept with Will. At an inn. Saturday night. We had sex. Twice."

The sisters were sitting outside on Elizabeth's deck, enjoying the sunset and the light breeze that had finally begun to come in off of the water, alleviating the lingering heat of the day.

Jane was staring at Elizabeth, her mouth hanging wide open. "Really?"

"Yes. Really."

"You had sex. Twice. With Will. On Saturday night." She paused. "At an inn."

Elizabeth sighed, rolling her eyes. "Christ, Jane, how many times do you need to hear it?"

"I'm sorry...I just...I'm trying to wrap my brain around it."

"It's not a difficult concept."

"I know, but...you're so calm."

"It was a week ago."

"And?"

"And what?"

"How did it happen? Why did he go to South Carolina?"

Elizabeth sighed. "He said he wanted to see me. I told you he wrote me a letter. He wanted to know if I read it."

"He went all the way to South Carolina to see if you _read his letter_? Oh, please, that's crap. He knew exactly what he was doing."

"No...I think he really did just want to talk. I don't think his expectations were very high. The whole sex thing happened because of me, I was the one who initiated everything. I didn't let him talk."

"What'd you do, tape his mouth shut?"

Elizabeth shook her head and bit back a small grin. "No, I just...kept it occupied." She really shouldn't be enjoying this conversation, and truthfully she wasn't, but it _was_ just a tiny bit funny. It wasn't too often that Elizabeth could shock Jane, and this time, she definitely had.

Jane rolled her eyes. "Do you have any wine? We need wine."

They both rose and went into the house. Elizabeth grabbed a bottle of wine from the rack while Jane went to the kitchen to get glasses.

"Will you go shopping with me tomorrow?" Elizabeth asked.

"Shopping for what?"

"Sheets. Furniture. I want _new_...I don't want this stuff in here anymore. I need to get rid of it."

Jane looked at Elizabeth, fully understanding why. "Of course I'll go with you. That huge furniture store in Bourne is going out of business, I saw the sign yesterday."

"I saw it too. We'll start there. I'll get sheets at Home Goods."

"Okay. Shopping is good therapy anyway, right?"

Elizabeth nodded once, emphatically. "Right." They headed back out to the deck with their glasses of wine, Jane carrying the bottle as well, and sat down in their chairs.

Jane looked at her curiously. "You're surprising me, Lizzy. You seem so...calm. I know I already said that, but it's really the only word that I can think of. Maybe serene...serene works."

Elizabeth shrugged. "That's how I feel. Today...today was huge, wasn't it?"

"I can't believe you told mum and dad everything."

"I can't believe I did either. But you know what? It's time they knew. I kept things from them for way too long...if I had come clean sooner, maybe today's conversation could have taken place years ago. The part about Jason, anyway."

"God, I can't believe you had to work with him."

"You know, when I first saw him, I felt all this anger toward him, but then it just went away, and I became...indifferent. He just...he didn't matter. It was like...seeing him finally helped me to put all of that to rest. No more wondering. He never did explain his actions. I think if I had given him the opportunity, he would have but...I didn't want him to. I didn't _need_ him to. Nothing he could say would have been good enough anyway."

Jane's eyes opened wide. "Oh my gosh...did Will meet him?"

Elizabeth nodded. "He did. It was random...Will came to find me Sunday morning, I knew he would. I kind of left while he was asleep, I walked back to the house."

"That's one hell of a walk of shame."

"Shut up. So, they met when Will came to talk to me."

"What happened?"

"Nothing. Surprisingly, Will played it cool. I thought for sure he was going to beat the tar out of Jason, but he didn't. He just threatened to."

"Oh God."

"It wasn't that bad."

They both paused to take a sip of wine. "Okay," Jane said quietly. "Now that all the sisterly banter is out of the way...why don't you tell me what's _really_ going on. What were you thinking?"

Elizabeth shook her head, pondering the question. "I _wasn't_ thinking, that's just it."

Jane examined her sister closely, watching her eyes and the expression on her face. As relaxed as she appeared, as flippant and off-handed as she was trying to be while they were talking, Jane knew a lot was going on behind those green eyes. "It's...it's not at all like you to do something so..."

"Rash? Hasty? Impetuous?" She paused. "Stupid? Foolish? Idiotic? Pick one."

"Lizzy, stop. I would say impetuous...that's a good word. Casual sex has never been your thing."

Elizabeth turned to look at her sister, her expression serious. "There was nothing casual about it, Jane. It was as far from casual as it could be. It's not like I had decided to have a one-night stand before I left the house, and Will showing up made it convenient."

"That's not what I meant."

Elizabeth glanced at her sister with an apologetic look. "I know, I know that's not what you meant." She took a deep breath. "I miss him a lot, Jane. I just...I miss that feeling, what I felt when I was with him, before...all of this. I just wanted to have that again. I was so angry that he showed up, and then in an instant...for that moment, it just...didn't matter. I didn't _let_ it matter, just for a little while."

"I can understand that."

Elizabeth smiled slightly and shook her head. "You know, I was a little worried about telling you."

Jane's eyes opened wide. "Why would you worry about telling me?"

"I thought you would think I was weak," Elizabeth said quietly.

Jane rolled her eyes. "That is the _last_ word I would ever use to describe you. You're one of the strongest people I know. I'm not here to judge you, Lizzy, I'm here to support you, no matter what happens, no matter what you decide."

Elizabeth reached over and squeezed her sister's hand. "Thanks."

"You never really told me how all this came about, though...I mean, how did he find you?"

Elizabeth sighed, realizing she was going to have to explain from the beginning. "I was out with my co-workers. One of them, Megan, met this guy in a band...oh, never mind about that part. Anyway, we were out, and Will just...showed up. I didn't even know he was there until he got up on stage and sang."

Jane's jaw dropped open comically. "He _sang?_ What did you do?"

"I watched him...I mean, I was shocked that he was right there, in front of me, but I couldn't take my eyes off of him. Then...I walked out, but of course he caught up to me in the parking lot." She stared off into the darkening sky, thinking again about that night. "I think I wanted him to. As soon as we were face to face, I yelled at him. We argued briefly...it was raining so hard, we were literally getting soaked." She looked down at her glass, playing with the charm that encircled the stem. "I asked him...I asked him why he couldn't just give me room to breathe."

"What did he say?"

"He said I never asked for room to breathe. I just kept looking at him, at his face...I dream about him so much, it was almost hard to comprehend that he was standing in front of me again. Right then, I knew exactly what was going to happen. I _wanted_ it to happen...I started it. I kissed him. He tried not to kiss me back, he really did, he tried to step away, but...well, obviously, that didn't work. So then...fast forward to Sunday morning."

Jane squinted her eyes at her sister. "Hmm."

"We argued a little more, talked more...he said that by leaving the inn that morning, by sneaking out, it was like I was taking the opportunity to walk way from him."

Jane raised her eyebrows but said nothing.

Elizabeth read her sister's thoughts. "That's not what was going through my head at all."

"Well, you _did_ leave before talking things out. Sound familiar?"

Elizabeth avoided her sister's question. "Anyway, of course he wanted to know what it meant, us...being together. Was it the booze, was it me telling him I want to give him another chance? Or was it me saying goodbye?"

"So which one is it?"

"Well, I definitely wasn't drunk. It wasn't the booze."

Jane waited, but her sister remained silent. "Which is it, Lizzy?"

Elizabeth shook her head as tears filled her eyes. It took a long time for her to answer, and when she finally did, she spoke slowly. "I know myself well enough to know that if I really, really wanted him out of my life, I would have told him then. I think...I think I would have felt it, you know? I would have _felt_ that it was time, and I would have been able to say the words. But I couldn't...I can't. I can't say goodbye to him, Jane. Part of me wishes so badly that I could, that I could just turn my back on him and start over...but I can't."

Jane reached over to hold her hand. "Then don't."

* * *

><p>Jane returned to Charles' house in New Seabury later that night, and found him stretched out on the couch, reading, waiting for her to return. She walked over to him, took the book from his hands, placed it on the end table, and laid her entire body over his, snuggling into him. Without saying anything, he wrapped her up in his arms, waiting for her to talk. After a long while, she finally did.<p>

"She's okay with the wedding arrangements."

"Good. Him too."

A few more minutes passed as he stroked her back up and down, slowly, patiently.

"She loves him," Jane whispered.

He nodded and kissed the top of her head. "He loves her too."

* * *

><p><em>So, it looks like a reconciliation is on the way...what do you think?<em>


	43. Chapter 43

_My posts are slowly catching up to my writing, so at some point, I will have to drop to one posting a week, probably within the next couple of weeks or so. Sorry! Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I love how you all seem to be cheering for Elizabeth & Will to get back together. How else will we get our 'happily ever after'?_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 43<strong>

_Days apart: 26_

Georgiana decided that the arraignment went as smoothly as things of that nature could be expected to go. She had found out from Maggie Harper the day before that she wasn't even required to appear, but she had wanted to be there. She was comforted by the presence of her brother, and also of Charles, who had surprised her by showing up just as they were ready to go into the courtroom. Matt had wanted desperately to be with her as well, but she didn't want him to take an entire day off from work for what could prove to be a relatively short proceeding. It had caused a slight (and their first) disagreement, but in the end, he was reassured that she would be fine.

She had learned, from talking to Maggie, that the arraignment was basically a formal reading of the charges against Wickham and Collins, and that they would officially enter their pleas into the court records as well. It was a short process, but to Georgiana, it was an important step; it was the first time she would be facing the men who assaulted her. She needed to do it now, before the trial began.

She sat toward the front of the courtroom, Will and Charles on either side of her, and when Wickham and Collins were brought in, she could feel Will's entire body tense. She thought he was going to fly out of his seat when George Wickham casually turned and glanced at her, his eyes raking over her body as he smirked. Will's hands were clenched together, his fingers turning pale white, and his entire body was trembling with barely controlled fury. She reached over and placed one of her hands on his, and slowly, his muscles began to relax. His facial expression, though, along with the angry glint in his eyes, never changed. He never took his eyes off of the men, not once.

The charges were read against Wickham and Collins, and the two men pleaded 'not guilty', which was no surprise. Because of the nature and circumstances of the crime, the judge opted to hold both men in custody without bail. The public defense attorney fought this furiously, but the judge would not be moved. He stated quite plainly that it was within his power to deny bail, as the crime they had been accused of committing was a crime of force, and therefore, it was not a stretch to declare both men potentially dangerous. The judge also pointed out that both men were also flight risks, especially since Wickham had already developed out-of-state ties, and neither had any family holding them to the area.

Maggie had told her that the next step would be a pre-trial conference, in which both sides were expected to produce and share information on discovery of evidence. At this point, the attorneys could also try to resolve the case, outside of the courtroom, although Maggie doubted very highly that this would actually happen. The attorney that was representing both men was young and brash and a little too eager, and Maggie was quite sure he would be anxious to get himself into the courtroom with a well-known Boston family, thereby assuring himself some high-profile publicity. That being said, Maggie was quite confident that she'd eat him for breakfast.

That night, Matt came by Will's after work and persuaded Georgiana to go to the Public Gardens with him. They strolled hand in hand for a while, eventually sitting on a bench overlooking the Duck Pond. The swan boats were in for the night, and were lined up perfectly along the docks.

Georgiana knew that he was waiting to hear how everything went, so she decided to just get it out of the way. She filled him in on everything that happened at the arraignment, including the way Wickham had looked at her. Matt bristled next to her.

"Fucking pig." He looked at Georgiana sheepishly. "Sorry."

"It's okay. That's nothing compared to what Will and Charles were calling him today. I had no idea the English language could be so colorful – or descriptive."

Matt grinned slightly. "If your brother ever got his hands on those guys, they'd be reduced to piles of human waste."

Georgiana nodded. "I know. I'm actually more worried about Will than I am about myself. I literally thought he was going to lunge at them today. He was a ball of tension."

"Does that surprise you?"

She thought for a moment. "No, I guess it doesn't." She gazed out over the pond, watching the play of light as the sun began to set. "Your statement, and Julie's statement, will be reviewed at the hearing next week."

"Okay."

"You might...depending on what happens at that hearing...you might have to appear in court, if it goes to trial. I'm sorry, I know you probably weren't expecting to have to do that."

Matt reached out and tugged her chin gently so that her eyes were now focused on his. "Georgie, I'll do whatever it takes, whatever your lawyer asks me to do, to make sure those animals get put behind bars for as long as possible. Getting up on the stand, giving a statement, answering questions...that's nothing, compared to what you've been through. I wish I could do more."

"You are doing more." She took a deep breath and smiled at him. "Being with me, supporting me...bringing me here...it's peaceful. Relaxing. I feel like that courtroom is a million miles away."

Matt leaned in to give her a soft kiss, then dropped his hand from her chin, reaching behind her to wrap it around her shoulders and pull her in close to him. "It is a million miles away, for right now. We'll just take each day as it comes, okay?"

"That sounds good to me," she said softly. "Oh, speaking of days...next Monday-"

He interrupted. "Is your birthday, I know."

Georgiana looked at him in surprise, and laughed when they both said, "Julie" at the same time.

"Will wants to do some kind of...dinner thing, or something, this Saturday night."

"That sounds good. Assuming I'm invited, of course."

Georgiana smirked. "I think that's a pretty safe assumption. The thing is...I don't know if I should be thinking about celebrating anything right now."

"Why? I mean, I know why, but it _is_ your birthday, you should do something."

"That's what Will said. He said that even with all this going on, I still have a lot of positive stuff happening, and I should celebrate that."

"I agree. But ultimately, it's up to you...if you really feel like you don't want to do anything, then don't. As long as I'm included in your idea of 'not doing anything', that is."

She smiled. "You'll be included either way...you're the best reason I have to celebrate."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth had tried to reach Georgiana twice on Tuesday evening, but got no answer. She called Jane, who told her (from Charles' account) that the arraignment had gone as expected. Jane had started explaining, using legal terms that Elizabeth had never heard before, and she finally had to interrupt and ask Jane to give it to her in plain old layman's terms. When she'd finished explaining all the proceedings, Elizabeth had asked her, a bit hesitantly, how Will was.<p>

Jane wasn't surprised at the question, and felt that it was probably the main reason that Elizabeth was calling. "Honestly? Charles said he was ready to physically restrain Will if necessary. At one point, Wickham leered at Georgie, and the only thing that kept Will seated was Georgiana. Charles said he'd never seen him look so furious."

Elizabeth sighed. "This isn't going to be easy for either of them."

"No, of course it isn't."

"I've tried to call Georgie, but there's no answer on her cell, I'm a little concerned."

"Did you leave a message?"

"The first time, yes. Maybe she's just tired."

"Maybe." Jane paused for a moment, knowing what her sister was thinking. "Are you wondering if you should call Will?"

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. "Well...I thought about it, when I couldn't reach Georgie. I called you instead."

"But you want to know how he's doing, don't you?"

"I do, and you just told me."

"But wouldn't you rather hear it from him?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes and shook her head. "Jane...are you actually encouraging me to call him?"

"Not specifically, no...but if that's what you _want_ to do, if that's what your heart is telling you to do, then you should do it. If talking to him is going to make you feel better, than talk to him."

"It would make me feel better, I'm just...I'm afraid, I guess, that he'll want to talk about…well, us."

"Is there an 'us' for you to talk about with him?"

Elizabeth bit her lip. "God, it's all I've thought about." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "I think…I think I _want_ there to be an us. There are things about him...he's not perfect, but then, who is? I'm certainly not." She paused. "Just when I think I'm ready to try again, to make that leap…that uncertainty comes back, and I feel like I _can't_ do it. I can't risk it. I'm too scared to open up to him and go through that whole emotional upheaval all over again…and then it's like a domino effect. I start doubting myself and find myself questioning everything…his feelings for me, our entire relationship...everything. It makes me wonder if it will all be worth it in the end."

She stopped speaking, and Jane knew that she was trying to put her muddled thoughts into words. Jane waited, patiently, for her to continue, not wanting to say anything just yet. After a few more moments of silence, Elizabeth continued.

"_Then_, after I think about all _that_…I realize that I'm just so tired of being scared. I've let that...that _fear_ rule me, rule my life, for six years. Six long years. I can't let it do that anymore. I finally, _finally_ took a chance with him, and you know what? He was worth it...there's so much about him, so much inside of him, that is truly worth it…I have to give him, give _us, _a chance to fix everything, don't I? If I don't...that damn 'what if' will haunt me, I know it will."

Jane wasn't surprised at the words her sister was saying, not one bit. She knew, after their conversation last Saturday night, that it would only be a matter of time before Elizabeth was able to see things more clearly. "Why are you afraid, then, that he'll ask you about your relationship if you call him?"

"I don't know, I just am. I think it's because saying all of that to him will make it real. Thinking it, at least for right now, still keeps me safe. I'm not vulnerable if I'm just thinking about it."

"Lizzy, come on...you can tell yourself over and over again that you're not vulnerable, that it's safer to keep all of these feelings locked up, but the fact is...you love him, and whether you speak the words or not doesn't change anything, you're just as vulnerable. You need to talk to him, you need to tell him everything that you just told me."

Elizabeth sighed, knowing that her sister was right. "I will. I'll tell him."

They ended their conversation by making plans to get together over the weekend to discuss Elizabeth's dress for the wedding. Jane had found several styles that she thought Elizabeth would like, and would let her sister pick the color, as she had no preference. After hanging up, Elizabeth realized that with all the talk of shopping, they had avoided stating the obvious; Elizabeth would be spending the weekend in Boston.

* * *

><p>Will's body jolted every time his fist connected with the solid weight of the heavy bag suspended in the basement of his brownstone. With each blow, it was easy to envision either George Wickham's or Bill Collins' face on the receiving end. This space was mostly used for storage, as it wasn't really practical for anything else, but he decided to put a heavy bag down here, similar to the one he had in New Seabury. He had a treadmill too, but he kept that upstairs in his office. There, he could watch the news, check stock quotes, etc., while he ran. He had already logged five miles tonight before coming down here; running before using the bag always got him energized, which was a good thing, since his only real goal was to relentlessly pound the shit out of it. For that reason, he thought it was more appropriate to keep it in the basement.<p>

He knew that today had gone just as it was supposed to, Maggie Harper had assured him of that. Still, it had been incredibly frustrating to sit in that courtroom and watch as George fucking Wickham eyed his sister like she was a piece of meat. To add insult to injury, he had to watch as the asshole had the fucking audacity to _smirk_ at her. At that point, he thought for sure he'd either have to sit on his hands or leave the courtroom altogether. Collins was just his cowardly self, of course. He appeared very nervous and was perspiring profusely, staring down at the floor the entire time.

Stepping away from the bag, Will grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat from his face, bare chest and shoulders, and after taking a few long drinks from his water bottle, he trudged back up the stairs to the first floor. His arms felt like lead, and he realized, a bit too late, that he may have overdone it a little with the bag. He'd pay for it tomorrow, he knew.

He glanced at the clock in the kitchen and saw that it was just after seven. Matt had come by to pick up Georgiana, and he was glad. She needed the distraction, and Will was happy for some time alone to take out his frustrations on his exercise equipment. It had worked; he felt calmer, more level-headed. Actually, he felt completely exhausted; his nights of getting three or four hours of sleep were catching up to him at a rapid rate.

After a hot shower, he headed to his office to do some work. The ringing of his cell phone pulled his eyes away from his computer screen, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw '_Elizabeth'_ on the caller ID. Without hesitation, he answered.

"Hello?" After a slight pause, he heard her voice on the other end.

"Hi Will, it's Elizabeth." Her voice was quiet.

"Hi. I know it's you. Hi. How...how are you?" He felt like a teenager on the phone with a girl for the very first time. His heart was pounding, and he had to squelch the urge to do a premature happy dance on top of his desk.

"I'm okay. Um, I tried to call Georgiana, but she didn't answer. I didn't want to be a pest, but...I wanted to know how she's doing. And you, I wanted to know how...how you are. After today, I mean."

"Oh, I think she's doing alright. It was tough for her, seeing them again...but she held her own, you know? She's here, in Boston, but she's out with Matt, I don't know if she has her phone with her or not. She's going to stay here with me for a bit."

"Oh. Well, that's good, that she's with you." For a moment it was silent, until she spoke again, her voice quiet. "So...how are you?"

"I'm okay," he said softly. He really didn't know what to say. Did she _really_ want to know how he _really_ felt when he saw those men in front of him today, how completely twisted up it had made him feel? "It was a short process, but it felt like forever."

"I can imagine."

He decided to turn the topic to her. "Um, how was your last week in South Carolina?"

"Oh, it was good. Productive. I was happy to come home, though."

"How...how are things in your office? You must have gotten an earful when you went back."

"Oh, I did. I told Mary that I already knew about...everything, and she was a bit puzzled...but it quieted her down, at least."

"That's good."

Elizabeth sighed before talking again. "Are you...are you sure you're okay?"

Will spoke before thinking. "Are you sure you want me to answer that?"

Elizabeth wasn't surprised by his response, as she could tell that he was holding back when she asked him before. She knew that he was feeling much more than he let on, only because she knew just how much he had been through in the past seven months; she knew how deep the scars ran. "Yes...I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want to know."

"I know, I'm sorry. I'm just...I was surprised to see it was you calling...pleasantly surprised, though." _What a huge understatement._ He went on before she could say anything. "I am okay...now. This morning, though, in the courtroom...it was hard. Hard to just _sit_ there. Wickham looked so cocky, so sure of himself. Collins never even raised his eyes, he didn't look up once. I couldn't get Georgie out of there fast enough."

"I'm sorry it was so tough for you," she said quietly. The words seemed inadequate, even to her own ears, and she wanted to say more to comfort him, but couldn't find the courage to do it.

He shrugged, even though she couldn't see it. "Georgie and I talked about this at length, before the police were even contacted. We knew what she was in for...for the most part, anyway. It'll be hard, she knows that, we both know that, but she wants to do it. She has a lot of support from a lot of people."

"That's good. It's nice that she's out with Matt."

"Yeah...he's a good guy." Silence again. It was obvious, to Will at least, that they were skirting around the important topics.

On the other end of the phone, Elizabeth was thinking that very same thing. When he left South Carolina, she had asked him not to contact her at all, and in the nine days since she had seen him, he had done as she requested. In that time, especially during the long nights in South Carolina, she had finally admitted to herself that she wanted to try again, with him. The thought terrified her, but as she had told Jane over the weekend, she knew that if she didn't take the chance, the 'what ifs' would plague her, they wouldn't leave her in peace. She would always wonder...

Her conversation with Aunt Vee had been played in her mind so many times, it was like a movie that she rewound and viewed, over and over again. She had decided that her aunt was right about one thing; she didn't want to become someone who was afraid to let go and love, afraid to trust again. She didn't want to become bitter and distant, she didn't want to be afraid anymore. _Love comes with risks, but it comes with rewards_. Her aunt had said that, and Elizabeth knew that she was speaking from experience. If her aunt had been able to take that risk – or her uncle, for that matter – then they were proof that things could sometimes work, that second chances were sometimes worth giving...and receiving.

So, as mundane as this conversation with Will was right now, it was also the proverbial olive branch. It was an offering, a start, that hopefully would lead to the two of them figuring out how to make things work. They both had things they needed to say, at least Elizabeth did; she knew Will would too. They had issues they needed to focus on as well, she knew that, but she also knew that they didn't necessarily have to work on those things apart from each other. Why couldn't they work on them _together_, and support each other? Why couldn't they grow and change _together?_

"Elizabeth?"

"Mmm, sorry. I...my mind wandered. Um, I should go...I just wanted to see if you were okay. And Georgiana, too."

"Oh. Okay, sure. I'll...I'll tell Georgie you called."

"Yes, please do. She can call me, if she wants. It's okay if she doesn't feel like talking, I understand. I can just...I can check in with you, right?"

Will's heart leapt. "Yes, of course you can, anytime. Call whenever you want, day or night. Anytime, really, it's fine."

She smiled a little at his obvious eagerness. "Okay. I'll talk to you soon then. Bye Will...take care."

"You too, Lizzy. Bye."

As he hung up, Will sat back in his office chair and closed his eyes. His heart was still hammering away in his chest, but he felt...buoyant. She had called him. No, they hadn't discussed _them_, but they had talked. She was coming back to him, he could feel it. He smiled and released a huge breath. _We're coming back to each other._

* * *

><p>Due to all of the goings-on at the office, Elizabeth didn't have much time to be distracted during the day with thoughts of Will. Any moments of downtime that she had, however, were always filled with him and what the next step would be for her, and for them. She was thankful, almost, that the office was in a bit of upheaval, because she needed something else to focus on.<p>

As soon as she got back to work, she was pulled from the Coastal Ocean Carbonate System project and placed back in her position as manager of the Carbon-Wetlands grant. She gladly handed off all of her research on the carbonate project to Mike Donnelly, who Bill had said he originally recommended to temporarily work on it (which Elizabeth now assumed not to be true). Mike was happy to take Elizabeth's place on the project.

As she walked through the marsh early Wednesday morning, the sun shining on her face, she couldn't help but feel that being outdoors, and settling back into her familiar work routine, made her feel even more like her life might be returning to normal. It felt strange to be at work and not see Bill at his desk, and she knew that the higher-ups were trying to find a replacement for him quickly. If she was asked to take his place, she would promptly refuse; Bill's position was one that had consisted primarily of paperwork and cutting through red tape, something she had no desire to deal with. She needed to be outside, in the field, getting muddy. That was where she was happiest, it was where she felt most at home, and it was where she did her best thinking.

Later that afternoon, she had received a call on her cell phone from a detective with the Boston Crime Lab Unit. Elizabeth had been expecting the call for a while, but then she started to wonder if maybe they didn't need to talk to her after all. The detective, a woman, explained that Elizabeth had been identified by William Collins from a photograph that had been in the possession of George Wickham, and she wanted to know if Elizabeth would agree to answer some questions.

At first she thought the detective would want to meet face to face, but apparently it wasn't necessary. She was questioned right over the phone, and her answers were short and to the point. Yes, she knew George Wickham; yes, he had been in her house before; no, he had never threatened her or touched her; no, she had never been involved in an intimate relationship with him; yes, she knew two people that had. She gave the detective Charlotte's name and Lydia's name. Bill could easily identify Charlotte, if Wickham had a picture of her, but Elizabeth honestly had no idea if he had ever met Lydia. She also told the detective that Wickham had used her dark room on occasion, and theorized that the picture of her, and the one of Georgiana, had been taken from her home. The detective had similar questions for her about Bill Collins, but Elizabeth had even less to say about him.

Out of curiosity, Elizabeth asked the detective if she would be required to give any type of statement at the trial, and was told it would be up to the prosecutor to decide that. After hanging up, Elizabeth let out a long exhalation of air. Briefly, she entertained the thought of telling the detective about the pictures that Will found, and the one that she found, of Wickham in her house. After thinking about it more, though, she decided against it, her reason being that it would probably have no bearing on the case at all, and besides that, the pictures were no longer in her possession.

As she rode her bike home from work that afternoon, her cell phone rang from inside her backpack, and she pulled off of the bike path, staying out of the way of traffic. She saw that it was Georgiana, and answered immediately.

"Hi Georgie."

"Hi Lizzy, how are you?"

"I'm fine, on my way home from work. I called you yesterday, a couple of times...I wanted to see how things were going."

"I know, sorry about that...I went out for a bit last night and didn't have my phone. Um, Will told me you called."

Elizabeth cleared her throat. "Oh, he told me he'd tell you. Good. So, how are you doing? I know the arraignment was yesterday...I wanted to see how that went."

"Did Will fill you in?"

"Well, kind of...he said it went as expected, but that it was tough. I can't imagine how it must have felt, seeing them again."

"It was horrible...I don't remember Collins at all, really…I'm not even sure if I met him at the party. Wickham, though...at one point, I could feel his eyes on me, and I honestly thought I was going to vomit. Will was ready to explode, I could feel how tense he was. It was hard for him to sit through it too...it's not just me going through this, you know?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I know."

Georgiana wanted to ask Elizabeth questions about Will, questions about their relationship, but she held back. She knew that if Elizabeth had something to say, she'd say it.

"I heard from one of the detectives today...a woman," Elizabeth continued.

"Oh, Detective Mitchell?"

"Yes, that was her name. She called about the pictures they found under Wickham's mattress."

"What did she say?"

"Not much...she asked a lot of questions, that's about it. I did ask if she thought I'd have to be at the trial for any reason, and she said it was up to your attorney."

"I can ask Maggie, if you want to know."

"You don't need to, I suppose I'll find out soon enough."

It was quiet for a minute, before Elizabeth spoke again.

"You know I want to support you through all this, don't you? You can call me to talk anytime. I don't want you to feel...I don't know, weird about it. Because of Will, and everything."

"Thanks Lizzy, I appreciate that. The same goes for you. I know the last time we talked, it didn't go very well. That was my fault, I made it uncomfortable. I don't want things to be awkward between us."

"I'd like to hope that they won't be. I might be in Boston this weekend, looking at dresses with Jane...maybe we can see each other?"

Georgiana lit up. "That would be great." An idea quickly came to her. "You know, my birthday is next week, Will has been trying to talk me into having a small celebration. I think we might do something on Saturday night, some kind of dinner party or something. I know it's short notice, but-"

"Georgie, I already know what you're going to ask, and I don't know if it's such a good idea."

"Okay...just think about it and let me know. I would really love for you to be there."

"I'll think about it, I promise."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth boarded the bus on Friday afternoon, anxious to get to Boston, but filled with trepidation about the whole trip as well. She had called Will again last night, to tell him about her conversation with the detectives. In all honesty, she guessed that Georgiana would have told him anyway (and she was correct), she was really just looking for an excuse to talk to him.<p>

They had talked, once again, about mundane, everyday things. She mentioned that she had been running again, on a daily basis, and she also talked about the changes at work. Her thought that she would be offered Bill's job was correct, but she turned it down without thinking twice. Will was not surprised that it was offered to her, or that she turned it down, and told her as much. She had also told him that she had finally gotten around to developing some of the pictures that she had taken at the Basin.

What she neglected to tell him was that as she developed them, as the images came to life, she had wished that he was there to see them; she wanted to share everything that she had experienced while she was down there, with him. The pictures told the story, as she knew they would. She had some great candid shots of her housemates, and kept a few aside to have copies made so she could send them off to Paul and Lisa in Maine, and give copies to Thomas and Megan as well.

Will mostly listened, and really only talked when she asked him questions. It was clear he was letting her set the tone and content of the conversation. She touched on the topic of his music, and he told her he hadn't played in a while.

"Unless you count my, um, one-song show in Beaufort."

She let the comment slide without responding to it. "Playing guitar has always been a good way for you to relax and de-stress, though...you should be doing it, especially now. It does for you what running does for me."

He wasn't about to tell her that every time he picked up one of his guitars, he was consumed by thoughts of her, and instead of relaxing him, it depressed him. "Yeah, I know. Someday I'll get back to it, when I have the time. It's not like I'm done with it." Elizabeth had an idea that there was more to it than a lack of time, but she chose to let it go. _Keep it simple_, she said again to herself.

She asked him about work, and he talked about FRD Design getting ready to officially 'open for business' on September 7th, which led to Elizabeth mentioning that she saw the picture of him and Stephanie in the paper. She didn't mean anything by it, she wasn't implying anything, and she was instantly sorry for saying anything about it.

"That was all Caroline's doing, you know that, right?" he asked. He knew she did, but wanted her to hear it from him. "It was a business dinner, nothing more."

"I know that. You don't owe me an explanation."

"Of course I do. I wouldn't want you to think it was anything but that."

"Will, it was in the gossip pages. I don't pay attention to that stuff."

"Your mother made sure you still heard about it though, didn't she?"

Elizabeth sighed. "She did. It's fine, though. I don't want to talk about...that." _That_, meaning her mother.

He didn't push it. "Okay." He was quiet for a second, building up to what he wanted to say to her. "Can I ask you something?"

Elizabeth chewed her bottom lip nervously. "About what?"

"About this weekend."

"Okay. What about this weekend?"

"I know Georgiana talked to you about Saturday night. She'd really like for you to come." _I would too_. Those words remained unspoken.

"I know...we talked about it. I'm just...I don't know..." her voice trailed off.

"What don't you know? If...if you're worried about being around me, please don't be. It will be fine, really. I'll be on my best behavior. Charles and Jane are invited, of course, and Matt will be here, Julie is coming, and a couple of Georgie's other friends that she taught with in Boston...and Mrs. Reynolds too, she'll be here."

"Big crowd."

"Exactly. Would you...would you consider it?"

"I will, I'll consider it. I'll call Georgie tomorrow to let her know."

"Or me. You could...you could call me, too. I'm just saying, you know, in case you can't reach her. You can call me."

She smiled slightly. "I know that. I'll think about it, okay?"

"Okay."

After another quiet moment, Elizabeth spoke again. "Um, I should go, I have some work to do."

"Yeah, me too." He paused. "I'm really glad you called. Maybe I'll see you Saturday night."

"Maybe. Bye Will."

"Bye Lizzy," he said softly.

As she rode the bus, she remembered the way her heart skipped a beat when he said goodbye. So many other people called her Lizzy, but no one said it quite the way he did.

* * *

><p>"So what are you going to do if I don't go?"<p>

"Stay home with you," Jane said, answering in a tone that left no doubt as to the stupidity of the question. She and Elizabeth were having lunch on Saturday afternoon at a small pub near Jane's apartment.

"Won't Charles be upset?"

"Of course not, he's perfectly capable of going to Georgie's party without me. You have to decide what you're doing, though, because you told _me_ that you told _Will_ that you were going to let Georgie know yesterday."

"I called her yesterday to tell her I'd let her know today."

Jane rolled her eyes. "Procrastinator." She was teasing, of course, knowing that there was more to Elizabeth's decision than simply saying 'yes' or 'no' to a party invitation. "Seriously, Lizzy, you can't keep putting it off. Either you want to go, you want to see her, or you don't."

"It's not a question of wanting to see Georgie, of course I want to see her. It's her _brother_ I'm unsure about."

Jane raised her eyebrows, making it known that Elizabeth was stating the obvious. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Elizabeth sighed. "We'll argue? I'll cry? He'll hover? I'll cry? I don't know what will happen, that's the thing. He told me he'd behave, but...it's just a fear of the unknown, I guess. I feel like I won't know how to...how to _be_, around him."

"Lizzy, come on...you're talking to him, and it's obvious you've made some decisions about him, about the two of you, already. Eventually, you'll need to see him, you'll have to take that step at some point. And you just have to _be_ yourself, that's a no-brainer." She sighed, shaking her head. "Well, I'm not going to tell you what to do, it's your decision. If you decide to skip it, I'll skip it with you. If you decide to go, I'll have your back."

Elizabeth smiled at her sister. "I know you will, thank you."

"Okay, now that that's settled, can you make a decision, at least, about your dress for the wedding?"

Elizabeth laughed. "I already have. I really, really liked the last one I tried on the best. It fit perfectly, and I loved the color. Your dress is amazing! It's so sexy, Charles is going to combust at the altar."

Jane laughed. "For a while, he was pestering me constantly for a peek...now he's pretty much given up."

"I can't wait to see his reaction when he sees you."

Jane winked at Elizabeth and smiled saucily. "Me too."

* * *

><p>The doorbell rang again, and every time it did, Will's heart lurched. He knew, from talking to Georgiana, that Elizabeth had decided to come tonight. Inexplicably, he was nervous. Little did he realize that he was feeling the same way as Elizabeth; afraid of the unknown. He wasn't sure how to act, or what to say. It was easy on the phone, he just let her lead the conversation to wherever she wanted it to go. Standing in front of her, though...well, he couldn't just stand there like an idiot, he'd be expected to talk, to <em>start<em> conversation.

Before he had the chance to open the door, Charles had let himself in, and was now holding the door for Jane and Elizabeth. He greeted Charles and Jane, and then turned his attention to Elizabeth, who looked absolutely stunning. Her tan had deepened, probably during her last week in South Carolina, and her eyes sparkled against the warm golden tone of her skin. Her hair was down, and she wore a simple cream-colored sleeveless blouse and a pretty skirt, covered with tiny little flowers. She looked beautiful, and it was all he could do not to reach out to touch her as she walked in. As it was, his eyes never left hers, and his heart had picked up speed, beating rapidly in his chest.

Thankfully, Jane and Charles had moved into the living room, leaving just Will and Elizabeth staring at each other in the foyer.

"Hi," Will said, smiling a little.

"Hi Will," Elizabeth replied, returning his smile. She had to admit, she was happy to see him, looking handsome as ever in charcoal gray cargo shorts and a pale blue polo shirt. Trying to be discreet, she inhaled as deeply as she could, hoping to breathe in the familiar scent of his cologne.

"I'm glad you're here. I know Georgie can't wait to see you." _Like I couldn't wait to see you._

"I'm glad I'm here too. Um, where's the birthday girl?"

"Oh, she's in the living room. Go on in."

Elizabeth walked into the room, and immediately, Georgie came over to her and gave her a huge hug. Will walked away, wanting to give the two women some space.

"Happy birthday," Elizabeth said, smiling. She handed Georgie a square, flat box, with a bow attached to the top.

"Oh, Lizzy, thank you. You didn't have to get me anything."

"I know I didn't have to, I wanted to. It's just something little...I figured I should bring it to Boston, just in case tonight actually...happened." She looked around, and wasn't surprised to see that although Will was now talking to Charles and Jane, he was looking at her. She felt the color rise in her face, and was grateful for her tan. She turned her focus back to Georgiana.

"Well, it was unnecessary, but thanks very much just the same. Come say hi to Matt and Julie, and I'll introduce you to some other people."

Elizabeth made the rounds of the room, stopping to chat with Matt and Julie for quite a while. Julie had a date with her, as did the other two women that Elizabeth was introduced to. From there, she headed over to Charles and Jane, who were talking with Will and Mrs. Reynolds.

Will had been watching Elizabeth, like he always caught himself doing when they were in a group of people. She moved about the room comfortably, chatting with everyone that Georgiana introduced her to, looking quite at ease. He, on the other hand, was finding it hard to concentrate on anything that Charles was saying to him, and it didn't take long for Charles to realize this.

"Why don't you just go talk to her?"

Will glanced at him sharply. "I don't want to crowd her."

"Crowd her? You've barely spoken to her at all. Go ask her if she needs a drink or something, be a host, for Christ's sake."

Will frowned. "Shut up, Charles." In no time, Charles had turned away from Will and had joined in a conversation with Jane and Mrs. Reynolds, leaving Will to stand there and stew. _He's right_, Will thought, _this is ridiculous._

Elizabeth watched as Will headed her way. Excusing herself from Georgiana and her friends, she walked toward him, and they met halfway across the living room.

"This is a nice party," Elizabeth said quietly, looking around at the small group of people. "I'm glad Georgiana decided to do something for her birthday."

"I am too. She deserves it. She's had a rough year, but she's come through it okay."

"She has." Elizabeth looked up at him. "You had a lot to do with that."

He shrugged as he looked down at her, staring into her eyes again. "She's stronger than she thinks she is." He cleared his throat. "Um, are you thirsty? Do you want something to drink?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Please. I'd love a glass of wine."

"White?"

She nodded again, smiling slightly. He walked toward the kitchen, and she followed. Two caterers were busy setting up several different types of appetizers on large trays, getting ready to place them on the table that had been set up in the living room. Will nodded toward the trays. "This is what Georgiana suggested for 'dinner'...not a real dinner, just lots of little things. Hors d'oeuvres, finger food, things like that. She swears it will be just as filling as sitting down to a real meal."

Elizabeth laughed when she saw him roll his eyes. "I'm sure it will." Everything looked delicious.

Will ducked into the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of white wine that he knew was one of Elizabeth's favorites. That brief bit of laughter from her was like music to his ears. He popped the cork and poured her a glass, and she smiled and thanked him.

As the night wore on, they both started to relax more. The food was served, and as Georgiana had predicted, it was just as filling and delicious as a large dinner. It was nice not to have to sit down and make it such a formal occasion; the fact that everyone could just fill a little plate, but still mill about the room talking, kept the atmosphere light and casual.

Elizabeth and Will managed to talk quite a bit, and even Jane seemed to warm up to him a little. At first, Elizabeth noticed her reticence, but eventually Jane began to talk a bit more openly with him. Most of their conversation was small talk; wedding and honeymoon plans, talk of work, bits in the news, and sports...they all commiserated over the Red Sox, wondering if they were going to pull themselves out of their current slump.

Later in the evening, while Elizabeth was again talking to Georgiana and Matt, Will walked over and sat on the couch. Mrs. Reynolds made her way over and sat down next to him. She patted him on the knee.

"Is there anything you need to tell me?"

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "Like what?"

"Well, for one, Elizabeth is here. You've been talking to her, and you haven't taken your eyes off of her for most of the night. So I ask you again; is there anything you need to tell me?"

Will pursed his lips, turning to look at her with his eyebrows raised. "Mmmm...not yet. I don't want to jinx myself. When I do have something to tell, you'll be the first to hear it."

She patted his knee again. "I know you want to give all your time to Georgiana, William, but you have to remember yourself too."

"I know, Mrs. R, I know."

"Alright then." She glanced over at Elizabeth, who was laughing with Georgiana at something that Matt was quite animatedly explaining. Turning to look at Will, she noticed that he was enthralled with Elizabeth, watching her laugh. "William."

"Yes?" he answered, slowly dragging his gaze back to Mrs. Reynolds.

"Don't waste any more time."

Will looked at her, and she stared back at him, silently encouraging him to seize the moment. _How can I, though?_ He was just happy that she was here, in his house, talking to him, smiling at him. He had to take everything in baby steps, and once again go at her pace. He _had_ to.

"I'm not wasting time, Mrs. R, I'm really not. I just...I can't push it, I can't force it. I tried that already, it doesn't work. If I do it again, I'll lose her for good, and I can't have that. She knows what I want, my wishes haven't changed, my feelings for her...they haven't changed, they _won't_ change. Now it's up to her, so...I'll just wait."

"Maybe she just needs a gentle push in the right direction. She's here, isn't she? She'll let you know if it's too much."

He sighed, thinking about what she said. _Maybe_. Leaning over, he gave Mrs. Reynolds a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you."

Will stood from the couch and disappeared around the corner, going up the stairs to the second floor. He needed some quiet, a little time to collect himself. If he had been approached by Elizabeth at that precise moment, after he had talked to Mrs. Reynolds, every emotion he was feeling – a mixture of love, hope, longing, and confusion – would have been written on his face, and he knew that she would have been able to read them all, quite easily.

Wandering into his office, he sat behind his desk, the only light in the room coming from the hallway. Leaning on his elbows, he dropped his head into his hands. _What if this doesn't work? What if she decides, after tonight, that there's nothing here worth fighting for? What if I lose her?_ His stomach clenched uncontrollably as the fear set in.

He stood from the desk and walked over to his guitar, picking it up from the stand. Lowering himself to the stool that sat in that corner of the room, he began strumming the strings mindlessly, not playing anything but chords, really. It felt good, though, almost therapeutic. As usual, he began to turn the pages of the songbook in his head, and eventually, the chords morphed into a song. He played it over and over again, at first just the music, but finally adding his voice to it, first humming, and then singing quietly.

_Breathe in, breathe out  
><em>_tell me all of your doubts,  
><em>_and everyone bleeds this way, just the same.  
><em>_Breathe in, breath out  
><em>_move on and break down,  
><em>_if everyone goes away, I will stay._

_We push and pull, and I fall down sometimes  
><em>_but I'm not letting go, you hold the other line.  
><em>_'Cause there is a light in your eyes, in your eyes._

_Hold on, hold tight, if I'm out of your sight  
><em>_and everything keeps movin' on, movin' on.  
><em>_Hold on, hold tight, make it though another night  
><em>_and every day, there comes a song with the dawn._

_We push and pull, and I fall down sometimes  
><em>_but I'm not letting go, you hold the other line.  
><em>_'Cause there is a light in your eyes, in your eyes._

_Look left, look right, to the moon in the night  
><em>_And everything under the stars is in your arms...*_

Elizabeth stood in the doorway, watching him play for the longest time, hoping that he wouldn't stop. When she noticed he had been missing for a bit, she had decided to go looking for him. Part of her wanted to remain hidden here in the shadows, but another part of her wanted him to turn around and see her, recognize that she was there. After a moment, she realized that he had begun a song, and she held her breath as he started to sing. He sang the song beautifully, and then he just...stopped. She watched as he lowered the guitar, standing it between his legs, and raised a hand to his face, rubbing his forehead, exhaling loudly.

Witnessing that small action, she felt an overwhelming need to soothe him, but she seemed frozen in place. Caution overrode bravery, and when she finally was able to move, she turned to walk back down the short hallway to the stairs. His voice called out to her, making her stop.

"Lizzy, wait." he said in surprise. "What...what are you doing up here?" He started to walk toward her.

Her heart thumped in her chest. "You disappeared for a while. I came to find you, I wanted to make sure you were okay...I'll leave you alone." She started to walk away again, but he caught her wrist before she could.

"Don't go yet, please," he said softly. "I don't want you to leave me alone. Can we talk?"

She nodded and swallowed, feeling suddenly apprehensive. "Sure, of course we can talk. What...what do you want to talk about?"

Tugging on her wrist gently, he led her into the office. He walked to his desk to turn on the light there, and then returned to the door, closing it softly.

After taking a deep breath, he began to talk, somewhat hesitantly. "I want to talk about us. You and me, and what we're doing. I don't want to pressure you, I really don't, but it's killing me. When you called me this week, I was so happy...but I didn't know what to think. I still don't know what to think."

He watched as Elizabeth wandered over to the small leather couch and sat. After a moment, it was clear she wasn't going to respond, so he continued. "I just want to know what's going through your head, because right about now, I'm worried that you really only called me to discuss Georgiana, and the case, and work, and maybe you're only here to see her tonight...and maybe I don't factor into any of this at all." As he spoke, he walked over to the couch, sitting at the opposite end, but turning to face her. He refused to say any more until she acknowledged what he had just said.

She took a deep breath and realized that this was it. It was time to say it all, put it all out there. "What's going through my head is that...I'm scared." She turned to look him in the eyes. "I'm afraid of you...and the power you have, the capability you have, to hurt me."

His expression softened. "Lizzy…don't you know that you have that same power, that same hold over me? I understand that you're afraid, but you don't have to be, not of me. I won't leave you again. I love you...you know I do."

"Yes, I know you love me, but that's not all there is to making this work. It's not enough."

"I know it's not enough, I know that. But it's a good place to start, don't you think?" He leaned forward and reached for her hand, holding it loosely in his, entwining their fingers. "I know what I have to do, I know I need to earn your trust back. I know that, and I'll do it, if you just give me the chance."

"What if I do, and it all falls apart again?"

"It won't."

"How can you say that? You can't say that, you don't know that for certain."

"I _can_ say it, because I _do_ know it. I won't let it happen."

"God, it amazes me...you seem so sure of this, so sure of yourself, and you know what? When you think about it...we barely know each other, really. We've only scratched the surface. We've known each other for fourteen weeks. That's it, fourteen weeks. And look at everything that's happened, everything that we've been through. Ever since you came to South Carolina…it's gotten to the point where I can't help but wonder if putting myself...and you...through this pain, this heartache...is it worth it?"

The words had come tumbling out of her, and though she knew they needed to be said, they were unrehearsed, and had came out in such a rush, she didn't even know if they made any sense.

He sighed in exasperation. "Of course it is! How can you even ask that? I know how I _feel_, and it's not based on some…some imaginary relationship _time-line_. Who cares if it's been fourteen weeks, fourteen years, or fourteen hours?"

"_I_ care. I should have taken things slower with you. Real trust, real intimacy, takes time. I opened myself up and let myself be vulnerable to you. I shouldn't have trusted you so quickly..._that_ was my mistake."

Will's face fell, hurt etched in his expression. "So now, it's not just...being with me in South Carolina that was a mistake," he said softly. "You've decided that _everything_ has been a mistake? All of it?"

She didn't answer him, because she couldn't speak. She knew that if she did, she'd start crying _again_.

"Is that how you really feel?" he asked, disbelief in his voice. He moved until he was sitting right next to her. Her head dropped down, and he reached to lift her chin up so she had to look him in the eye. When he finally caught her gaze, he didn't release her. "Can you please answer my question? Do you regret all of it? Do you regret us?"

_Oh, there's that damn word again. _She stared at him, and knew that she had to be honest. "No," she said quietly. "No, I don't regret us. I'm just so...scared. And disappointed in myself, for making the same mistake twice."

He dropped his hand and shook his head, and when he spoke again, his voice was quiet but firm. "You didn't make the same mistake _twice_. In fact, you didn't make any mistakes to begin with. What Jason did, what I did...those were _our_ mistakes, our wrongs, not yours. Jason didn't want to fix his, but _I do_. I am _not_ Jason."

He paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and focused on keeping his composure. Her eyes were glued to his, watching, waiting. "Yes, I made a mistake. Yes, I hurt you, and at some point, it will probably happen again. Not in that way, I won't hurt you like that again. I promised you I wouldn't, and I won't, I won't ever walk away from you. I learned from that mistake. I'm human, though, and at some point, I'll do something that will make you angry, or hurt you, or disappoint you. I'll make mistakes, I'm not claiming to be perfect. It doesn't mean that I don't love you, or that you can't trust me. And you know what? No matter what you say, or what you think, you'll do something, at some point, that will hurt or upset me too. That's life, Lizzy, that's part of it all, it's part of being an 'us.' It's part of growing together and learning together. I don't want to be an 'us' with anyone else but you, I want to grow with _you_ and learn with _you_."

Elizabeth looked down at his hand, his fingers laced with hers, and this time, she let the tears slide down her cheeks. After a moment, she looked up at him, and saw him gazing at her expectantly. As soon as he noticed her tears, his expression changed, and she knew, then, that she had to tell him the rest, she had to tell him the other side of her thoughts.

"Do you know..." Her voice trailed off as she carefully considered how to say what she wanted to say. "Everything I just told you...what I'm afraid of...do you know what's worse? Do you know what frightens me even _more_ than opening myself up to you again?"

He shook his head, unable to speak.

She looked him in the eye. "Losing you. _Not_ taking that chance, _not_ having you in my life, _not_ seeing you. Always wondering what could have been, always blaming myself for playing it safe, for being a coward." She looked down at their entwined fingers again. "I don't want to live my life like that."

Will felt like he couldn't breathe, felt like his entire world had just been flipped upside-down. "What are you saying? Just say it, Lizzy, please...just say it." He was determined not to read anything into her words.

She looked up into his eyes again. "I want to grow with you and learn with you, too. I want to try...I want to give us another chance."

He closed his eyes and exhaled loudly, pulling her toward him until she was close enough for him to wrap his arms tightly around her. The feeling of her hugging him back just as fiercely was indescribable, and he whispered his vow right then, to her and to himself, that he would never let her go again.

* * *

><p><em>Ahhhhh, the sweet sounds of reconciliation. They're working on it, but still have some serious talking to do. Next post Tuesday! Please take the time to review if you can!<em>

_*Song: "Breathe In Breathe Out" by Mat Kearney_


	44. Chapter 44

_This chapter picks up exactly where the last one left off. Lots and lots of talking in this one...but it's unavoidable, really. Thanks for reading!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 44<strong>

After what felt like endless quiet moments embracing in Will's office, Elizabeth slowly pulled away from him. Although he felt ecstatic over the turn of events, he noticed that she looked...anything but. In fact, she looked uncertain, nervous almost, and he wasn't sure exactly what to make of it.

"What is it?" he asked her quietly, reaching up to stroke her face, her hair, needing to touch her.

She hesitated before speaking. "I don't want you to think that just because I've told you everything that I'm feeling...just because I've said all that...it doesn't mean that those fears will just _go away_. I'm still afraid, I'm still...skittish. I feel like I've just walked out on a tightrope, with no safety net beneath me."

"I understand that, I do, and I know that we can't immediately go back to the way things were...before. We have to start over, we can't just pick up where we left off."

She nodded seriously. "Exactly."

"What happened between us was because of me, it was all me. I have a lot of things to figure out...I know I let my own fears and insecurities take control...and I know that they didn't magically disappear when I realized what a blind idiot I'd been. I promise you, I'm going to do whatever it takes."

She hesitated a moment, but then leaned forward to place a soft kiss on his lips. He cupped her face with one hand, letting his thumb stroke over the soft skin of her cheek. When she pulled away, he remained motionless, slowly opening his eyes.

"_We'll_ do whatever it takes," she whispered.

* * *

><p>"I don't know where either of them are, but they've been gone for forty-five minutes." Jane kept glancing toward the hallway, hoping to see her sister reappear.<p>

"I wouldn't worry about it. Maybe they finally found the opportunity to talk," Charles replied. "I'm sure nothing is wrong."

"Oh, I'm not worried about something being wrong...I just told Lizzy I'd have her back tonight, you know? I don't want her to feel cornered if-"

Her words were stopped by the sudden appearance of Elizabeth and Will, in the doorway of the living room. They both looked relatively normal, but Jane could see that the color in her sister's cheeks was a tad high. As they moved to come into the room, Jane noticed they were holding hands. She nudged Charles with her elbow. "Look."

Charles finally realized what she wanted him to see. "Hm. I guess they did talk."

Jane sighed. "I guess they did." They both fell silent as Will and Elizabeth made their way toward them.

"Hi," Elizabeth said as they approached.

"Hi," Jane responded, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible. "Where did you disappear to?"

Elizabeth glanced at Will. "Oh, we were just upstairs. Talking."

"Mrs. R was looking for you," Charles said to Will. "I think she's ready to serve cake...have you seen the cake she made?"

"Yes," Will said, chuckling, "it's a work of art. She does it every year...Georgie's favorite is German chocolate." He looked toward the kitchen, and saw Mrs. Reynolds peeking out from around the corner. As soon as she saw he was looking at her, she beckoned him with a wiggle of her finger. "Um, excuse me for a second, I think I'm needed in the kitchen." He gave Elizabeth's hand a squeeze and walked away.

When he entered the kitchen, Mrs. Reynolds was alone, carefully placing candles on the cake. The catering crew had long since packed up and left. "Did you need me for something?" he asked her.

"No."

"Oh."

He waited, but she said nothing else, just went about the business of pushing the candles through the coconut-pecan frosting. The smell of the cake was making Will's mouth water.

"William."

"Yes?"

"Do you have anything to tell me now?"

He squinted his eyes at her. "Were you snooping? Spying on me?" His tone was light, teasing.

"Heavens no. I just noticed you were gone...and Miss Bennet was gone. Did you give her a gentle push, as I suggested?"

Will nodded slowly. "I did."

"And?"

He folded his arms over his chest, and turned to lean back against the counter next to her. "You were right, it seems."

She smiled widely. "Oh, I was, was I?"

"Yes, you were."

"And?"

"And...well, we talked, a little."

"You were holding her hand."

He felt his face grow slightly warm. How was it that she could so easily make him feel like he was fifteen again? "I was, yes," he said quietly.

She stopped what she was doing and finally turned to look up at him. Her eyes roamed his face, as if trying to read him. "What's bothering you?"

He raised his eyebrows. "Nothing."

Mrs. Reynolds gave him a doubtful look. "Something is not right."

He shrugged, looking down at the floor. "Everything is _very_ right, actually. I'm just afraid of botching things up again. I mean, I know I'll never do it again, I won't hurt her like that again." He swallowed loudly and raised his eyes to hers. "I just...I need to figure out why...why I behaved the way I did."

The reality of actually having Elizabeth back in his life, of being given a second chance, was sinking in very slowly. He was thrilled beyond belief that she had chosen to _give_ him that chance, despite her worries and fears; still, the enormity of the task ahead hit him like a ton of bricks.

Mrs. Reynolds reached over to gently pat his crossed arms, knowing what was going through his mind, reassuring him. "Whatever happened between the two of you...you'll make it right. I have faith in you, William. Have faith in yourself."

"You say you have faith in me, but you don't know...what I did." He shook his head before looking at her again, and this time his eyes searched her face. Seeing nothing but warmth and affection, he was a bit bewildered. "Why do you have so much faith in me?"

A small smile lifted the corners of her mouth. "Because I know you, William, just as well as if you were one of my own. You just have to recognize your _own_ fears, and move beyond them. Once you do that...the rest will fall into place." She patted his arm again. "You know, just because you're too big to sit on my knee now, doesn't mean you and I can't still talk about things."

Will grinned slightly. "I know. We had some interesting talks when I was younger, didn't we? You had an answer for everything."

"As much as I'd like to think I still do, I'm sure I don't," she said, somewhat seriously. "As you've gotten older, the questions have become a little more complicated."

He nodded. _They sure as hell have_.

"That doesn't mean that you can't ask them," she went on. "You're older now, you're a grown man, but...it's possible that I still might have some of the answers."

He leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "I have no doubt that you do, Mrs. R."

* * *

><p>It was close to midnight before the party began to wind down. The remaining guests – Charles, Jane, Elizabeth, and Matt – helped Will and Georgiana clean up, although there wasn't really much to do. After that, the six of them sat in the living room, making small talk until Charles suggested heading out. He had to drop Elizabeth and Jane off at Jane's apartment before heading home himself.<p>

Georgiana hugged each of them, thanking them for coming. She and Matt remained in the living room, while everyone else headed to the foyer. Jane discreetly tugged on Charles' arm, telling Elizabeth they would wait for her outside. They said their good nights to Will and went out the door, leaving Elizabeth and Will alone.

Again, a feeling of awkwardness hung over the two of them as they stood looking at each other, both unsure of how to say goodnight.

Will decided to break the silence. "This feels strange."

Elizabeth smiled a little. "It does. Why is that, do you think?"

"Because we're starting over...in every way, I guess." He moved closer to her and reached down to take her hand, threading his fingers through hers. "I need to be able to touch you...I don't think I can be around you and not touch you. Will you let me do that?"

She nodded.

"And maybe I could kiss you, too. Once in a while."

"Like now?"

He moved closer to her, reaching with his free hand to stroke her hair, letting the silky stands sift through his fingers. "Yes, like now."

She nodded again. "Okay. That...that would be okay. But...for right now, I don't think we should...I think anything else would be...I think we should-"

"Shhh," he whispered, cutting off her rambling. "I know, and it's fine. I feel the same way."

Her eyebrows rose.

He smiled softly. "I do."

Elizabeth's heartbeat kicked up to a rapid rhythm as he moved closer, but as he slowly lowered his lips to hers, she was suffused with an overwhelming sense of peace, of rightness. His lips were light and tender on hers, and without even realizing it, she moved her body nearer to his, applying slightly more pressure to his lips.

He reached up to cradle her face in his hands, deepening the kiss just a little, and thrilled at the feel of her lips parting under his, and the warmth of her hands resting on his waist. After a long moment of bliss, he pulled away from her, watching her face. What he saw there reassured him; her eyes were warm as she gazed up at him, her expression soft.

"That was nice," she said quietly.

Will chuckled and pulled her close to wrap his arms around her, holding her tightly for a minute or two. She squeezed him in return, and he lowered his head, resting it against her hair. "It was very nice. I'm so happy you came tonight."

Elizabeth sighed deeply. "I am too."

"Can I see you tomorrow, before you go back to the Cape?"

He felt her answering nod against his cheek. She slowly pulled her arms from around him and took a step back, putting space between them. "I would like that."

"Okay, I'll call you in the morning." He opened the door, and saw that Charles was double-parked at the curb, waiting for Elizabeth. "Your chariot awaits."

She grinned. "Goodnight Will."

He reached up one last time to stroke her cheek, relishing the softness under his fingers. "Goodnight Lizzy."

* * *

><p>Will came by to pick up Elizabeth at eleven o'clock the next morning. She was tired; nights spent at Jane's apartment never ended early, and last night was no different. They had talked until about two o'clock, but even when Elizabeth had finally crawled under the sheets in the guest room, it took another hour before her mind had slowed enough to allow her to fall asleep.<p>

She wasn't nervous at all about seeing Will. In fact, she felt oddly calm. At the very least, she expected to feel the familiar flutter of butterflies in her stomach, but not today. What would happen when she opened the door and looked at his face, however, remained to be seen. As the doorbell rang, it was time to find out.

When she swung the door open, his eyes immediately locked onto hers, he smiled beautifully, dimples and all...and there went the butterflies, taking flight in her stomach by the dozens. _So much for feeling calm_. She tried to keep reminding herself that it was _just Will_, but it really didn't work; he wasn't _just Will_ anymore. He was the man who, now more than ever, held her heart in the palm of his hands. She understood that she held his heart as well, though, and knew that both of them were of the same mindset; to take care of those hearts, and keep them safe and protected, to cherish them.

"Good morning," Will said, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious to see her staring at him as intensely as she was. She looked bright and fresh, like a burst of sunshine, and despite the odd look on her face, he was excited to see her.

"Good morning," she replied, gesturing for him to come into Jane's apartment. She finally smiled back at him, a true, genuine smile, and he felt himself relax little. "Where are we off to?"

"Well, Georgie mentioned that she and Matt went to the Public Gardens last week, I thought we could head down there. It's gorgeous out, there's a nice breeze keeping everything cool. I, um, packed a lunch for us, if that's okay. I hope you don't mind."

"No, I don't mind. That sounds fine."

Jane came from down the hallway of her apartment, and she nodded at Will. "Hi there."

He returned the nod. "Hi Jane." She didn't smile, and Will instantly knew that he would have to tread lightly around her. He was fairly sure that her forgiveness of him, her acceptance of him, would not come easily, and he expected no less.

Elizabeth was busy digging through her small purse. "Oh, darn...I'll be right back, my sunglasses aren't here. They must in my backpack." She looked up at Will. "Sorry."

"That's okay, there's no rush. We're on your schedule today."

Elizabeth disappeared down the hall, leaving Jane and Will alone.

Will couldn't escape Jane's gaze drilling into him. "So..." he said, feeling like he was under a microscope.

"So...what?"

"It feels like you might have something to say?" He phrased it as a question, not really sure what was going through her mind.

She pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow. "Do I really have to say it, Will?"

There was silence for a few moments as they studied each other, and he understood her message, loud and clear, without her saying a word. "No, you don't. Point taken." He cleared his throat. "I'm going to take care of her, Jane. I know you probably don't believe me, and I don't blame you, but...I am. I won't let her down again."

Jane sighed. "I want to believe you, Will, but your actions will speak much louder than your words. When I see that you've stood by her, when I see that you've seen the error of your ways and have done something to correct them, to fix them...maybe then we can be friends again."

Elizabeth was walking down the hall toward them, preventing him from replying. All he could do was look her in the eyes and nod in understanding.

"Okay, I'm ready," Elizabeth said. "Bye Jane."

"Bye Lizzy. Bye Will."

* * *

><p>They arrived at the Public Gardens and made their way down to the pond, finding a spot under one of the huge weeping willows. The long branches drooped down low, grazing the water.<p>

"Is this okay?" Will asked.

"This is perfect," Elizabeth replied, inhaling deeply. She walked to the edge of the water, watching the large group of people on the opposite bank as they fed what looked like pieces of bread to the ducks that had gathered there. It felt good to be outdoors, enjoying the fresh air. She turned and watched as Will set the cooler down, then opened a blanket and spread it out in the shade next to the massive tree. The breeze coming in off of the pond cooled down the humid air, but it was still very warm in the sunshine.

Will walked over to stand next to Elizabeth as she looked out over the water. There were people everywhere; the Gardens were a popular attraction, especially at the height of summer.

He reached to take her hand, clasping it in his loosely, before lifting it to his lips to place a lingering kiss on it. She turned and smiled at him softly, and he found himself wishing that she didn't have her sunglasses on so he could see her eyes. "What are you thinking about?" he asked.

She gave a half-shrug. "A lot of things. I haven't been here in a long time...it's nice. I feel like we're not in the city."

"Are you hungry?"

Shaking her head, she looked up at him. "No, not really. Not yet. Can we go sit?"

"Sure." He tugged her hand and led her over to the blanket. They sat next to each other, almost shoulder to shoulder, facing the pond. Hearing her sigh, he knew that she was working up to say something, so he remained silent, waiting patiently. She had indicated to him, on the way here, that she wasn't on any type of schedule, and could go back to the Cape at any time. With that in mind, he would follow her cues.

Elizabeth had thought a lot about what she wanted to talk to Will about today. She needed answers, more than the ones he had given her when he finally came to the Cape that day to talk to her, more than the ones that had already been explained in his letter, and more than the ones he had given her in South Carolina. She could tell from his demeanor that he was waiting for her to broach whatever topic she wanted to; he was relaxed and quiet, but was watching her closely.

She turned to look at him, and his gaze was unwavering. After a moment, she looked away.

"What is it?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "I...there are things I want to ask you, things I want to know, but I don't know where to begin."

"Just begin anywhere. Say what's on your mind, and we'll move from there."

After another lengthy silence, she finally spoke. "I guess I still don't understand...I can't reconcile how we went from being so happy, so loving...how _you_ went from being so happy and loving, to a place where you questioned everything you knew about me."

He wasn't taken aback at all by her forthrightness, and in fact was grateful for it. The sooner they went back to examine the past, the quicker they'd be able to move on to the future. Instead of sitting there, trying to choose the perfect words to explain himself, he decided to just speak, and say whatever came to his mind.

"I tried to explain my actions in the letter I wrote to you, and I don't know if I can explain it now any better than I did then. I think that part of me was afraid, all along, that you'd give me a reason not to trust you."

He watched as her eyes widened, and shook his head, quickly continuing. "I'm not saying that it was a rational fear; it obviously wasn't, because my thoughts, my reactions, were so completely skewed. I saw those pictures, and the first thing I thought was, 'there you go, Darcy, there it is. Proof that she's not what she seems.' I couldn't talk myself out of what I thought I saw."

She shook her head, swallowing thickly. "It's hard for me to comprehend that. I'm sorry...it just is."

"Don't be sorry."

"Well, I'm _not_ sorry, really...I know that I have every right to feel the way I do." She sighed. "It's almost to a point where I can understand your reaction to what you saw, but only so far. I can see you thinking that it was me in that picture."

"You can?"

"Of course I can. It was my bed, in my house, and it looked like...well, it looked like me, what little bit could be seen anyway." She looked at him seriously. "After that...my understanding becomes...well, it becomes nonexistent. For you to just choose to leave me, choose to believe the worst about me, and not communicate with me for so long, not give me a chance...I'm still angry about that. Like I said, my understanding just isn't there, and I'm not going to pretend it is."

"I don't want you to pretend. The only way we'll ever get past this is to be completely honest with each other."

"But before you can be honest with me, you have to figure out how to be honest with yourself, Will, don't you see that?"

He nodded solemnly. "Yes."

"Do you think you'll be able to do that?"

"Yes." His eyes, hidden behind his aviator glasses, welled up. "I told you I'll do anything, and I meant it. I'll go to counseling, therapy, whatever it takes."

"Is that something you want to do? Therapy, I mean. Have you considered it?"

"I have...and I haven't ruled it out yet. Do you want me to go?"

She shrugged lightly. "Only if you think it will help, and only if you really want to go. If your heart isn't in it, if you only go because _I _want you to go..." Her voice trailed off as she shook her head. "You have to decide what is going to work best for you."

He nodded silently and turned his gaze back to the pond. They remained that way for a while, not talking, each lost in their own thoughts, until Will chose to speak again.

"In that letter...do you remember what I said about my father?"

Elizabeth turned to look at him and nodded. "I do."

He was quiet again, and Elizabeth watched him, knowing he was sorting his thoughts out, trying to get them into some type of order.

"This...this trust thing is there, its always been there. I don't trust easily, and that's because it was always ingrained in me _not_ to trust easily. It's not like my father harped on me, he wasn't paranoid about it...and I'm not laying any blame at his feet, believe me; he was just...cautious, I guess. He always said my name would draw people to me, especially women."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. "Especially women?"

Will shrugged. "His words, not mine. So, I just didn't bother to let anyone get too close – women or men. It was easier that way. Then you came along." He reached up to slowly wrap a piece of her hair around his finger, staring at the shiny brown strand. "You stirred up all these feelings in me...and everything changed. But I think part of me was always subconsciously waiting, like I said, for something to happen that would prove to me that you weren't to be trusted."

Elizabeth shook her head. "As much as I hate to say this, part of me even understands _that_, only because at one time, I felt the same way about you. I...I understand having an issue with trust. I guess I would understand it even _more_ if we had been at a point in our relationship where we were still getting to know each other, and you felt you had been deceived. But that's not the case...you _knew_ my history, you _knew_ my issues with trust and what it took for me to trust you with my heart, with my love." She sighed heavily, gazing out at the pond. "What it comes down to...what I can't fathom, I guess, is the fact that you just completely cut me off. You stayed away, not for a day or two, but for twelve days. How could you continue to think that way, for so long?"

He swallowed. "I was so angry, I could barely see straight. If I had gone to you, if I had spoken to you right away, I would have made it so much worse. I know that about myself, that's one thing I learned after the whole fiasco with Richard. "

"So it was _anger_ that kept you away...you were that angry, for that long? There must have been something else."

He nodded. "There was. I was afraid."

"Afraid of what? Afraid that you were right, that I was the conniving, scheming harlot that you had convinced yourself I was?"

"Elizabeth-"

She didn't bother letting him respond, because she knew the truth already. "How did you do a complete one-eighty from that? One day, I'm like the plague, to be avoided at all costs, and the next day – or I should say, twelve days later – you're on my deck, begging me for another chance. Did you suddenly have an epiphany? Just...out of the blue? Was it like a lightening bolt to the head? You decided I wasn't the horrible person you thought I had been for damn near two weeks?"

Her voice was rising more and more as she spoke, and suddenly she turned away from him and stood up, walking off of the blanket and over toward the edge of the pond. Instead of following her, he waited. She was still angry, that much was clear, and she was entitled to be. Finally, she turned to look at him, and slowly walked back toward the blanket. She sat down, this time a little further away from him.

"What made you change your mind? What was it that made you come to see reason after twelve days of being completely and totally hardened toward me?" Her tone was cold and flat.

"A lot of the anger finally started to...well, it changed, I guess. It didn't just change, it dissipated. I started to feel this huge sense of loss, and instead of focusing solely on being angry, I started to really think about everything all over again. And then, yes, it _was_ like an epiphany. I realized that I had projected everything, all my fears and insecurities and issues, onto you. Without cause, that was the worst part. You gave me no cause to feel that way, ever."

"You're right, I never did. Not once. I was faithful, supportive, loving...and you just turned your back on me."

He nodded silently.

"Did you think about how I must have been feeling at all, over those twelve days? Did you give me any thought at all?"

"Of course I did."

"In what way, though?"

"In what way?"

"Yes, in what way. Did you wonder how I was? You left me in the hospital, remember. I had a concussion. Did you wonder about how I was feeling, if I was in pain? Did you wonder if I was sad, heartbroken, angry, or scared? Did you wonder if I cried myself to sleep?"

Will visibly paled. "Elizabeth, please-"

"Please what?" she asked, exasperation evident in her voice. "I know I'm beating the hell out of a dead horse, William, but I have to know these things. I just...some part of me needs to know before I can move forward."

He nodded firmly and took a deep breath. "Okay, then...I'll tell you. I thought of you all the time, every day, non-stop." The words wanted to tumble out of his mouth, and he let them go, because he knew that's what she needed, she needed him to just _tell her_. "But honestly? I didn't wonder how you were, I didn't wonder if you were sad or scared. I felt betrayed, so when I thought of you for those first few days, it was mostly in anger. I was mad. I drank, I smashed things, I snapped at Richard, Charles, Georgie...anyone who tried to talk to me. After that? I began to feel sorry for myself. Oh, I was still angry at you, believe me, but I was more angry at myself for falling for you, for being stupid enough to believe that you could be any different from anyone else. I was mad at myself for still loving you, because I didn't want to anymore. At that point...when thoughts of you would break through, thoughts of what you were doing, if you were okay...memories of us being together...I would force them away." He paused for a minute, and noticed that she hadn't moved a muscle since he started talking. Her eyes were focused on the pond; she wouldn't look at him. "Are you sure this is what you want to hear?" he asked her quietly.

"Yes," she said, nodding slightly.

He slowed his words a little, and began speaking softer. "When all of the self-pity ended, I just felt...empty. Alone. I had this massive hole in me, and I knew that it was because I missed you. The anger vanished, the self-pity vanished, and then there was just this...this dull ache. I replayed everything in my mind, over and over again, and I realized that I had been so wrong...I knew it, then, that I had fucked up horribly. After that? I was afraid again. Afraid that I had hurt you beyond repair, that I had chased you away for good. Afraid that I would never have the chance to explain it all, that you would never let me close enough to try to fix it, to make it up to you." He swallowed. "That's why I showed up on your deck, that's why I wrote that letter...and that's why I went to South Carolina. I was desperate to talk to you, to have some type of communication with you. I needed to see you, because I thought that if we saw each other, I would be able to make you see how sorry I was, what a mistake I'd made..." His voice trailed off, and there was silence for a moment. "Do you know what really scared me? I was afraid that I would just be another Jason in your life, another man who left you...someone who took the light out of your eyes, who broke your heart. I vowed to you that I would never be that person, yet it was exactly who I had become, and I hated myself for it."

He was staring at her, but she still refused to look at him. Slowly, he reached to take her hand, but she pulled it away.

"Elizabeth, don't. Please."

She ignored him. When she spoke, she was more calm, her anger seemingly quiet for the moment. "You _weren't_ just another Jason. What you did to me was so much worse, because I love you so much more than I ever loved him. I was a different person then...the intensity of my feelings for you can't be compared to how I felt about him. That's why I told you I'm terrified, now. You _do_ have the power to damage me, to hurt me beyond repair. I'm _giving_ you that power, I'm allowing you to have it, again, and that scares me to death."

"I know it does, and I wish I could say some...magic words, or something, to make that fear go away, but there aren't any magic words. I know it's just going to take time." He tried again to hold her hand, and this time she let him. "I'm scared too."

"Of what?" she asked, finally looking at him. Once again, he wished she didn't have her sunglasses on, and as if reading his mind, she reached up with her free hand and removed them. Her eyes were bright with unshed tears, making his stomach twist up in knots.

"That I'll fail you, that I'll fail us. Maybe you'll decide that I'm really _not_ good enough for you, like you said that day on your deck. You could realize, one day, that this has all been a waste, and I'm not worth the time and energy. I know you've already had those thoughts." The more he spoke, the more she shook her head. "Don't shake your head no, Lizzy...it's possible."

"How can you even _think_ that? After all this, do you really believe that I could come to feel that way?"

"You might."

"I won't."

"How can you say that? You don't know that. How can you be so sure?"

She stared at him for a long moment before answering, and when she finally spoke, it was slowly and with conviction. "I can say it, because I _know_ it. I won't let it happen."

Just then, she realized what he was doing. It was almost a repeat of their conversation from last night, only their roles were reversed. Last night, _she_ had been questioning _him_, and he had been the one reassuring her that he wouldn't leave her, that his feelings were constant. Basically, he was making her realize that if she could say such things, if she could be so assured in her feelings, then he could too; she just had to believe in him.

He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it lightly. "I told you last night that whatever power you think I hold over you...you hold the same over me. Right now, my biggest concern is not for myself, it's for you. I will do anything and everything that I possibly can to make you happy, to make you feel secure. Whatever it takes."

"It doesn't take much to make me happy, Will."

He grinned a little. "I know that."

Elizabeth looked down at their joined hands, and squeezed his briefly. "I don't want you to think that just because I get angry, that I'm changing my mind about us." She sighed, and struggled to find the right words. "I need...I have to be able to ask you questions. I'll want explanations from you, about where your head was...and where it is. For my own peace of mind, I'll need those answers, and you have to do your best to give them to me."

He nodded. "I _will_ do my best. I'm still trying to find them, though...you understand that, right? I don't have all the answers now, but they'll come."

"I understand that, I do. In the meantime...we'll just keep talking. I'm kind of glad, I think, that you'll be in Boston, and that I'll be on the Cape. It gives us a little breathing room."

He looked at her uncertainly.

She squeezed his hand again. "Believe me...I think it's just what we need. We'll talk, it will just be over the phone. Sometimes it's easier that way. We used to talk on the phone all the time...you called me every morning when we were first together."

Will was pleased to see the beginnings of a smile gracing her lips. "And every night."

She nodded. "Every night."

He leaned forward to kiss her, but stopped himself, unsure if it was the right thing to do at that moment. Then he noticed that she was beginning to lean toward him, and they ended up meeting in the middle, ending their conversation with a soft kiss, a kiss meant to strengthen and reassure. Their lips separated, but their bodies moved toward each other, and they shared a tight embrace.

"I love you, Lizzy. More than anything," Will whispered in her ear. His hands caressed over her back, and he inhaled deeply, savoring the moment.

"I love you too."

A few minutes later, they pulled away from each other, but Will leaned in for another brief kiss. "Are you hungry at all?"

She nodded. "I am, actually. My stomach was in knots when you picked me up, but now...I feel better. No more knots."

He reached up to cup her cheek. "I'm glad."

"What did you bring us for lunch?"

He grinned. "Well...I have to admit, I went to an old standby." His hand disappeared into the cooler, and when it came back out, it held a rather large lobster roll.

"I should have known," Elizabeth said, smiling at him.

"I've heard these are the best in Boston."

As they ate, they made small talk. It felt a bit strained at first, but after a few minutes, they both relaxed and were able to talk easily. When they finished eating, Will sat back against the big trunk of the willow tree. He raised his eyebrows at Elizabeth, and she knew it was an invitation to join him. She moved toward him, and he opened his legs, allowing space for her to sit between them. As she leaned back against his chest, Will took a deep breath and wrapped his arms around her waist. She rested her arms over his, and he heard her release a deep sigh.

"Are you comfortable?" he asked.

She lifted her head from his shoulder and turned to look up at him. "Yes." She knew what he was asking. "I want to be able to touch you too, Will. I miss that connection with you. I just think we need to...go slow."

"Then slow we will go." He smiled down at her, and planted a kiss on her nose. She leaned back again, relaxing into him.

"How slow are we going?" he asked after a moment.

Her mouth dropped open and once again, she raised her head and turned to look at him. "Really?"

"I don't mean...about that." He cleared his throat. "I want...I would like to take you out on a date."

"Oh. A date date?"

"What other kind of date is there? Other than a blind date, which this obviously wouldn't be."

She rolled her eyes. "When would you like to take me on this date?"

He shrugged. "Soon. This weekend, maybe Saturday night? I could come to the Cape. I have a house there, you know."

She chuckled. "Oh, you do?"

He kissed her cheek. "I do."

For some inexplicable reason, her eyes filled with tears, and she didn't quite know what to make of them, she only knew that she didn't want him to see them. She hugged his arms tighter to her waist. "I think I might like to go on a date with you."

"You _think_ you _might_?" He laughed softly. "Do you want to wait, and let me know when you know for sure?"

Elizabeth shook her head, and laughed quietly with him. "Mmm...no. I won't make you wait."

"So...is it a date?"

She smiled and held his arms tightly. "It's a date."

* * *

><p><em>I will try to post again sometime this week, but I have family coming to visit, so it may be difficult to find the time. Thanks again for reading! Please leave a review!<em>


	45. Chapter 45

_Squeezing in a post before heading to the beach! Thanks for reading!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 45<strong>

"I don't have good news, I'm afraid."

Will's eyebrows flew up, and Georgiana frowned as they sat in Maggie Harper's office on Monday morning, staring at her expectantly as she sat behind her large mahogany desk.

"What...what do you mean, you don't have good news?" Georgiana asked, suddenly looking pale. Will reached over to take her hand.

"I should rephrase that. It's not that the news isn't good...it's just that it could be better. Much better. At tomorrow's conference, both Wickham and Collins will have the opportunity to plead out to reduced charges."

"What...what does that mean, 'plead out'? Does that mean they'll get away with...with everything?"

"Not technically, no." The attorney stopped talking, and took a deep breath. "My boss wants me to offer them a lesser charge in exchange for a guilty plea. That's the deal he wants me to offer them both."

"But why? I don't understand," Georgiana asked. "We have...we have proof, we have those pictures. Bill Collins confessed."

"You're right, on all accounts. I am one-hundred and ten percent in the belief that you were a victim of first degree rape. But as much as we have that evidence...it's not really evidence. We have too many things going against us. Yes, we have those pictures, but there is nothing to prove they weren't set up, nothing to prove that you hadn't made a conscious decision to participate in a sexual encounter with those men. You were drugged and raped...but because you chose, at the time, to avoid seeking any type of assistance from either the police or a medical facility, we have no proof that either of those things happened. Traces of drugs in your system, DNA...all that physical evidence is long gone."

Will finally spoke. "What about Collins' confession? That has to mean something...he ratted himself out, ratted his cousin out. Why would he say all that if it didn't really happen?"

"It's his word against his cousin's. One thing Collins has made certain to say, since the first time that he was questioned, was that he never touched your sister. Basically, he was a spectator. That statement alone, the fact that he made himself out to be an innocent in all of this...that will raise too many questions with a jury. It looks too much like he's trying to pin something on his cousin, and is trying to take himself out of the equation."

Will felt like he was grasping at straws. "Georgiana's friends, Julie and Matthew Evans...they gave statements already, about the condition she was in when they found her. Doesn't that...wouldn't that mean something?"

"It still doesn't prove that she was drugged, it would only indicate that she may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol. There's a difference. Plus...Miss Darcy is in a relationship with Mr. Evans now, isn't she? The defense attorney would have a field day with him in court."

Will heard Georgiana's sharp intake of breath, and looked over to see that she had tears welling in her eyes. He squeezed her hand tightly.

"This is unacceptable," Will said vehemently. "I cannot, _will not_ accept that these men will get a damned slap on the wrist, like they committed some school-boy prank."

"Mr. Darcy, if it was up to me, I would take my chances and go to trial. Unfortunately, it's not up to me. I have a boss to answer to. I've made my opinion on the matter very clear, believe me. He's quite certain that no jury would convict either of the men on the felony charge...I'm afraid he's unwavering in his decision."

"Well, I'll _make_ him waver," Will said, the anger simmering in his blood finally coming to the surface. "How is it that we – that Georgiana – doesn't have a say in this?"

Maggie shook her head. "In this type of situation, the victim usually doesn't. Of course you want your day in court, but it's up to my boss to determine if that day in court will be a victorious one. To him, right now, it doesn't appear that way."

"So...what will you charge them with, in exchange for their guilty plea?" Georgiana asked, feeling calm again.

"Sexual misconduct...it's a misdemeanor."

Will sat there, dumbfounded at everything that was happening, feeling like he was in the middle of a bad dream. He stood from his chair and paced back and forth in Maggie's office. He turned to look at her, his anger very apparent in his tight expression. "What about the drugs? They found drugs in his hotel in New York. Doesn't that matter, doesn't it count for something?"

"Yes...and this is where we have a bit of good news, at least. Rohypnol isn't legal in the United States. Regardless of how much he had in his possession – whether it was one pill or one hundred pills – he will serve a three-year sentence."

"What...what about the other women?" Georgiana asked. "All those women he had pictures of...did any match up to any unsolved rape cases?"

"We're still working on that," Maggie replied. "We have a huge database to look through, and now we can add Wickham's DNA to it. It's a slow process. We _want_ it to be a slow process, because we don't want to miss anything. Detectives Mitchell and Cooper have made this case their baby. They want these men in jail, for a long time."

"So there's still some hope, then?" Georgiana asked.

Will looked at her, amazed that she was so calm and collected. How was she holding it together so well, when he felt like his head was about to explode?

Maggie nodded. "Some hope, yes. It's not a lot, but it's something."

Georgiana rose from her chair. "Thank you Maggie, I appreciate you keeping us informed."

"You're welcome, Georgiana." She rose from her chair as well. "I'll be sure to call you the minute I have any more information."

Georgiana nodded and looked at Will. He glanced over to Maggie. "Yes...thank you."

He escorted Georgiana out of the office, keeping one hand on the small of her back as they walked out. Neither spoke a word until they finally reached Will's car, on the fourth level of the nearest parking garage.

Before he started the engine, Will turned to look at his sister. She stared straight ahead, unmoving.

"Georgie?"

She turned to look at him, then just as quickly looked away again. "It's okay, Will, I'm fine."

"How can you be fine?"

"I'm fine because I have to be."

"Aren't you even the slightest bit angry?"

She turned to look at him again. "Of _course_ I'm angry, but I absolutely refuse to let this take over my life again."

Her voice had risen slightly, and her face was flushed, leading Will to believe that she was far from okay. Before he could say anything, she continued.

"I've done what I can, and I'll do more if they need me to, I'll do whatever they think is best...but I know, now more than ever, that my mistake was hiding in the first place, when all of this happened. This is all because of me, and the way I chose to handle the entire situation. I should have listened to Julie and Matt, I should have trusted you, but I didn't. I can't go back and change that now. As much as I wish I could, I can't. I have to move on, and hope that maybe they'll find a link between him and another rape case."

"So you're giving up. Either that, or you're in denial."

Her eyes blazed at him. "No, I'm not _giving up_...and how can you sit there and accuse me of being in denial? Do you honestly think I've regressed that much? Denial is where I was seven months ago, I'm well past that now, thank you very much."

Will shook his head, immediately realizing his error. "I'm sorry, Georgie, I didn't mean it like that." He reached up to run a hand through his hair. "You haven't regressed. I just...you seem resigned, like everything Maggie just told us isn't a big deal."

"It _is_ a big deal, of course it is. I'm just facing the reality of the situation, Will, which is what _you_ need to do. You can be angry, but you can't let it take over again. Go pound the shit out of that bag in the basement if you need to, but it will be a cold day in hell before I let this consume you like it did before. I have to move on...I have my entire future in front of me, you know? I have a caring family, a wonderful boyfriend, good friends, and a new job...I have so many good things in my life right now, so much to be thankful for, and I am _not_ going to let George Wickham take it all away again." She paused briefly. "You have Elizabeth back in your life. Don't lose sight of that, and don't let Wickham take her away from you too. He almost did it, once; he's damaged both of us. Don't let him win."

Will leaned forward, resting his forehead on the steering wheel. "God, you're so right." He lifted his head and turned to her. "You amaze me more and more every day."

"I don't want you to think I've given up, because I haven't. I want to see them behind bars, just like you do, and just like Maggie does, and just like the detectives do. I want them to spend the rest of their lives in prison. If not by my hand, then by someone else's. I want that more than anything. But if it doesn't happen...I'll live, I'll move on. I have to."

Will nodded. "We both will." He started the car, and as he backed them out of the parking space, Georgiana turned to study him again.

"So when are you going to tell me what happened with Elizabeth?"

He pursed his lips. "We're just talking right now. We have a lot to talk about. I'll just leave it at that."

"Okay. It's good, though, isn't it? This talking...it's going to lead to good things, right?"

Will nodded as he pulled them out into traffic. "It already has."

* * *

><p>Will ended up taking Georgiana's advice to heart. He pounded the hell out of that bag in his basement on Monday night. He was so upset at the turn of events, it felt like all those old emotions, from when he first found out about the rape, and when George Wickham had first contacted him, were all coming back again. The anger, the helplessness, the sense of things spinning out of his control...it was overwhelming.<p>

He called Charles as soon as he could, to ask him to explain the legalities of everything.

"I can't really explain it any better than Maggie did," Charles said apologetically. "Sadly, her boss is right. The fact of the matter is, they could take Wickham and Collins to trial, but if they're found not guilty, that's it...they're free. Obviously, he feels there isn't enough evidence for a guilty verdict. After hearing what Maggie told you, I have to agree. The evidence seems circumstantial at best. So, in essence, what he's saying is that he'd rather charge them with something that he knows he can get them on. At least this way, they'll suffer _some_ type of punishment."

"But it's a fucking misdemeanor, Charles! They won't even serve jail time!"

"I know. Wickham will, for the drug charge, and he'll have to sit in jail for a bit longer until they try him on that, because it's a federal trafficking offense. The DEA likes to drag its feet. He'll suffer a bit longer, and maybe some other evidence in another rape case will match up. That's all we can hope for."

"And in the meantime, Collins goes free. Fucking pervert. What if he goes back to his job? Can he do that?"

"Well...he may be able to, yes. Like you said, if he pleads guilty to the sexual misconduct charge, it's a misdemeanor. I would think it's up to his employer...if they think it's grounds for termination, they could let him go. Honestly, if they do, I can't see him fighting it. The fact that his co-workers will know...the fact that Elizabeth knows, and is connected to Georgie...I think it will be enough to send him packing."

"If I don't kill him first."

"Will-"

"I know, Charles, I know. I'm just venting, I won't touch a hair on his slimy head. If he even _thinks_ of trying to talk to Elizabeth, though...if he goes anywhere near her-"

"Just make sure she knows not to talk to him, okay? That's all you can do. Think about what he looked like in the courtroom, remember? He wouldn't even look up from the floor. He's mortified, embarrassed, and ashamed. I think he'll do everything he can to avoid Elizabeth."

"He better."

"Speaking of Elizabeth...we haven't really talked since Saturday night. Did you spend the day with her Sunday?"

"Yes."

"How did it go?"

"Fine."

"Fine?"

"Yes, fine."

"You're not going to tell me anymore than that, are you?"

"Nope."

Charles smiled to himself. "Fine."

"I'm just afraid of making any type of wrong move, Charles. Just...I can tell you that things are moving ahead, we're moving ahead, together. It's good."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"I have to say...and I mean this with all due respect...your fiancee scares the hell out of me."

Charles laughed outright. "She should! She's one fierce woman, isn't she?"

Will chuckled. "That she is."

"She's amazing," Charles said on a sigh. "She's keeping her eye on you."

"I know she is. I'm glad Lizzy has at least one sister who looks out for her."

* * *

><p>"I should probably ask...when you said we would be talking on the phone, you didn't have any particular call limit in mind, did you?"<p>

Elizabeth chuckled. She knew why Will was asking. He had called her Sunday night, then had called her once during the day on Monday, twice Monday night, and once already today. Now, as it was nearing ten p.m., she knew it would be her last call from him until tomorrow. "Should there be a limit?"

"No. I think I should have carte blanche phone access."

"I would say that you've already assumed that you do."

Despite the light banter, Will really did want to make sure he wasn't making her uncomfortable. "I'm serious, Lizzy...I don't want to make that assumption. I don't want to suffocate you or pester you."

"You're not."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure!" The truth was, she looked forward to every call.

"Okay. It's just nice to be talking to you again."

"It is nice. I never have the chance to call you, though...you always beat me to it."

He smiled into the phone. "You'll have your chances. Did you think about where we could go on our date?"

"Yes, I did. You're taking me to the fair Saturday night."

"The Barnstable County Fair?"

"Yes. Please tell me you went to that at least once when you were spending your summers here." The Barnstable County Fair was one of Falmouth's signature summertime events. The midway was filled with rides and games, there were halls displaying the best in local artwork (including photography), craft tents, agricultural displays, livestock competitions, horse shows, concerts, and the food...well, there was nothing quite like 'fair food.'

"Once? We went every year. _'There's a fair, in the air...'_ he started to sing, until he heard Elizabeth groan.

"Please don't sing the song. I hear it constantly on the radio, and then I find myself humming it all the time, and I drive myself batty."

He chuckled. "I can't wait to go. Can we make out on the ferris wheel?"

Elizabeth laughed. "Only if you win me some sort of large stuffed animal first."

"Deal." They both smiled into the phone.

"Can I ask you...how everything went today at the hearing? Did anything change?"

Will sighed. "No, nothing changed. Maggie called Georgie a little while ago, and it happened just as she said it would. Wickham will sit in jail until he's tried on the drug charges, and Collins goes free."

"Unbelievable."

"I know...it's so frustrating. I'm really trying to do what Georgie said, and just let it go, but it's hard."

"I know it is, but you've got to try."

"Do you think Collins will go back to Woods Hole?"

Elizabeth frowned. "I have no idea. I hope not. I can't imagine him wanting to come back, having to face people...he's too spineless."

"That he is."

"Georgiana is right, though...you just have to move on."

"I will...I am."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, love, I'm sure."

She smiled softly into the phone, noting the determined tone of his voice. "Okay."

"Did I tell you I have a hot lunch date tomorrow?"

"Nooo, you didn't tell me that." Her smile grew, as she had a good idea who his 'hot lunch date' was with. "Should I be jealous?"

"Only of her cooking."

She giggled. "Are you taking Mrs. R out to eat?"

Will laughed. "Mrs. R? Go out to eat? Please, and be deprived of being able to feed someone? No way."

"Did you at least _ask_ her if she'd like to go out?"

"Of course I did, I even tried to insist. She tsk'd and told me it was _nonsense_, that she's _perfectly_ _capable_ of making _her_ _William_ a nice lunch."

"And you love it."

He smiled. "I do."

"Be sure to tell her I said hello."

"I will." It was quiet for a moment, until Will cleared his throat. "Elizabeth?"

"Yes?"

"I love talking to you on the phone," he said softly.

"You do?" She grinned.

"Yes, I do. Especially at night, when it's quiet, and your voice is sleepy...like it is now. I don't know how to explain it...it's like we're the only two people in the world." He sighed. "God, that was corny. Anyway, the thing is, as much as I love it...it makes me miss you even more."

Elizabeth's heart did a peculiar little flip-flop in her chest.

"This is going to be the longest week," he continued. "Saturday seems very, very far away."

"It's not so far." She was trying to lighten the conversation, but the truth was, she understood exactly what he was feeling, because she felt the exact same way. "What time are you heading to the Cape?"

"Probably in the morning."

"Well...if it's nice, we could go to the beach in the afternoon, or something...if you want to."

"Yes, I want to, very much."

She grinned. "Okay. Me too."

"Good. So, I'll call you tomorrow. I may even call you again tonight."

Elizabeth's grin grew to a smile. "You're pathetic."

He smiled. _Music to my ears._ "Goodnight sweetheart."

"Goodnight."

After they hung up, Elizabeth sat for a brief moment, chewing her lip. Before she could change her mind, she picked up the phone and called him back.

He answered immediately. "Lizzy?"

Her voice was quiet. "I just want to tell you...I miss you too."

* * *

><p>Will sat back in the kitchen of Mrs. Reynolds' apartment on Wednesday afternoon, rubbing his stomach. "That was delicious, thank you."<p>

Mrs. Reynolds smiled. "I know your favorites."

"I wish you would have let me take you out. When was the last time you went out for lunch?"

"Sunday."

Will smiled. "Oh, alright, I don't feel so bad then."

Mrs. Reynolds laughed. "So, now that everything is said and done...how is our girl doing?"

Will shrugged. "She says she's okay, but...I don't know. She gave me one heck of a pep talk on Monday, when we left the lawyer's office. I hope she's taking her own advice."

"And what about you?"

"What about me?"

"How are you and Miss Bennet coming along?"

"We're coming along just fine." He was quiet for a moment before speaking again. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"You knew my parents better than I did, really. I mean, I knew my father well, but I feel like I don't have a good sense of him as a married man. I have memories of my parents together, of course...but before my mother died, I was at an age where I wasn't really interested in observing their marriage. I was a kid, a teenager. I just never gave it much thought, I guess...they _seemed_ happy, and so I took it for granted that they were. Does that make sense?"

"It does. And they didn't just seem happy; they were happy. Your parents had a very loving marriage."

Will sighed. "Did they...did they ever fight? I really don't have any memories of them arguing or anything. They must have, sometimes, right?"

"What are you trying to ask me, William? What do you want to know?"

He shrugged and shook his head. "I don't know. I've been trying to puzzle some things out...and I'm having a hard time."

"And these things involve your parents?"

"Well, not my parents, really...more my father. I remember my mother being so open with people, so friendly...but my father was always much more reserved."

Mrs. Reynolds nodded. "Yes, you're right about that. You're a lot like him, in that respect."

He looked at her closely. "I've always thought that too. So what does that mean?"

"Well...it means you're more guarded, I think. Your father was a very kind man, and when you had his loyalty, you had it forever. It wasn't given easily, though. His trust was hard earned."

"Was that...was it just because of who he was?"

Mrs. Reynolds looked thoughtful for a moment. "I believe so, yes. He made his fortune young, you know that...he was always very careful about who he chose to keep in his circle. Your mother-"

She stopped speaking suddenly, and looked at Will uncertainly.

"What? My mother what?"

"Well...your mother was just the opposite, and it used to drive your father a little bit crazy, I suppose. She was always the one who became friends with everyone, and sometimes it didn't work out well."

"What do you mean, it didn't work out well?"

"Your mother had a tendency to want to help any friend that was in a tough situation. She was a rescuer. An admirable quality, to be sure, but your father often thought that she was being taken advantage of." Mrs. Reynolds cleared her throat. "They did have some fairly boisterous discussions about it...but your father usually let her figure things out on her own. She learned the hard way, sometimes."

Will sighed again, but remained quiet.

"Why are you asking me about this, William?"

"These problems that came up, between Elizabeth and me...they were _my_ problems, really. We were building this great relationship, learning about each other, falling in love...and then this one thing happened...and I just put all the blame on her. I thought she betrayed me, I was convinced she had...and I'm trying to figure out why it was so easy for me to jump to that conclusion. Trust was always something my father spoke about to me, but not so much that he was continuously pounding it into my head. It was just something he felt very strongly about, and it was something he always said that I shouldn't give away lightly."

"He was right."

"I know, but...how did that get so twisted up in me, that I was able to do what I did to Elizabeth? How did me being cautious, and guarded, as you say, morph into something that would allow me to turn my back on someone who meant the world to me? How did I do that so easily?"

Mrs. Reynolds reached over to pat his hand before holding it tightly. "As I said recently, the older you've gotten, the more complicated the questions have become." She paused. "Maybe her breach of trust, as you saw it, would lead you to expose some other emotions, or some other fears, that you wanted to keep hidden."

"So you're saying I have to figure out what I was really afraid of when everything happened."

"I think it might be a good place to start. That being said, it doesn't have to be figured out today."

"I know. I'm just-"

"Impatient."

He half-smiled. "Yes."

"You always were one for wanting to get things solved immediately. When you had something to say, you wanted to say it right away...sometimes without the benefit of forethought. When you knew something needed to be done, you wanted it done yesterday. You were never one for waiting around much for things to happen, you'd rather be out there making them happen."

"Would you call me impulsive?"

"Definitely."

He rolled his eyes.

"Being impulsive isn't always a bad thing, William. In fact, it can be a good thing, depending on the situation, of course."

He nodded quietly, and she patted his hand again.

"Now, what's say we liven up this party a bit," Mrs. Reynolds said as she rose from the table, and headed to the refrigerator. "I have just the thing to brighten your day."

Will's face lit up as he smiled. "Whoopie pies."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth was up bright and early Saturday morning. Will was due to arrive on the Cape by eleven, and as far as she knew, he was coming straight to her house. She puttered around, straightening things up. Her new living room furniture had arrived yesterday, along with her new mattress, and she was thrilled. She had kept with the same color scheme, bright, vivid blues and greens, but the pattern was completely different.<p>

Her phone rang at ten-thirty, and she answered it without looking at the caller ID, knowing it was him.

"Hello?"

"I'm crossing the bridge now, so I should be there in about twenty minutes."

She smiled. "Great. I'll see you in a bit."

She was excited to see him, but that nervousness, those butterflies, were nowhere to be found. They had talked so much on the phone this week, about so many things, it was almost as if they were getting to know each other all over again, without the blush of first love. Sometimes they were serious, sometimes they were silly, but not once did they run out of things to talk about.

One topic that Elizabeth had brought up repeatedly was Georgiana's situation; she wanted to make sure Will really was coming to terms with what happened. He assured her, over and over again, that he was dealing with it in a positive away, although he did say that he pounded his heavy bag to a pulp on Monday night. Each time she asked him about it, she was convinced more and more that he really _was_ okay, and wasn't letting it fester somewhere deep inside. He talked about it freely, and although he was still upset that things had gone the way they had, he was letting it go.

When she heard the knock at her door, she took a deep breath and opened it, and the smile that greeted her warmed her right to her toes.

"Hey beautiful," Will said, simply beaming at her.

"Hi yourself," she replied, smiling just as brightly. "Come on in."

He walked through the doorway, and as soon as she closed the door behind him, he reached for her and pulled her into a tight embrace, sighing against her hair. "Ohhhh God, you feel wonderful."

She chuckled against his chest. "So do you."

Will tilted his head to plant a kiss on her cheek, then quickly moved his lips to hers, kissing her softly. The longer they let their lips linger and play, the deeper the kiss became, and their arms tightened around each other, until Elizabeth finally, slowly, pulled away.

He gazed down at her, his eyes a luscious, rich brown, and she smiled at him sweetly.

"Sorry," he said softly, with a small grin letting her know that he really wasn't.

She shook her head and quirked an eyebrow at him. "Don't be sorry for kissing me, please. I've been waiting all week for a kiss like that."

This time, he smiled fully, showing off his dimples. "Me too."

He slowly released her and exhaled, and looked around at the room, checking out the new furniture. "It looks nice."

"Thanks, I love it. It's very comfortable."

They had talked one night during the week about Lydia, and what had transpired when Elizabeth had confronted her. He knew that the sisters had not talked since that day, and he also knew that as much as Elizabeth claimed that it didn't bother her, it did. At one time, all three Bennet girls had been thick as thieves, and Will knew that despite everything, Elizabeth missed that.

"Before we go to the beach, why don't you show me those pictures?"

Her face lit up. "Are you sure?"

"Of course."

"Okay."

Elizabeth disappeared into her dark room to grab the stack of photos she had taken in South Carolina. She had developed the ones from her 35mm camera herself, but the ones from her digital were still stored on the card. She could plug the card into her laptop, though, and he could see them there. As excited as she was for him to see them, she knew there were a few that had Jason in them; there were group photos, and a few random ones that Megan had taken that had included him, although he was never the sole focus of any picture.

They sat next to each other on the couch, and Will draped his arm loosely along the back, sitting as close to her as he could. As they flipped through the pictures, Elizabeth giving a brief commentary of each one, he couldn't help but notice the few that had Jason in them. He wanted to ask her about him, but didn't know how. There was no jealousy there, none at all, but he wanted to know how she had felt about seeing him again just the same. In their few conversations about her time down there, she never once mentioned him, she only talked about Megan, Thomas, and the couple from Maine, Lisa and Paul.

He leaned over to plant a kiss on her head as she continued with the pictures, and she turned to smile up at him, her eyes bright with enthusiasm. His heart lurched, and he knew, without a doubt, that it always would when she looked at him that way. The pictures were absolutely beautiful, of course, and he was reminded, when looking at them, just how talented she was with a camera. There were some of her, and although she was smiling in most of them, the smile didn't quite reach her eyes. He could see traces of her sadness there, and it made him ache to see it.

Elizabeth sensed his preoccupation, and turned to look up at him again.

"What's the matter?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. The pictures are gorgeous, they really are. It's a beautiful place."

She looked at him dubiously. "But..."

He shrugged. "It's hard for me to look at some of the pictures of you...only because I can see that you're unhappy in some of them. I can see it, and I know why it's there, and I hate that I made you feel that way."

"But I _was_ happy..I was happy I was there, I was having fun, and working hard...but deep down, you're right, I was hurting too. After your visit, though, something changed. After that night, when we were together...part of me felt lighter, almost like I was seeing things a little clearer. That's when I really started understanding that we weren't quite finished yet...I couldn't leave things the way they were."

"I knew that, right then. I knew we weren't finished."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. You told me so yourself, remember? When I asked if our...night together was because you were tipsy, or if it was because you were giving me another chance, or saying goodbye...you couldn't answer me. That in itself gave me an unbelievable amount of hope."

"Yet you stayed away."

He smiled softly, reaching around her shoulders to pull her tightly against him. "I had to, then. I had to give you your space, so you could figure things out. It was the hardest thing, not to call you, to just leave you alone. I did feel hopeful, though...most of the time." She looked away from him, and her smile faded for a moment. "Lizzy?"

She shook her head brusquely. "It's nothing."

"No, it's something...what are you thinking? Tell me. We agreed not to hide anything from each other, remember?"

Elizabeth looked at him again, and wondered when she would ever stop feeling that swell of bitterness that would rise up every time she thought of him leaving her. Granted, it wasn't as overwhelming as it was weeks ago, it was lessening a great deal, but it was still there. "It just makes me think of us being...apart, when you say things like that. It was so difficult for you to leave me alone after you left South Carolina, yet it was so easy to leave me alone after you left me in the hospital."

His brows furrowed. "No, that's not true. Despite the fact that I did leave you alone, and even though I was angry...leaving you, staying away from you, was never, ever easy."

He was holding her hand now, and she looked down at their entwined fingers, lost in thought. "Sometimes I wonder if things would have been different if..." she whispered, her voice trailing off.

Will lowered his head to try to see her face. "If what?"

She sighed. "What if I hadn't listened to you, when everything first happened? What if I had just gone to you, made you see me, made you talk to me?"

Will rested his head against the back of the couch, staring up at the ceiling. "I _refuse_ to let you feel any guilt about that. No way. I wouldn't have seen you, and if I had, I would have made things worse. My emotions were too raw at that point; I would have said things, I'm sure, that would have damaged us, damaged you...horribly. Permanently." He paused for a moment. "I ran away, Elizabeth. That's what I was doing, I was running away."

She nodded again. "I know that, I think I even knew it then. Part of me wonders, though...what if I hadn't acquiesced so easily? What if, despite you telling me you didn't want to talk, didn't want to see me...what if I went after you anyway? Yes, you gave up on me...but I gave up on you too. I was afraid of being rejected again."

"You had every reason to be afraid of that...I didn't give you any reason to expect anything _but_ rejection."

"But you came back to me, from California, when all that crap was happening with Caroline and Anne...you came to me, you made me listen to you. I can't help but feel that if I had done that, I could have saved us a lot of misery."

He lifted his head from the couch and looked at her. "No, sweetheart...I would have caused so much _more_ misery. Please don't beat yourself up about that, you have no responsibility in how things played out...it was all me."

She frowned again, and shook her head, though it was barely perceptible.

"Elizabeth...you have to believe me, you did the right thing by staying away. I am sure that if you had tried, then...I wouldn't have given you the opportunity to explain. I would have pushed you away even harder."

They were quiet for a while, each mulling over everything they had just said, until Elizabeth turned into him again, snuggling up against him, reaching to wrap her arms around his waist. He squeezed her tightly and kissed her hair again.

"Can I ask you something?" he said softly, breaking the silence.

"Mmhm."

"What was it like, working with...him, there? With Jason."

She sighed. "It...it was okay. It wasn't awful. I made the best of it...I was determined not to let it ruin my trip. You were foremost on my mind anyway...I didn't put a lot of thought into him."

"You didn't know he was going to be there?"

"God, no. I wish I _had_ known, I could have prepared myself. I was shocked when I first saw him, then I was angry, because I was convinced that somehow, he had arranged for me to be there."

"Did he?"

"No...it was Bill. Even though Bill said that I was specifically asked to participate in the trip, he's the one who put my name in for it. I think he wanted me away from here."

Will didn't respond to that. He didn't want to give any consideration to what Bill could have been thinking.

"Anyway," she continued, "we did talk...or rather, he tried to talk, I shut him down. I think he wanted to apologize, he wanted to explain...but I didn't want to hear it." She paused for a moment. "For so long, I had wanted reasons...I had wanted an explanation. I guess at some point along the way, that changed. It wasn't about me needing to hear things from him, it was about me needing to _say_ things to him. So I did; I spoke my mind, I said what I needed to say. It was long overdue. Then, my anger sort of changed to...well, to indifference, I guess. He was around a lot, not all the time, but a lot. He was like a piece of furniture after that. His being there just didn't affect me one way or the other."

"He seemed protective of you."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I honestly didn't care. I never said anything to him about you, I never would, and I know he was curious more than anything. Even after you left, I never mentioned you, or your presence there, to him. It was none of his business."

Will sighed, not realizing how loud it was. She peeked up at him. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I am. I'm fine. I'm relieved, that's all. Not...not relieved in the way you might be thinking. I know you have no feelings for him, I wasn't thinking about that at all."

"I know."

"What I'm relieved about is that it wasn't horrible for you to be there with him. I'm glad you were able to just be indifferent and go about your work without feeling stressed out about him."

"I was stressed out enough about you," she said, with just a touch of humor in her voice.

"Lizzy-"

She elbowed him in the ribs, and leaned up to give him a peck on the cheek, smiling softly. "I'm sorry. But, well, I was stressed out. _Was_. Past tense. Even then, I was still able to enjoy myself there. I had great roommates, they were able to take my mind off of things. Especially Megan. You'll have to meet her sometime, she lives here in Falmouth. We're going to get together when the craziness of summer dies down."

"I'd like that."

Elizabeth leaned away from him, so as to get a better look at his face. His deep brown eyes were trained on hers, and she could see the warmth and the love shining in them. She could also see traces of guilt and sadness, and it made her heart sink just a little. Turning toward him, she lifted her hand to place it on the back of his neck, guiding his lips to hers.

Freeing his hands, he reached up to hold her head, sliding his fingers into her hair, holding her gently but steadily, so she was unable to break their kiss. He missed this, the taste of her, the feel of her lips under his. His kiss became hungrier, and she kissed him back with equal passion, pressing her body toward his, moving to wrap her arms around his shoulders.

After a few long moments, she started to pull away, and tugged on his lower lip with her teeth, making him shudder. She grinned at him, her face only inches from his, and he loved the now pink tint of her skin, underlying her tan. His heart was hammering away in his chest, and he was pretty sure hers was too.

"Maybe you should save that for the ferris wheel tonight," she said impishly, raising an eyebrow.

He chuckled, moving one hand to cover the side of her face, caressing her cheek with one thumb. "Oh, there will be plenty of that for the ferris wheel tonight, don't you worry about that."

* * *

><p>After a peaceful afternoon, enjoying the sun and surf, they headed toward the fair, both feeling happy and relaxed. They opted to eat first, so that their stomachs could settle a bit before they headed to the midway to take on the rides. Will indulged in a pulled pork sandwich, while Elizabeth ate her once a year treat – tempura vegetables.<p>

"That's way too healthy for fair food," Will decided, watching as she dipped her fried zucchini into some type of sauce.

"It's not healthy, it's fried."

"But it's fried _vegetables_," he said, "it's about as close to healthy as you can get here. Now this," he said, holding up his dripping, overflowing sandwich, "_this_ is fair food."

"_That_ is indigestion, or an accident waiting to happen on a ride, that's what _that_ is." Despite her statement, she looked at the sandwich a little too long, and Will offered her a bite. "Just one," she said smiling, before taking a large mouthful.

After eating, they browsed the display halls, Elizabeth taking time to really examine the photographs, especially those of the winners, who were all judged before the fair was open to the public.

"You should enter some pictures next year," Will said. "Yours are just as good, if not better, than any of these."

She shrugged. "Maybe."

They skipped the agricultural hall and the animal barns, knowing they'd both be loaded with kids, and chose instead to head to the vendor halls. When they stopped at a large booth displaying temporary tattoos, Will could tell by the look in Elizabeth's eyes that a dare was coming.

He shook his head before she had a chance to utter a peep. "No, no, no."

"Oh, come on...they're temporary! I bet you'd look hot with a little ink."

"We're too old for this. Isn't it something that kids do? No way."

"Not even an arm band? I'll get one if you get one."

He raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Well, I wouldn't get an armband, but I'd get something...look at all the ocean themed ones they have." She was looking the posters over, and found that she really loved a small one of two brightly colored starfish.

Will was looking at the tribal tattoos, and saw one that represented a starfish as well, but was more...well, masculine looking. He scrunched his nose, not sure if he could bring himself to do it. When he turned to look back at Elizabeth, she was smiling, biting her lip. He couldn't resist her excitement.

He sighed dramatically. "Oh, alright. How long do these things last?"

"Umm...," she looked at the sign. "It says three to seven days. See? Gone in a week."

A big, burly man came out to take them back into a well-lit, large tent, and asked them where they each wanted the tattoos.

Elizabeth shrugged. "I'll put mine on my shoulder blade, I guess."

"What about you?" he asked Will.

"Oh, um...my arm? You know, up here?" he said, as he patted the skin above his bicep.

"Do you know what the starfish symbolizes?" the big man asked them. They both shook their heads.

"Yours, here," he pointed to Will's starfish, "is a Maori starfish. To them, the starfish represents tenacity and patience."

The smiled at each other. "How appropriate," Will said quietly.

They continued walking through the fair, freshly tattooed, heading toward the midway. Will actually liked the look of the bright colors on Elizabeth's tanned skin...he could clearly see the tattoo, as she was wearing a thin-strapped tank top. She had already declared his 'very hot', making him roll his eyes. One thing was certain; he would never, ever be bored with her.

They rode the Round-Up, The Flying Bobs, the roller coaster, the Zipper, and just about every other ride the fair had to offer. When it came time to ride the Ferris Wheel, the last ride of the night for them, Will wouldn't go on until he had won her an animal. Forty-five minutes and about $25 later, he proudly presented Elizabeth with a three-foot tall stuffed panda bear. Grabbing her by the hand, he quickly led her to the short line for the ride.

"What am I supposed to do with him while we're on the ride?"

Will laughed. "That's your problem, you're the one who demanded I win you an animal before we could-"

He paused, raised an eyebrow, and looked away from her.

"Go ahead," she said, smiling at him flirtatiously, "finish your sentence. Before we could...what?"

He turned to face her. The picture of her standing there with the huge bear tucked under her arm was amusing, to say the least. Biting back a grin, he leaned in toward her, talking quietly. "I believe my exact words were 'make out on the ferris wheel.' You can do whatever you want with that thing, but we're going on that ride, and I'm going to kiss you senseless."

Elizabeth left her prize with the attendant, who was happy to keep an eye on it. Will did exactly as he had promised, kissing her endlessly on the ride, until the laughing and teasing from the kids in the gondola next to them became too much of a distraction. Sighing, he gave up, as Elizabeth eventually began to giggle with them.

They snuggled together, taking in the view of the neon lights, colorful tents, and masses of people as the large wheel went round and round. When they were stopped at the very top, all alone, he again pulled her toward him and kissed her deeply, thrilling at her response to him, loving the way she moved her lips to kiss and nip along his jaw to his neck. He smiled when he heard her inhale, burying her face there, just as she always did. They embraced tightly again, and Will felt an overwhelming sense of relief and gratitude that she was here, with him, in his life again.

"I love you so much," he whispered into her ear, leaning back to kiss her again, tenderly, reverently.

When he pulled away, she was staring into his eyes, and now, he could see the love there; he could see the light that was back, shining up at him

"I love you too," she whispered, kissing him one last time before their gondola came to a halt at the bottom of the wheel.

As they exited, she thanked the attendant for keeping tabs on her bear.

"I've already thought of an appropriate name for him," she said to Will as they walked away.

"I bet you have," he said, looking at her expectantly. "And that would be...?"

"Ferris, of course."

* * *

><p><em>Leave a review if you can, I love to read them. Thanks!<em>


	46. Chapter 46

_Happy Monday all!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 46<strong>

The rest of Elizabeth's weekend went by quickly. She enjoyed her night at the fair with Will very much; it almost felt as if she was a teenager again, walking around with her beau, holding hands, playing midway games, enjoying the rides...it was just the right atmosphere for them to relax and unwind. Her tattoo was bright and colorful, and she loved Will's Maori design. He had beautifully sculpted biceps and triceps, with just the right amount of lean muscle, and with that tattoo...it gave him a little bit of an edge, and she had to admit, she found it very sexy and appealing. Once she had declared that to him, he didn't seem to feel so self-conscious about it.

Seeing him again on Sunday was an unexpected treat, as she hadn't even really planned beyond Saturday night. They spent the day at the beach again, being lazy and soaking in the sun. At one point, as they were sitting on the blanket, both of them looking toward Martha's Vineyard, Elizabeth told Will about her time spent there during the storm.

"God, your aunt and uncle must hate me," he said quietly.

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, of course they don't. My aunt...she's very wise. She gave me some good advice. I love talking to her. She's just...I don't know, she always seems to know what to say to make you think about things a little harder, to make you see things in a bigger scope, from both sides. She knows me better than my own mother, really. Vee knows who I am, she knows what makes me tick...my mother doesn't have a clue."

"I'm glad you have her in your life, to lean on. I wish your mum could see you the way Vee does. She has so much to be proud of, so much to appreciate in you, and she can't see it."

Will had looked at her then, and Elizabeth could tell he wanted to ask her something, and she already had an idea what it was. "You want to know what happened with my parents," she said. It was a statement, not a question.

He nodded. "If you want to tell me."

She sighed, and began speaking, slowly at first. "It started before I went to the Vineyard...my father said he'd come over to help me prepare the house, and my mother started harping on me about Lydia, how unfair I was being toward her...how I was taking Charlotte's side...and I just couldn't take it. I told them what she had done, and my mother didn't believe me...until I went and got the pictures. Even then, I didn't show them to her...I couldn't bring myself to do it, I chickened out. It didn't matter, she still figured out a way to blame me. Like I said to her then, some habits are just hard to break."

Will shook his head. "I'm sorry you had to go through that with them."

She looked at him, at the pensive expression on his face, and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Don't be. It's fine, it felt...it felt so _good_ to say all that. It was long overdue. When I got back from South Carolina, I went over to their condo to pick up some clothes that they'd stored for me during the storm. I knew Jane and Charles would be there, to finally – _finally_ – tell my parents about their engagement, so I figured it was a safe time to go. My mother ended up making a big deal out of the picture of you in the paper, with the new architect, and then the little article that was written...she was horrible. She said horrible things to me."

"What did she say?"

Elizabeth looked at him, her face completely devoid of expression. "She was certain that you must be involved with your new employee, and she wondered exactly what I had done to drive you off. She assumed that I must have done _something_ to lower your opinion of me." Will looked as if he wanted to say something, but she shook her head and continued speaking before he could respond. "Jane came to my defense, Charles came to yours...and then my father showed up, out of nowhere. I didn't even know he was home."

"What did he say?"

"He laid into my mum a bit, for what she had said. I think that, at that moment, he finally figured out what damage Lydia had caused. We ended up talking about Jason again, of course, because my mum just couldn't let it go...she had to drag it all up again." She paused, looking out toward the ocean. "I ended up telling them everything," she said softly. "All about the pregnancy, the miscarriage...about you finding the pictures, about Wickham..." her voice trailed off. "I told them about Georgie, too. I'm sorry, but I had to make them see, I had to make them understand..."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. "It's okay." Leaning in, he placed a soft kiss on her temple, lingering there to inhale the scent of her hair, mixed with the intoxicating smell of the sand and sea. "It must have been difficult for you, telling them about the miscarriage."

Elizabeth reflected back to that day. "You know what? It really wasn't as hard as I had always imagined it would be. It was very straightforward for me…I felt very detached. I just wanted to get it out, I guess." She shrugged, not caring to examine her feelings any further than that. "I told my mother that after everything that happened...it was bad enough that my self-esteem was shot, and that I had completely lost faith in myself and my worth. The fact that _she_ emotionally abandoned me, when I needed her the most...I needed her there to help me, to lift me up, and she just dragged me down even further. And my dad...I said some things to him, too. I told him that he avoided the issues, avoided acknowledging her treatment of me, because it was easier for him to ignore it. I let him though, really...I just let it continue, instead of calling her on it. It was easier to be in Boston, keeping my distance. Even when I moved back to the Cape, I just chose not to spend a lot of time with them."

"How did you leave things?"

She shrugged. "Unfinished, I guess. My father seemed to come to the realization that they really had made some huge mistakes, but...there's been no effort to rectify anything. He's called me a couple of times, just to check in, but he avoids talking about it. He's good at that. I haven't spoken to my mother at all, not since this happened two weeks ago. I feel like...I feel like she owes me an apology, for a lot of things, and I don't want to be the one to make the first move. I shouldn't have to be. It may be selfish, or immature, but I can't bring myself to do it."

"I don't think you _sho__uld_ do it. I think you should let her come to you."

Elizabeth looked down, picking at the blanket. "I'm worried about the wedding, worried about her making a scene."

"She won't."

She turned to look at him. "How do you know that?"

He shrugged. "She won't want to embarrass Jane, that's how I know."

She turned to look back out to the ocean. "You're probably right."

He stroked her fingers, entangled with his. "I won't let her get near you anyway, if you don't want her to. I swear, Lizzy, she won't come within twenty feet of you. She'll have to get through me first."

"My very own bodyguard," Elizabeth said quietly, turning to smile sweetly up at him.

She noticed the serious expression on his face and in his eyes, and it spoke volumes; it said he _would_ protect her, he would take care of her, and at that moment, she believed it. He smiled a little at her then, and she saw his eyes drop first to her lips, then slide lazily down her body, before returning to her eyes again. The air around them seemed to change; his eyes darkened, and after a moment that felt like an eternity, he leaned in and kissed her softly, repeatedly, until her lips were pliant and soft under his. She didn't hesitate in deepening the kiss, and he let her take over, giving her control.

Will felt his body being pushed backward to the blanket and he went willingly, electrified at the feeling of her warm body, clad only in a bikini, resting on his bare chest. The kiss grew in intensity, and he reached up to cup her face, then let his hands wander down over her shoulders, around to her back, to hold her closer to him. He rolled them so that she was under him, using his forearms to prop himself so that he wasn't putting all of his weight on top of her. Her arms wrapped around his waist, holding him tightly, pulling their hips together, entangling their legs, and he knew that she was feeling the same tug of desire.

Lifting his lips from hers, Will stared down at her, into the deep green pools looking up at him. His eyes quickly wandered down along the beach, to his left and then his right, trying to ascertain how much privacy they had. There was a small group of people in one direction, fairly far away, and a lone figure in the other direction, walking a dog toward the water's edge. Assured that they had no spectators, he returned his attention to the gorgeous woman lying beneath him, staring up at him, her eyes dark with desire.

He lowered his lips to her neck, placing warm, wet kisses from just below her earlobe to the slope of her shoulder, paying special attention to that spot when he reached it, knowing how sensitive it was to his lips and tongue and teeth, how it caused goosebumps to magically rise up along her body.

Elizabeth raised her hands to tangle in Will's hair, raking them through the soft waves, holding his head as he moved his mouth further down, to the swell of one breast. She felt one of his hands splay across her stomach, stroking her warm skin before slowly moving up, leaving a trail of heat as it went. Anticipation bloomed in her belly and rocketed through her, causing her heart to pump even faster than it already was. Suddenly his hand was there, caressing over both breasts, pushing the thin material of her bathing suit up and away, baring her skin. His fingers toyed with one sensitive peak, sending jolts of pleasure through her body.

He raised his eyes to hers yet again, sliding his body up so that his face was even with hers, but never stopping the relentless movements of his fingers. His breath was warm on her face.

"I have to taste you, Lizzy," he whispered against her lips before kissing her again, nibbling on her bottom lip when he slowly released her mouth. "I miss the taste of you."

Elizabeth could only nod, too caught up in the moment to speak. Will dragged his lips across her cheek, down to her neck again, to the little hollow at the base of her throat. From there, his tongue blazed a hot, wet trail straight to her nipple, and there was no hesitation, no time for her mind to process the pleasurable sensation, before his mouth captured her. His hand cupped her breast, kneading it gently, while he suckled hard, pulling her into his mouth, letting his tongue lave over the tight tip. She felt a thick coil of tension settle low in her belly, one that threatened to unravel as his teeth grazed her, making her breath catch in her throat.

Will released her nipple, tugging it with his teeth and lips, before turning his attention to its twin, bestowing the same hungry attention on it, while his fingers toyed with the other peak, still damp from his mouth. He felt her body moving beneath his, heard her heavy breathing, and after a few more long moments of pleasure, he made himself slowly release her, lifting his head slightly.

He realized, then, that he was planted between her legs, his erection pressed firmly against the juncture of her thighs, nestled there quite comfortably, in fact. Upon this realization, it was all he could do not to grind against her, increasing the pleasurable friction. He could feel the hard tips of her breasts against his chest, and he looked down, taking in the sight of her rosy flesh pressed firmly to his skin. Groaning softly, he very gently moved to rearrange her bathing suit, covering her up again.

Raising his head, he looked back up at her face, afraid, at first, of what he might see. Her eyes were closed, her cheeks completely flushed a vibrant pink, her chest rising and falling rapidly. _Did I push it too far?_

"Lizzy...I'm sor-"

"Stop. Don't say it," she said breathlessly, interrupting him. "Please, please don't."

His eyes opened wide, and when she finally opened her eyes to look at him, she smiled. Her hand came up to stroke his face lovingly, and she reached up to kiss his lips firmly, before dropping her head back to the blanket.

"I just-," he said, trying again, to no avail, to explain the feelings that were shooting like volts of electricity through his body.

"I know," she said, placing her fingers over his lips, quieting him. "You don't have to say anything, okay? I know we're trying to get back on track, and we're easing back into this...but I want you to touch me, and I want to touch you. I want that physical connection too. I crave it. I love you, I love the way you make me feel...I'm not going to deny myself, or you, those moments."

He looked at her, his heart in his throat, not quite sure how to respond. His body was aching with the need for relief, but he couldn't have been happier, couldn't have felt lighter. He wanted her too; the feel of her body against his, her response to him, was something he craved as well. To him, it was yet another way to express his feelings for her, a way for him to show her how much he loved and cherished her.

Will rolled onto his side and pulled her with him, wrapping her in his embrace, thrilled to have her pressed up against him. Her arms wound tightly around him, her head tucked under his chin, her skin burning against his, their legs tangled together. "I love you too, sweetheart. So much."

* * *

><p>Jane sat at Charles' desk at his home office in Boston on Sunday night, alternately chewing on and tapping a pencil, staring off into space. Charles glanced in as he passed the doorway, but his curiosity got the best of him, and he turned and walked back in to join her.<p>

He walked behind the chair, placing his hands on her shoulders, dropping a kiss on her head. "What are you doing?"

"Thinking."

"About what?"

"The wedding, of course."

"Of course. What, in particular, are you thinking about?" He lightly massaged her shoulders, working out the tension there, as he glanced over the papers spread before her, each covered with very neatly written notes.

"Lydia."

Charles' eyebrows rose. "What about her?"

"I don't know if I want her to be there or not." She spun the chair slowly so she was facing him. "Is that awful?"

Charles shook his head. "In her case? No, of course not."

"I haven't spoken to her in weeks."

"Do you want to speak with her?"

Jane shrugged. "Part of me does...just to see if she's come around at all. I don't expect that she has...she hasn't tried to contact Lizzy at all, or me. I'm pissed at her still, for the way she's behaved, but I still feel torn about not having her at the wedding. I always thought that when this day finally came..._both_ of my sisters would be there to celebrate it with me. It's sad how things can change so much, isn't it?"

"People change, babe. Lydia changed, and not for the better, obviously."

She nodded silently. Charles gently tugged her hand, urging her to stand, so that he could sit in the chair and pull her onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. "I don't know what to do."

"How would Lizzy feel if she was there?"

"She told me that it was up to me, of course. Up to us." Jane leaned back so she could look up at Charles, her blue eyes meeting his. "So it's up to us. What should we do?"

"We'll do whatever you want. Whatever you decide, I'll support you."

Jane nodded again. "Okay. I guess I'll have to think about it a little more."

They were silent a bit longer, enjoying the closeness and the quiet. Jane finally spoke again. "Did you give Will the swatch that I gave you?"

"The what?"

"The swatch? You know, the little peach colored piece of fabric."

"Oh, yes...that. I gave that to him, yes."

"So he knows what to do with it?"

"Yes. I told him to find a shirt that exact color. He was on a mission last week to find it."

"Good." She paused again, chewing her lip. "I wonder how the weekend went for them...I'm sure I'll hear about it when I talk to Lizzy this week. I told her I'd call her when we got to the Cape."

"You'll hear the details from Lizzy, and I won't hear a word from Will."

Jane raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Really. He's staying mum on everything that happens. He's terrified he'll do something to screw it up again."

She thought about their parting words when she saw Will a week before. "We'll see, won't we?"

* * *

><p>Georgiana was up early Monday morning. She was still in Boston, but had plans to return to the Cape tomorrow. The teachers could move into their classrooms anytime this week, and she was looking forward to settling in and meeting some of her new co-workers.<p>

Her cell phone rang at eight-twenty, and she was surprised to see Matt's number on the caller ID. He didn't usually call in the morning.

"Hello Matty," she said cheerfully, using his childhood nickname.

"Hi Georgie," he said quietly. "How are you today?"

"I'm fine, just like I was last night when you talked to me before I went to bed."

"Good, good. Um, is Will around? Did he get home?"

"He did, although I don't think he's staying in Boston much longer. He's desperate to be back on the Cape for good. Charles and Jane are headed there today, they both have this week off to get ready for the wedding."

"Is he up yet?"

Georgie's brows furrowed. "Why? What's going on?"

He sighed. "Have you seen The Globe?"

Her stomach dropped. "No, not yet...why? What's in it?"

"Someone must have said something to the press about...about your case, about Wickham...the pictures, everything."

Georgiana's breath caught. "What? Oh no. Who...who would do that?"

She heard Matt sigh on the other end of the line. "I don't know, Georgie."

"Where did you see it?"

"At work. The paper was on the table in the employee lounge, I just started flipping through it...I was shocked to see the story. It's not front page news, but it's there. They talk about there being pictures of you, that you were claiming to be drugged and raped, but that the charges were dropped for lack of evidence."

"_Claiming_?" Georgie said loudly.

At that moment, she heard Will coming down the stairs. He walked into the kitchen, showered and dressed, whistling happily. He glanced at Georgiana, and the smile instantly disappeared from his face. "What's wrong?"

"Matt...I have to go. I have to talk to Will."

"Okay. Georgie, I'm sorry. I'll...I'll come over right after work, okay?"

She nodded. "Okay. I'll see you then. Bye."

"Bye."

Will was staring at her. "Why do you need to talk to me? What's going on?"

Georgiana left the kitchen and walked to the front door of the brownstone, opening it to retrieve The Globe and The Herald from the stoop. Walking back into the kitchen, she set The Herald aside, and quickly laid out The Globe, looking through it. She froze when she found what she was looking for, and as she read the article, her hand rose to cover her mouth. Will came to read over her shoulder, and she heard his breathing change as he scanned the article.

"What the hell is this?" he asked, frustration evident in his voice. "Who talked to the paper?"

Georgiana shook her head, on the verge of tears. "I don't know. I thought...I thought it would be left alone, I thought it would be nothing, now that the charges were dropped. Who...who would do this?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure as hell going to find out."

He stalked out of the kitchen and up the stairs to his office, sitting behind his desk and pulling up Maggie Harper's number on his phone. She picked up immediately.

"Good morning, Mr. Darcy."

"Good morning, Maggie. Actually, it's not a good morning at all."

"I imagine it isn't. I know why you're calling, I've seen the paper."

"Then maybe you'll be able to give me an answer when I ask you who the _hell_ is responsible for this?"

"I wish I knew. Unfortunately, my first thought is that the public defender working for Mr. Wickham and Mr. Collins may have leaked something...I told you, he was anxious for some notoriety, and with the plea bargain, he's not getting as much as he'd hoped for. I have some good news, though, that I was intending to call your sister with this morning. As much as it won't erase what's been done, I think it will make you both happy. Is she there with you?"

"Yes, she is..." he lowered the phone, and walked to the top of the stairs. "Georgie?"

He heard her quiet answer from below. "Yes?"

"Could you come upstairs for a minute?"

When Georgie entered his office, he put his cell on speaker phone. "Okay, Maggie, she's here."

"Georgiana, first let me apologize for what has happened. I promise you, we'll be looking into it, we'll try to find out who gave the information to the press."

"I would appreciate that, Maggie, thank you."

As always, Will was amazed at his sister's poise. Not five minutes ago, she was on the verge of tears. Now, she was the picture of serenity.

"I wanted to let you both know that George Wickham has been named as a suspect in another rape case."

Both siblings were shocked into silence. Will's heart was pounding madly in his chest.

Maggie spoke up. "Mr. Darcy? Georgiana?"

"I...we heard you," Georgiana said. "Does this mean...does this mean he'll go to jail?"

"Well, it's too soon to say, of course, but...it certainly looks that way. This...this victim went to the police right away, within hours of the assault, and was then taken to the emergency room. They were able to put together DNA evidence, and also performed a drug test that came up positive for Rohypnol. Wickham's DNA was a match to the evidence in this woman's case."

"Oh, my God," Georgiana said softly. She sank down onto the couch in Will's office, her whole body shaking. "This...this could be it, this could be what puts him away."

"It could very well be," Maggie replied.

Will sat at his desk, his head in his hands, overwhelmed with relief. No, it didn't take away the pain of what was in the paper this morning, but it sure as hell helped to ease it.

"As for everything else," Maggie went on, "I'll do my best to get to the bottom of it."

"Can you...will you be able to tell us anything more about this other case?" Georgiana asked.

"I'm afraid not. I will let you know what the eventual outcome is, although you know it could be quite a while before the case is tried. Mr. Wickham will be locked up for a long while yet."

"The longer, the better," Will replied quietly, taking a deep breath. "Thank you Maggie."

"Yes, thank you again Maggie," Georgiana echoed her brother.

"You're both very welcome. I'll be in touch."

The call was disconnected, and Will stared at Georgiana, disbelief etched on his face.

"It's going to be okay," Georgiana said, standing up and smiling slightly at her brother. "I'm leaving for the Cape tomorrow...The Globe can go to hell. I'm getting out of Boston and going home."

Will stood and walked around his desk, smiling back at her before reaching out to hug her. "We're both getting out of Boston...we're both going home."

* * *

><p>Jane woke slowly Tuesday morning, wrapped up in her fiancé's arms, feeling a little bit sluggish. Charles had gotten it into his head the previous night that they needed to celebrate the fact that they were officially in 'honeymoon' mode, even though they weren't yet married. Both were done with work for the week; Jane had apprised another paralegal in her office of the work she had been doing on a couple of tenantlandlord disputes, and Charles had handed off everything to do with RJD Properties to his partners, giving strict instructions that he was not to hear from a single one of them unless the company was on the verge of collapse.

As soon as they had arrived in New Seabury, early Monday afternoon, he had insisted on opening a bottle of champagne to celebrate what he was calling their 'pre-wedding honeymoon.' They reviewed all the plans for the wedding, which didn't take long, as it was basically a small affair. There were less than fifty guests invited, including family, and they were thrilled that everything had fallen into place, considering they hadn't really given themselves a lot of time to plan. Their honeymoon, which they would spend at an exclusive resort in the Maldives, would begin the day after the wedding and would last ten days.

When they finished all the wedding talk, they had curled up on the couch in the great room, choosing to stay inside due to the cloudy weather, which promised rain. They were both quiet, lying there comfortably, but it didn't take long for proximity and opportunity to stimulate other thoughts, and before long they were running upstairs, half dressed, laughing and racing each other to see who could get to the bedroom first.

They hadn't returned downstairs again, with the exception of Charles going down sometime around nine o'clock to grab them a snack and make sure everything was locked up.

Jane stretched and yawned lazily, grinning as she looked back on their mostly sleepless night. Her grin changed to a full smile as she felt Charles' warm lips on the back of her neck, his body pressing tightly to hers, strong arms and legs wrapping her up in a spoon.

"Good morning soon-to-be-wife," he said, his voice scratchy with sleep.

"Good morning almost-husband," Jane replied, rolling over to face him. He kissed her nose, then her lips, slowly and sweetly. She snuggled into his chest contentedly. "Is this what I can expect from married life? Going to bed at five in the afternoon, making love all night, getting very little sleep…is this going to be the norm for us?"

Charles chuckled. "I hope so. It would be nice, wouldn't it?"

"Mmm…very nice."

"We can do this every night this week, you know. No interruptions, no guests...just us, all alone, practicing the consummation aspect of married life."

Jane laughed. "Is that what we're doing?"

"With my body, I thee worship..."

She poked his chest. "You better make sure you have enough energy to worship me on my wedding night. Although, I'm sure you'll have some stored up, left over from Friday night...you know we won't be together, right?"

Charles' eyes opened wide. "Why not?"

"Because it's the night before the wedding."

"So?"

Jane rolled her eyes. "You're such a guy. You'll see me Friday, then not again until the wedding on Saturday."

"Where are you going to stay Friday night?"

"Here."

Charles looked momentarily confused. "You're kicking me out of my own house?"

She laughed at the look on his face. "Mmhm. And it will soon be _our_ house, you know. Anyway, you need to talk to Will to see if you can crash at his place. Lizzy is going to stay with me, and Georgiana can come stay here too, if she wants. I might even ask my Aunt Vee to join us."

"What if Will says no?"

Jane raised an eyebrow. "Really? He won't say no, not if he knows that Elizabeth will be a five minute walk down the beach from him. Of course he'll say yes."

Charles sighed, knowing she was right. Suddenly he reached for her, pulling her body over his so that she was straddling his hips. She watched as his gaze traveled lazily down her bare body before returning to her eyes, and he shifted his hips slightly, causing her to smile and arch an eyebrow again. "May I ask what you're doing?"

He grinned up at her as his hands slid up her thighs. "Well...since I won't get to see you Friday night...I thought I'd do a little worshiping now to make up for it."

She smiled and bit her bottom lip as his hands traveled higher. "Amen to that."

* * *

><p>The decision of whether to call Lydia or not was taken out of Jane's hands later that morning, when her cell phone rang. She was standing in the kitchen, wearing one of Charles' t-shirts, and was surprised to see Lydia's name flash across the screen. For a moment, she just stared at the phone, but then decided to grab the bull by the horns.<p>

"Hello Lydia," she said quietly.

"Hi...hi Jane. Um, how are you? How are things?"

"Things are fine. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm good. I'm okay, I guess. Are you ready for the weekend?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose."

"Are you...are you nervous at all? I mean, the whole getting married thing...are you getting the jitters or anything?"

"No, not really."

"Oh. Oh, well that's good then."

Jane took a deep breath. _Enough with the small talk._ "I'm glad you called, actually."

"You are?"

"Well...yes, I was going to call you anyway."

"Oh...about what?"

"About the wedding." Jane paused, not sure how she wanted to say what she needed to say. She decided to just say it, bluntly, consequences and hurt feelings be damned. "I've been thinking about whether you should be there or not."

There was silence on the other end of the phone, and Jane felt her cheeks flush with guilt. "Lydia?"

"I'm here."

Jane was surprised at the tone in her sister's voice. She sounded sad, or contrite...not angry or indifferent, as she had expected.

"I'm sorry if that hurts your feelings, but...I don't think you've fully grasped what has been happening over the past few weeks. I don't think you understand the damage that's been done."

"I know you think that, and I don't blame you. I do understand, though. I know what I did. I know who I hurt."

"Do you Lydia? Have you called Lizzy to try to talk to her?"

"Not yet," Lydia said, almost whispering. "I will, though. I know I have to."

"You have to? Or you want to?"

"I want to. Mum called me to tell me about the article in one of the Boston papers about Will's sister. I read it...I can't believe George did those things...even though he won't get in trouble, I know he's guilty. He must be."

"So now you believe it because it's in the newspaper? You couldn't believe your own sisters, but because it's in print, it's suddenly the truth? And he _will_ get in trouble...they connected him to another rape, Will found out yesterday. He'll be in jail for a long time, Lydia."

Lydia inhaled sharply. "Oh my God."

Jane went on with what she needed to say. "My biggest fear, Lydia, is that you'll come to my wedding, and you'll embarrass me, or you'll embarrass yourself. I refuse to let that happen. I just told Charles a couple of nights ago that I never envisioned getting married without both of my sisters by my side, but if it has to happen without you, if I can't trust you..." Her voice trailed off.

"I'm so sorry," Lydia whispered, her voice shaky. "I don't know what's happened to me. I can't believe I did that to Lizzy, that I...that I treated her that way."

Jane's eyebrows furrowed, and suddenly she felt Charles' hands on her shoulders, tugging her toward him. She leaned back against his chest, grateful for the support. He kissed her head, but didn't move away from her, instead wrapping his arms around her waist, holding her tight. "Why the sudden change of heart, Lydia?"

"It's...it's not very sudden. I've been thinking about everything, since the day Lizzy came to my house. Then dad...he talked to me. He asked me about the pictures...he was so ashamed of me. It woke me up, I guess."

This made sense, at least, to Jane. Lydia had always been the child that could do no wrong in their parent's eyes, and she thrived in that role. For her to be slightly lowered in their opinion must have been an eye-opener.

"You need to call Lizzy," Jane said.

"I know...I will, I promise. I'm just...I'm scared, I guess."

Jane sighed. "Lydia, really...it's _Lizzy_, for crying out loud."

"She was so angry with me, Jane...and I said some horrible things..."

"I know you did. It's about time you tried to fix it, don't you think?" She paused. "I would like for you to be at my wedding, Lydia, I really would, but I refuse to worry about if you'll behave or not."

"I want to be there, Jane...I want to see you marry Charles. I promise you, you won't have to worry about me at all. It's your decision, obviously, but...I really would like to be there."

Jane closed her eyes, leaning further back into Charles. "I'll call you in a couple of days, okay?"

"Okay," Lydia agreed quietly. "I'll talk to you soon. Bye Jane."

"Bye Lydia."

* * *

><p>Will and Georgiana were both up early Tuesday morning, in anticipation of their trip back to the Cape. Both were eager to leave the city behind, although Georgiana was sad that she wouldn't be able to see Matt on a moment's notice.<p>

"I just have one quick, um, appointment this morning," Will said to Georgie as they sipped coffee at his brownstone. "I don't think it will take long. I'll be back in an hour or two, if that's okay?"

"That's fine, I'm not in a rush...well, I am...but I'm not. You know what I mean." She smiled at him, rolling her eyes.

He grinned back. "I do know what you mean, believe me. I'll be back as soon as I can, and we'll hit the road."

Twenty minutes later, Will was jogging up the steps to Mrs. Reynolds' apartment building. She was expecting him, and buzzed him right in.

Once again, they were seated at her small kitchen table. Will had ostensibly come to say goodbye, even though he knew he'd see her at the wedding on Saturday.

They had just finished discussing the horrible story in the newspaper, and Will had also filled her in about the recent developments involving George Wickham.

"Well, what a relief," Mrs. Reynolds stated, her hand at her chest. "At least that rotten man will be in jail. It doesn't matter how he gets there, as long as he's there."

"I agree."

"Now, I need to know...did you have a nice weekend?"

Will looked at her curiously. "Yes...why are you asking?"

"Georgiana told me you went to the Cape to spend some time with Elizabeth."

_Of course she did_. He nodded, grinning. "I did."

"It went well?"

"Yes. We went to the fair, actually."

"Oh, I haven't gone to the fair in years and years," she said, smiling widely at him.

He pushed up the sleeve of his t-shirt. "See what I got while I was there?"

Mrs. Reynolds' eyes nearly popped out of her head. "Oh, William! You got a tattoo? A _tattoo_? After all this time? What's next, are you going to go out and get your...your _ear_ pierced?" She stopped talking when she saw the smile on his face and heard him laughing. "What, may I ask, is so funny?"

"It's fake, Mrs. R, it's not real. It'll wash off in a few days."

She reached over and lightly slapped him on the arm. "Troublemaker."

He chuckled. "Lizzy got one too."

"Lizzy?"

Will blushed. "Elizabeth."

"Are you two talking things out?"

"Yes, we are. I've never talked with anyone before, even Georgie, they way I've talked to Elizabeth. Even before we had our...our falling out. She's always been easy to talk to, easy to confide in. So, in between all the talking, I've been doing a lot of thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

"A lot of different things. Myself, mostly. I think I've connected some dots, but I still don't know." He paused, staring off into space for a long moment. "I hate the thought of failing at anything. Anything at all. It terrifies me."

Mrs. Reynolds raised her eyebrows. "It always has."

His eyebrows raised. "Really?"

She thought for a moment before speaking. "I shouldn't say that, because I don't think it's really failure that you were afraid of. It was more that you were always worried about letting people down."

"Is there a difference? If you let someone down, you fail them."

She nodded. "True, but the two don't always go hand in hand. I remember one instance, though, when you were younger...you were probably about eleven or twelve. You got in a heap of trouble for something...I don't remember what it was now, but your mother was angry, I remember that."

Will searched his memory. "I'm pretty sure I remember what you're talking about." In fact, he knew _exactly_ what she was referring to. His mother had brought a friend home, and Will had greeted the friend with a fairly disdainful and cocky attitude. At least, looking back on it now, that's how he remembers it. His mother had waited until her guest had left, and then proceeded to lay into Will about his arrogant behavior, and how he wasn't being raised to treat people that way. She had been embarrassed and ashamed of him, and it was like a slap across the face.

"I'm sure you remember to, it caused you quite a bit of upset. You came to visit me at the house that day, and you tried so hard to hold back your tears, but you just couldn't do it. Your mother's disappointment in you had devastated you. You were so upset that you had made her unhappy. Do you remember what she told you that day, after you went back home?"

"Vaguely." He really didn't remember, though, what she had said, other than the part about being unhappy with him.

"You told me what she said to you, and I remember it quite clearly. She said that her love, and your father's love, was unconditional. She said that there were bound to be times when she would be disappointed in you, or upset with you, but that she would always love you, unconditionally."

Will was surprised at this...he had almost said those very words to Elizabeth not too long ago. Maybe he had them locked away all this time, in his subconscious. He was silent again for a long moment, trying hard to retrieve the memory from wherever it was stored away. His voice was quiet when he finally spoke. "I don't want to let anyone else down, Mrs. R...I feel like I've done that so much already."

She looked at him in confusion. "Who do you think you've let down?"

He grunted. "Georgie. My parents, too...mostly my father. Elizabeth..."

"How have you let Georgiana down?"

"How? Look at what happened to her..."

"You weren't responsible for that."

"But I _was_ responsible, in a way...I said I would look out for her, I told my mother I would before she died, and after my father died, I made that promise again, to him. I promised I would _always_ look out for her, and I didn't. And now...she's gone through so much...she's _going_ through so much, still. So, not only did I fail my sister, I failed my parents. I didn't keep my promise."

Mrs. Reynolds watched him, letting him speak. He didn't raise his eyes, staring only at the table in front of him, his fingers slowly and repeatedly tracing over a small chip in the veneer.

"I made it even worse when I thought all those horrible things about her. If my parents had been alive, they never would have thought that."

"But they also wouldn't have been able to prevent what happened to her. You've got to let go of that guilt once and for all, William. You have not failed your parents; if anything, they would be proud to see how you've taken care of Georgiana, how you've helped her heal and come back to herself."

Will remained silent as different thoughts bounced around in his head. "Richard...we had a run-in when I was in Boston for the Arts Alive Benefit. I won't go into the gory details, but I know, now, why I reacted to the...situation the way I did. If anything happened to hurt RJD, if anything I did led to its demise...I wouldn't be able to live with that. My father worked so hard to build that company up...if it was destroyed, under my watch..." His voice trailed off. "This whole architecture thing...I'm excited about it, but...I'm a wreck about it too. Elizabeth came up with the name, you know. She came up with FRD Design. It's brilliant, really...at least if it fails, if this branch goes belly-up, it'll all be on my name, not my father's."

"What makes you think it will go belly-up?"

He shook his head. "It's not that I think it _will_...but the possibility exists, doesn't it?"

"Well, I guess so...but you're not seeing the bigger picture here, William. Has RJD grown since you've taken over?"

"Yes, it has grown tremendously."

"Then why are you so focused on the possibility of failure, on a 'what if'? Why aren't you focused on what your abilities are, what you've been able to do in the ten years that you've been at the helm of that company?"

He thought for a minute, then shrugged. "I don't know." He didn't know what else to say, because he honestly _didn't _know why he couldn't focus on the positive things he'd done so far. It was as if these thoughts, these worries, were just a part of him that was always there.

"I think the whole thing with Lizzy – Elizabeth – was that I had always kept people...well, women...at an arms length. I thought about what my father had said about trusting people, and I was always able to keep my emotional involvement at a minimum. I wasn't rude, I treated every woman I was involved with, with respect, and I genuinely _liked_ them...but I never, ever let it get beyond that. I was too worried about what that would mean...would I be setting myself up to be taken advantage of? Even friends...I have a few male friends, but the only one I'm really close to is Charles, and only because I've known him all my life. And Richard, of course, but he's family."

He sighed deeply, and Mrs. Reynolds watched him, watched the expressions on his face as he figured out where this was all headed.

"Then Lizzy came along...and it was like I had no way of stopping all these...feelings. She made me feel like I was sixteen again, nursing my first crush. She was so...different. Down to earth. Independent. She has such a strong sense of who she is...she didn't care about my wallet, the size of my house, or what kind of car I drove...or the so called 'high society' of Boston...she just cared about me, as a person. Who I was, inside."

"That's a wonderful feeling, isn't it?" Mrs. Reynolds said softly, "to be loved for who you are, not for what you have?"

Will closed his eyes and nodded. "It is."

He was quiet again as his mind began playing back his entire relationship with Elizabeth. He became absorbed in the memories, as if watching a silent film.

"I think that's why I reacted so strongly...I know what I was doing, all that time. I know I was waiting, really, for something to happen, to prove that it was all a lie, and maybe she was just better at it than all the others. I know it's awful, but that's really what I thought. Deep down, that trust just wasn't there yet, and it's almost like it wasn't supposed to be, like I was going against the grain, going against my instincts or something. Then, the second part of that was that feeling again. Like I had to say, 'sorry dad, but I let that one get through. She got to me. Sorry I let my guard down. Sorry..." His voice trailed off once again.

Mrs. Reynolds laid her hand on top of his, stilling his busy fingers. "Sorry what?"

Will cleared his throat. "Sorry I let him down. Again."

"Oh, William. I wish I knew what to say. Your initial feelings about Elizabeth were right, though, don't you see that? Your first inclination was to trust her, to be yourself with her...you saw who she really was, who she really is." She stared at him for a moment, and patted his hand again, making him look up into her eyes. "You have to let go of your father's ghost. I'm sure that he can see you now...in fact, I'm sure that _both_ of your parents are looking down on you, and I know that they're proud of the man you have become. You are everything they wanted in a son, everything they knew you could be."

He couldn't pull his eyes away from hers. _Is she right? Am I that man? _Why, after all these years, after all the success he had enjoyed, after finally finding himself in a loving relationship...why did he need so badly to hear those words? He felt his eyes filling, and lowered them back to the table, not wanting to be that eleven year old boy again, the one that had cried on Mrs. Reynolds' shoulder.

"Let it go, William."

This time, when he raised his eyes to hers, he let the tears fall, simply because it was too much effort to hold them in anymore. Mrs. Reynolds leaned forward and wrapped him in her arms, and he let go a shaky sigh of relief, feeling like he finally would be able to do just that; he would finally let it go.

He would finally be able to let him go.

* * *

><p><em>I will post the next chapter sometime on Wednesday, and then you will all be officially caught up with my writing! I do hope to have the new chapter finished in time to post this weekend. Please leave a review! Thanks.<em>


	47. Chapter 47

_This chapter is different in that it really only contains three scenes, but in my eyes, I felt that each needed a chunk of time. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 47<strong>

Elizabeth's phone rang bright and early Wednesday morning, minutes before her alarm clock sounded off. She knew, without looking, that it would be Will. He had called her when he arrived back on the Cape last night, and she felt an overwhelming sense of happiness when he said he was back for good. Although she had loved talking to him on the phone for the past ten days – sometimes two or three times a day – she was looking forward, now, to seeing him more frequently. The past weekend was a reminder of just how much she loved being with him, being in his presence.

Although it was still there, her anger _was_ slowly fading, and it was almost as if she was beginning to view their time apart as another step in their relationship. Will had told her, a long time ago, that her past contributed to the person she was now, the person she had become. In that light, it was easier for her to look at the disruption in their relationship and their time apart in a similar vein; ultimately, it was partly responsible for the commitment they were making toward each other now, one that would make their relationship healthier, their bond stronger. She would never be happy that things happened the way they did, of course, but if it strengthened their love and their trust in each other, if it deepened their connection...at least she could say that something good had come out of it.

She grabbed her phone from the nightstand and answered it sleepily.

"Good morning."

"Hi Lizzy."

Lydia's timid voice was not what Elizabeth was expecting to hear, and she was completely caught off guard.

"Oh...Lydia."

"Um, sorry to call so early, I wanted to catch you before you left for work."

Elizabeth was silent, unsure of what to say. She was still angry at Lydia, but more than that, she was hurt. She had never done anything but be supportive and loving to her younger sister, and could not understand how Lydia could turn against her as she had.

"What do you want, Lyddie?"

"I was hoping that maybe we could talk."

"You're talking to me now."

"No, I want to talk to you face to face. In person."

Elizabeth closed her eyes and sighed. "Why? The last time we tried to have a conversation it didn't go very well, if you recall. Why would I want to put myself through that again?"

"Please, Lizzy...can you just meet me?"

Elizabeth sighed again, this time shaking her head. "Where?"

"Oh, I don't know...um, how about the Bell Tower when you get out of work?"

"No, that's no good." The Bell Tower held sweet memories of Will, and she didn't want them marred by a conversation with Lydia. "What about The Knob?"

"The Knob is fine."

"I get out of work at four, so I'll be there right after."

"Okay, I'll be there." Lydia's voice softened. "Thanks Lizzy."

"Bye Lydia."

Elizabeth ended the call feeling slightly on edge. Was Lydia going to make excuses for her behavior, try to gloss it over somehow? If that's what this 'meeting' was all about, it would be the shortest meeting in history. Elizabeth was not going to tolerate more excuses from her sister.

Her phone rang again, and this time it was Will.

"Good morning gorgeous," he said quietly.

She smiled. "Good morning Will. How are you?"

"Better now. How about you? How'd you sleep?"

"Oh, I slept just fine...it was the waking up that wasn't so pleasant."

He chuckled. "That doesn't bode well for me."

"Oh, no, it's not you. Of course it's not you. It's Lydia."

"Lydia?"

"She called...I just got off the phone with her. She wants to see me."

"Really?"

"Yes. She wants to _talk_. If it was anyone else, I'd suspect that it was to apologize, but with her...I can't make any assumptions. She sounded different on the phone...almost sad. _But_, because this is Lydia, you never know what you're gonna get, so..."

"Are you going to see her?"

"Yes, I told her I'd meet her at The Knob after work."

"Do you really want to do this?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I think so. I'm angry still, and hurt, but it's not like I want our relationship to be like this forever. I want it to go back to how it used to be, when us three girls were all best friends. I miss that. I want her to understand what she's done, though...I don't want her to think she can just mouth the words and be done with it."

"I hope it works out." In actuality, he had a lot of ambivalence toward Lydia too, but felt that he didn't have the right to say anything, because ultimately it wasn't her actions, but his response to them, that led to the breakdown of his relationship with Elizabeth.

"Thanks. We'll see, I guess. So, on to better things...what are you up to today?"

"Work, as usual. It feels nice to be back in this office though...an ocean view is much nicer than the view of a city street. I'm working on my toast for the wedding, too...I'd forgotten all about it."

"Oh, that's right...your big moment."

"Mmm, yeah, my big moment all right. I hope I don't screw it up. Charles tells me you're spending the night at his house on Friday?"

"I am. Jane and I are having a pre-wedding girls night. She mentioned asking Georgie too, but I don't think she has yet. How is she doing?"

"I think she's okay...she's excited about her job, she gets to move into her classroom this week."

"That _is_ exciting. I'm glad she's doing well and focusing on other things...positive things."

"Me too. Speaking of positive things...when do I get to see you again?"

Elizabeth smiled into the phone. "Maybe not til Friday, at the rehearsal."

"Friday! Friday? That's not acceptable. I can't wait until Friday."

She laughed. "I have the next two days off, but I'll be completely consumed with helping Jane."

"You won't even be able to spare an hour?"

She sighed dramatically. "Ohh, I think I'll be able to find an hour somewhere. Especially since I'll be at Charles' house a lot. Maybe I'll pop by to visit you unexpectedly."

"That would be a nice treat."

She grinned. "I'll see what I can work out."

"Okay. I'll call you later anyway...or you can call me, if you want, after you see Lydia."

"I'll probably take you up on that."

"I hope you do. Bye sweetheart, have a good day."

"You too Will...bye."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth rode her bike along Quissett Harbor, down to the entrance of the trail that led up to The Knob. As she climbed off her bike to lock it to the rack there, she noticed Lydia's car in the parking lot. Ten minutes later, she was at the end of the trail, which opened up to a small, somewhat rocky beach. Lydia was there, sitting on a blanket, staring out at the ocean. A man and a woman with three small children were playing further down the beach, but other than that, it was empty.<p>

Lydia happened to glance toward the trail, and noticed Elizabeth heading her way. She stood up from the blanket, and Elizabeth noticed she seemed to be nervous, clasping her hands together distractedly.

"Hi Lizzy," Lydia said quietly as Elizabeth came to stand near her.

"Hi Lydia."

Lydia turned to look back out toward the water. "I haven't been here in so long. We used to come here all the time, remember? You and Jason and Denny and me."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes slightly. "I remember. It seems like a lifetime ago."

"It was...it _was_ a lifetime ago. We had some fun, though, didn't we?"

"Did you want to meet with me purely to reminisce? Because I really have no desire to do that, especially where Jason is concerned."

Lydia's eyes opened wide. "No, no, that's...that's not why I wanted to see you. I wanted to talk to you about everything. Everything that's happened."

"What exactly is 'everything'?"

"Just...everything. I don't know where to start."

"I can't help you there."

"Why are you being so snappy?" Lydia said, her tone of voice suddenly changing.

Elizabeth's brows flew up. _There_ was the Lydia she knew. "Snappy? Seriously? I'll go there if you want me to, Lydia, but it would just be a repeat of our last conversation, and like I said on the phone this morning, that one didn't go very well. How do you expect me to act toward you? Do you think that just because you picked up the phone and called me, everything will be hunky dory with us?"

Lydia's voice immediately softened. "No, I don't think that. I know I have to apologize, I know that's what I have to do."

"You're right, you owe me an apology. Unless you really mean it, though, I don't even want you to say the words. If you don't mean them, if you just say them because you think it's what you're supposed to do...it won't change anything."

"I _do_ mean them, though...I _am_ sorry."

"For what?"

"For what?"

"Yes, Lydia, for what? What exactly are you sorry for?"

"For staying at your house...it wasn't even my idea, it was George's, he thought of it."

Elizabeth closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I don't want to hear excuses."

"I'm not making excuses," Lydia said, but then she was quiet for a moment. "Okay, maybe I am making excuses. I knew what we were doing was wrong, but...I was angry at you, I guess."

"For what?"

"You were taking Charlotte's side."

"What did you expect? She's one of my best friends, and what you were doing was completely wrong! You were sneaking around behind her back with her boyfriend." She paused for a moment, shaking her head in disbelief.

After a few moments of silence, in which Lydia stared down at the blanket, Elizabeth spoke again. "You know what? This goes much further back than all this crap with George Wickham. Over the past year – maybe more – you've thought it was perfectly all right to walk all over me. Your comments about me, my personal life, my dating habits...they've been fair game for you. Why is that? What did I ever do to you to make you think you were justified in treating me that way?"

Lydia shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about. You didn't do anything."

"You _do_ know what I'm talking about, don't play stupid with me. You need to explain to me what changed between us. One minute we were friends, the next minute I became the butt of your callous jokes."

"I don't know," Lydia said, hesitating slightly, "it's just...I think I felt a little bit left behind. I was jealous, I think."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "Jealous? Of what?"

"Just...jealous. You and Jane...you have the fancy jobs, you don't have to rely on mum and dad...you both have it so together, and I...I don't."

"Whose fault is that?"

Lydia shrugged, still staring at the blanket. "Mine, I guess."

"You _guess?_" Elizabeth shook her head. "Jealous," she muttered to herself. She turned back to Lydia. "You know, that doesn't really fly, because you _never_ treat Jane the way you treat me."

"I couldn't."

Elizabeth looked at her, obviously confused. "You couldn't?"

"No, I couldn't," Lydia replied quietly. "You...you were always being picked on by mum. It made it easier, I guess...if I had said anything about Jane, mum would have been all over me."

Elizabeth raised both hands to cover her face, sighing loudly. "I can't listen to this."

"I'm sorry, Lizzy, but you wanted the truth, and I'm being truthful. I know it's awful, what I did and why, but it's the truth. In dad's eyes, you were perfect, but I knew that in mum's eyes, you were far from it."

"You've always had them eating out of the palm of your hand, Lydia! What are you talking about?"

"Oh, I know. Mum especially, I think. But dad...he loves me, he spoils me, but only because he couldn't be interested in really investing his time with me. He just gave me whatever I asked for, and let me run wild. You, though...you're his favorite. I know it, Jane knows it-"

"And yet Jane doesn't shit on me like you do," Elizabeth said flatly. She paused, shaking her head again. "You need to grow up, Lydia. I really don't think you're sorry about anything – or maybe you are, maybe you're sorry about the way things turned out. George leaving you high and dry, then getting arrested...dad being ashamed of you...I think you feel sorry for yourself more than anything."

"It's not true, Lizzy. I called Charlotte to apologize to her."

"You called her?"

"Yes."

"What did she say?"

"She...she thanked me, actually. Said I did her a favor, snatching up George like that, since he turned out to be such a fucking lunatic."

Elizabeth let out a short laugh, imagining those very words coming out of Charlotte's mouth. "Okay, Lydia, answer me this. If George hadn't turned out to be a _fucking_ _lunatic_, would you have taken it upon yourself to call her? If you were still seeing George...would you have bothered?"

Lydia thought a bit before answering. She swallowed audibly. "I don't know," she whispered.

They were quiet for a long while, standing apart, staring out at the ocean. Elizabeth realized that being with Lydia made her feel empty, for lack of a better word. She didn't feel the need to rebuild their bond, because that bond had been pretty much trampled to death at this point. That desire to reconnect just wasn't there yet. Finally, Elizabeth asked what had been on her mind for weeks. "What happened to Denny?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, what happened to him? He was here, then gone. Were you ever up front with him?"

"Um, well, yes, eventually."

"Eventually?"

Lydia cleared her throat and looked down at the blanket, pushing it down into the sand with her right foot. "He actually saw me with George one night, so...he left. Went back to Maine."

"He saw you? Where?"

"At...at my house. He came over unexpectedly one night, and George was there."

Elizabeth stared at Lydia's blushing cheeks. "He walked in on the two of you, didn't he?"

Lydia nodded.

"That's one more person you need to apologize to."

"I don't know why I need to apologize to him...I never made him any promises."

Elizabeth felt like screaming. "Ugh, you just don't get it! You may not have made him any promises, but you _did_ lead him to believe that you were interested in him. You encouraged him, whether you want to admit it or not. You weren't honest with him, Lydia; you took advantage of his feelings for you."

Lydia shrugged. "Maybe I'll call him."

Elizabeth knew she wouldn't.

"Look," Lydia continued, "I know that this isn't going to get solved today. I know that I have a lot of growing up to do, and I know I've made horrible mistakes, and I _am_ sorry, especially for hurting you. Mum told me everything, about those pictures and what they did to you and Willy, about his sister and George...I've heard it all. Dad can't even stand to look at me...I know what I did, Elizabeth, and I am truly sorry. I don't know what got into me."

"You're selfish, Lydia. That's what got into you. You can't see beyond yourself, and that has to change. Will and I are working on things, we're determined to make our relationship work. He's paramount to me right now...not you, _him_. He's my priority, because I know that my happiness is inextricably tied to him. I will not let you close to me, will not ever let you _near_ me again, if you threaten that in any way."

"I wouldn't do that, I swear I wouldn't."

Elizabeth raised a single eyebrow. "You'll understand if I don't immediately take you at your word, won't you?" She sighed. "This talk between us isn't going to change everything. You have to show me that you've become a different person. Right now, I'm just not feeling it; I don't think I can believe you. It's going to take time."

Lydia nodded. "Okay, I understand. What...what are you going to say to Jane?"

"Jane?"

"Yes...she told me that she wasn't sure if I should go to the wedding or not."

Elizabeth put her hands up. "That's between you and Jane. She knows how I feel about it."

"How do you feel about it?"

"Like I said, it's between you and Jane. Actually, it's between you and Charles and Jane."

"I know...I just can't imagine not being at her wedding."

For the first time that afternoon, Elizabeth thought her sister sounded genuinely upset, and well she should be; a wedding was a big deal, huge for the three sisters. If Jane excluded Lydia, there would be no going back from that.

"Jane will make the decision that's right for them," Elizabeth said firmly.

After a long moment of silence, she glanced down at her watch. "I have to go, I need to get home." Actually, she didn't need to get anywhere, she just didn't want to be there any longer. She wanted to get on the bike path and ride as fast as she could home. When she talked to Will this morning, she had told him that she didn't think she'd have time to see him; now, that's all that she wanted, to see him.

"Oh, yeah, okay. I have to get to work too. So, um...I'll talk to you soon?"

Elizabeth stared at her for a moment before nodding. "We'll talk soon," she said quietly.

Lydia stood in front of her and leaned in to hug her, and it felt awkward, making Elizabeth cringe inside. Once again, she couldn't help thinking, _how did it come to this?_

* * *

><p>"What do you mean, you're not sure if Lydia is going to be allowed at the wedding?" Mrs. Bennet was standing in the kitchen of her home on Wednesday afternoon, staring at Jane and Charles with a complete look of shock on her face. "How could you even <em>think<em> about excluding her?"

"How can you even ask me that question, mum? You know what she's done. And it's not just that...you don't know what she's like. This is a small wedding, with close friends and family. I don't know if I can trust her to behave like an adult, and not a drunken floozy."

"Don't say things like that about your sister. She's just trying to find her way-"

Jane rolled her eyes. "Stop making excuses for her. She needs to grow up, and face what she's done, face the hurt she caused Lizzy."

Charles stood back, watching everything, knowing his fiancee was perfectly capable of handling herself, and her mother, without help from him. If needed, he would step in, but she seemed to have everything well in hand. Still, he was sufficiently horrified at Mrs. Bennet and her blind ignorance where Lydia was concerned. How could she not see her daughter for who she truly is? It's bad enough that she thought so horribly of Lizzy, but to think so well of Lydia? It completely boggled his mind. _And where is Mr. Bennet?_ He was supposed to be here as well, to go over the seating arrangements for the reception. Jane's parents had asked if they could invite a few close friends from their condo development, and neither Jane nor Charles had an issue with that. If anything, they were relieved that Mrs Bennet would have people to keep her occupied. Mr. Bennet was nowhere to be found today, though. Apparently, he was 'out'.

Mrs. Bennet carried on. "So this is about Elizabeth, is it? Everyone is choosing sides once again, and Lydia is always on the losing end. When is someone going to stick up for her? Instead, it's always poor Elizabeth. Poor Lizzy. She's a grown woman too, you know. You'd think that whole situation with that Jason would have smartened her up a bit. Instead, she falls into the same trap, picking a lout who will just up and leave her-"

"Oh, so now that you know the _real_ story about Jason, you've changed your tune. It's not that Lizzy drove them away...now it's just that she picks rotten men, is that it? Jesus, mum, you're unreal. I'm telling you this...if Lydia doesn't make an honest – _honest_ – attempt at making amends with Elizabeth, I will not have her at the wedding. She's the one that drove the wedge between us, not Elizabeth. If not having Lydia at my wedding means that we'll all be happier and more relaxed, then so be it. It's _my_ wedding, and I will not be held hostage by my own sister."

Mrs. Bennet's mouth dropped open, and just as quickly, snapped shut. Her hands flew to her hips, and she squinted her eyes. "I never – _ever_ – thought that you, Jane Ellen Bennet, could be so selfish. Apparently, Lizzy is rubbing off on you. You're more like your sister than I thought you were." She paused, looking at Jane sharply. "I'm telling you this right now; if Lydia isn't at the wedding, then your father and I won't be at the wedding either."

Charles stepped forward. "Sounds like a plan to me." He wrapped his arm around Jane's waist, holding her tightly.

Jane was surprised at her mother's words (though only slightly), but shocked at Charles' words even more. She turned to look up at him, and saw that he was slightly flushed, his expression stern.

"Thank you for taking the decision out of our hands, Mrs. Bennet, we appreciate it. Jane, are you ready to go?"

"I am, yes."

"Wait...wait a second," Mrs. Bennet sputtered. "You can't-"

"Oh yes I can," Charles said calmly, "and I will. You have no right to speak to Jane that way, I won't tolerate it. This is _our_ wedding, the beginning of _our_ life together, and I won't have the memory of that day tainted by you or your youngest daughter. You have no idea what you sound like, do you? The way you're trying to manipulate Jane, the way you criticize Elizabeth, the way you make excuses for Lydia...you should be mortified. Embarrassed."

Jane's eyes were wide, watching her mother's face and the many expressions that played across it. She wanted Charles to speak his mind. It was his wedding too, _their_ wedding, and he had to be a part of these decisions.

"I've sat back, watching, observing the way this family...functions, I guess, which it really doesn't...and I've decided that I can't stay quiet. If keeping you and Lydia away from us on Saturday is going to make for a better, happier day, then believe me, you won't set one foot in that chapel or on my property. Unless you can treat Jane, and Elizabeth, with some amount of civility, and until you can genuinely apologize to them both...you will no longer be welcome at the wedding. That's _my_ decision. It's a shame your husband isn't here right now, seeing as he's so relieved to have another man in the family. If he has an issue with any of this, he's more than welcome to come see me, I'd be more than happy to discuss everything with him. Goodbye Mrs. Bennet."

They walked out of the condo, leaving a mute Mrs. Bennet standing in her kitchen, and ten minutes later they were headed back to Charles' house in his car. He turned to look at Jane, and noticed tears steadily tracking down her cheeks. She was silent, wasn't making a bit of noise, not even a sniffle, but the tears were unmistakably there. Charles immediately pulled the car off the road.

Pulling Jane gently into his arms, he rubbed her back and quietly soothed her, whispering into her ear that everything would be fine, they would be just fine. They sat like that for a few long minutes, until her tears eventually slowed.

"I know we'll be fine," Jane said into his shoulder as she wiped her eyes on his shirt. "I'm not worried about that. Our wedding will be beautiful, I know it will be." She pulled back to look at him, sniffling slightly. Reaching up, she kissed him softly, raising one hand to caress his cheek before slowly pulling away from him. "You stood up for me," she said, smiling a little.

Charles' lips twitched, but he held his grin in check. "Of course I did. I couldn't let her talk to you like that. It's bad enough listening to her disparage Lizzy...there was no way I could let her get away with that same behavior aimed at you." He reached up to push his hands through her hair, moving it out of her face, smoothing it down over her shoulders before running his hands through it one more time. His lips twitched again, and this time he let the grin unfold. "You're not used to having someone come to your rescue, are you? That's what these tears are about."

Jane smiled back at him, her eyebrows lifting. "Come to my rescue?"

"Well, you know what I mean," he said, leaning in to kiss her again. "You're always the one making sure that everyone else doesn't get browbeaten. You've never been on the receiving end of your mother's tirades, have you?"

Jane shook her head lightly, reaching up to rub the last of the tears from her eyes. "No...I think that's the first time she's really turned on me."

Charles leaned in to kiss her again, then moved back to look her in the eyes. "It may have been the first...but if I have anything to do with it, it was also the last."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth opened her door and, upon seeing Will standing there, launched herself into his arms. The force of her body colliding with his caused him to stumble backward and out onto the deck, but he maintained his balance, holding her tightly as her arms and legs wrapped around him.<p>

"I'm so glad you're here," she said, smiling at him before kissing him thoroughly.

Will, completely surprised at his greeting, moaned into her mouth and returned the kiss with equal urgency. His hands were cupping her bottom, and he gave her a gentle squeeze before sliding them up her back to hold her closer to him. She had released his mouth, and was slowly working her lips along his jaw, then down to his throat, alternately kissing, nipping, and licking his skin. He walked them back into the house and closed the door with his foot before moving to the couch, where he slowly leaned over and lowered her down, so that he was now perched over her.

Her sparkling eyes gazed up into his, her smile enchanting – and contagious. He found himself returning it. "What was that all about?"

"I'm just happy to see you."

"I gathered. That was not the greeting I expected."

"Oh? What did you expect?"

He shrugged. "I don't know...I thought you'd be a little more somber." He sat on the edge of the couch, his hands braced on either side of her as he looked down into her eyes.

"Because of Lydia."

"Yes." He watched a shadow quickly pass over her face. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She sighed, reaching up to play with the hair hanging over his forehead. "I do, but I don't. I don't want to go into it word for word...it's too much to replay."

"That's okay."

"It's just...suffice it to say that she says she's sorry, but...I don't know. I think she's only sorry about how everything has messed up _her_ life. Messed it up more than it already was, I should say. She has my dad coming down on her, something she's really never dealt with before...her two sisters are barely talking to her...she just needs to grow up and take responsibility for her actions...she needs to be accountable."

"Hmm. I know a little bit about that."

Elizabeth's brows furrowed. "I'm sorry, I wasn't directing that toward you."

"I know you weren't, but it applies." His mind quickly went back to the conversation he'd had yesterday with Mrs. Reynolds. He knew he needed to discuss a lot of it with Elizabeth, he had to – wanted to – talk about it with her, but he wouldn't, not until he understood all these realizations a little better himself. "What do you think Jane and Charles will do?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea. I do think that if she went to the wedding, she wouldn't cause any trouble. If she did, she'd pay dearly. I don't think my father will be very tolerant of her behavior anymore."

"It's about time."

Elizabeth nodded. "It is about time." Her playful look returned. "It's also about time we stopped talking about Lydia, don't you think?" She smiled at him flirtatiously. "Kiss me."

Will pursed his lips. "No, no, none of that. Talk, that's what we need to do. More talking, we can never talk enough-" As he was speaking, she was pulling his head down to hers, and as much as he was trying to look serious, he couldn't stay that way, not in the face of her mischievous expression. He smiled just as her lips came into contact with his, releasing a sigh as she encouraged him to lower his weight onto her.

Will, completely absorbed in their kiss, dimly realized that her fingertips were working at the buttons of his shirt. He lifted his head, sitting up slightly so that he could still her hands with his. "I thought we were going slowly? Isn't that what we decided?"

Elizabeth grinned, her eyes sparkling. "It is, and we are...I was _slowly_ unbuttoning your shirt."

Will chuckled, loving that she was feeling playful, but baffled by it just the same. He knew that she was probably trying to distract herself from what had occurred today, and he didn't want it to lead to something that she might possibly feel badly about later. Plus, as much as he was all for the removal of clothing, he didn't want the first time that they were together again to be on her couch, in a hurry. That just wouldn't do.

Elizabeth moved her hands up under his shirt, over the tight muscles of his abdomen, stroking across his chest, her thumbs flicking at his nipples. She watched with pleasure as his eyes closed and he exhaled heavily.

"You're torturing me," he said, his voice hoarse. "You don't play fair."

"You're not playing at all, apparently."

He opened his eyes, and the dark green of hers made him groan. Her fingers went back to work on his buttons again, and she smiled triumphantly when she spread his shirt open and pushed it slightly off of his shoulders, revealing his chest to her gaze.

She watched her fingers as they traced lazy patterns across his chest and stomach, smiling when his muscles tightened. "Ohhh, I miss this. I miss touching you," she whispered, her eyes never wavering from the sight of her hands on his skin.

Will felt searing heat on every part of his body that she touched. "I miss this too, love," he whispered, "you have no idea..."

Her eyes raised to his. "No...I'm pretty sure I have a very good idea." She sat up slightly, and in one swift motion, pulled her shirt over her head and quickly removed her bra. Both were tossed to the floor as she lowered herself back to the couch.

"Lizzy, wait..." He couldn't peel his eyes away from her body, from her breasts, their color so creamy and pale, except for the centers, which were a beautiful rosy color. The contrast to the rest of her tanned body was striking and incredibly sexy. It was all he could do to stop himself from touching her breasts, stroking them, drawing the hardened tips into his mouth.

"I just want to feel your skin on mine, I _need_ to feel it. You said you miss this, so let's...let's just indulge ourselves for a little while," she said softly. As she spoke, she watched him pull his arms from his shirt and drop it to the floor. When he was above her again, she pulled his lips to hers for a hungry kiss.

They both moaned in satisfaction as their upper bodies came into contact, and their kiss became more urgent, explosive, as they melted into each other. Tongues tangled madly and their breathing grew heavier as they pressed against one another, trying to get as close as they possibly could.

Elizabeth's hands moved with purpose to the top of Will's shorts, and she impatiently battled with the button before finally releasing it. When she managed that, still with her lips attached to Will's (and with no desire to free them), she pulled the zipper down and pushed both hands inside of his briefs to cup him and stroke over his arousal. Instantly, she felt him push into her hands, and she pulled her lips from his, staring up at him and willing his eyes to open.

When they did, they were dark brown and bright with passion. His lips were red and swollen, as she imagined her own were, and as he gazed down at her, breathing heavily, he flexed his hips forward again.

"You feel so good," she whispered to him, never pulling her eyes from his. She squeezed him slightly harder, stroking up and down, around his tip, playing with the bead of moisture there, making him groan with pleasure.

"Lizzy..." Will felt himself precariously close to losing control, and the last thing he wanted was to spill into her hands like a teenager getting his first hand job. He sighed and lowered his mouth to her neck, kissing her there, tasting her with his tongue, before letting his lips wander to her left breast. He drew the tip into his mouth, pulling it gently, running his tongue and teeth over it, making her inhale sharply. His hips thrust again lightly in response to her reaction, and he felt hers push up instinctively, in answer to his. He released her nipple, only to stroke his tongue over it again. "Babe, we have to stop. We can't do this here, not now."

"Why can't we?" she asked breathlessly, looking up at him again, not stopping the intimate motions of her hands. "I miss you so much. I miss this," she said, stroking him harder, making him suck in a breath, "and I miss this," she said again, as she raised her head to lick the hollow of his throat. "What are we waiting for?"

She pulled one hand free of his shorts to tangle it in his hair, pulling his mouth to hers again, kissing him slower this time, letting her teeth tug at his bottom lip, running her tongue over it before sliding it into his mouth to play with his. Her other hand kept steadily stroking him, relishing the feel of his hardness in her hand.

Will was rapidly reaching the point of no return, and lifted his head again to make another plea for her to stop before it escalated too far. Just as he was about to speak, there was a loud knock at the door. Immediately, Elizabeth's hands stilled as she looked up at Will.

"Who the hell could that be?" she whispered.

Will couldn't stop staring at her, at her ruby red lips and flushed face. "What?" He felt dazed.

"At my door! Who the hell could that be? Talk about bad timing."

Will sighed. "It's probably perfect timing, actually." He reached down to slowly pull her hand out of his shorts, and looked around for his shirt.

"What are you doing?" she asked, both eyebrows raised. "We'll just ignore it, they'll go away."

He laughed quietly. "We can't ignore it!" Just as he said the words, another knock sounded. "Both of our cars are out there, so it's obvious we're here." He chuckled at the miffed look on her face.

"It's not funny," she said, but he caught the beginnings of a grin skirting her lips. "Hand me my bra please."

Another knock.

"Hold on," Elizabeth called out as she fastened her bra and pulled on her shirt. She rose from the couch with wobbly legs. "Oooh. See how you make me weak in the knees?" she whispered into Will's ear before kissing him softly on the lips and trailing her hand across the very prominent bulge in his shorts.

He grinned at her as he sat up straight on the couch, trying to forcibly talk himself out of his very aroused state. It wouldn't be polite to greet company with an erection.

He needn't have worried. When Elizabeth opened the door, she stood face to face with Bill Collins. Her face dropped and her heart, just getting settled back into its normal rhythm, started pounding again.

"Hello Elizabeth." Instantly, Bill's eyes widened as he saw Will rise from the couch behind Elizabeth and stride quickly and purposefully toward the door. He was there in seconds, before Bill even had a chance to react or retreat, and the next thing he knew, he was being grabbed by his shirt and shoved up against the door.

"What do you want?" Will snarled, his face inches from Bill's.

"I...I came to apologize, honestly, th-that's the only reason I'm here."

"Will, stop," Elizabeth said firmly. "You can't do this. Let go of him."

Will held him a few moments longer, glaring at him, and Elizabeth could see his pulse pounding in his neck. She could almost see the internal war he was waging with himself.

"Get the fuck out of here," Will said, shoving Collins as he released his shirt, then standing over him menacingly.

"I...I didn't come to t-talk to you, I came to see Elizabeth. I came to talk to her," he said, swallowing loudly, a trace of perspiration forming on his upper lip.

"Get off my property, Bill," Elizabeth said quietly. "Leave now, before I call the police." She was amazed that she sounded as calm as she did.

"Elizabeth, please. I am so sorry, for everything. I...I never intended for any of this to happen. I never thought you would ever meet George...I never expected him to become involved with people you knew-"

"Involved? _Involved?_" Will shouted. "Is that what you call what happened with my sister? An _involvement?_"

"N-no, no, I...I wasn't talking about your sis-sister. I didn't even know she _was_ your...your sister. Not at first. I had no idea. I was talking about Charlotte, and...and Lydia."

"Oh, so you're _not_ apologizing for Georgiana. You fucking little piece of shit." Will hovered over Collins, his fingers curling with the intense desire to throttle his stubby little neck. He suddenly felt a soft pressure on his arm, and he realized it was Elizabeth's hand. Her touch began to calm him, just enough that he could keep his hands at his side. He forced himself to take a deep breath and a few steps back. Bill Collins was not worth an assault charge, he knew that, but the fact that he was _here_, that he had the fucking _balls_ to show his face at Elizabeth's house...it pissed him off beyond belief.

"Answer a question for me, Bill, would you?" Elizabeth asked. She kept her hand on Will's arm, moving it up and down lightly to keep him focused on her. "Did you ever intend on coming clean with the authorities? If George hadn't left those pictures, if they were never found, if he hadn't met Charlotte or me, if he hadn't been sleeping with my sister...if Will had never recognized you...things would have just gone on as usual, right?"

"I...I don't know, I'm not sure...I couldn't say anything, George threatened me. He's evil, you don't know what he's capable of. I swear to you, I had no choice-"

Will shook his head. "You think we don't know what he's capable of? You're more fucked in the head then I thought. And you _did_ have a choice, you fucking coward. You could have walked out of that room that night and gone for help. Or the next day, you could have gone to the police. Don't stand there and tell me you didn't have a fucking _choice_."

Elizabeth spoke up again. "Leave, Bill. I don't want an apology from you...you don't owe me anything. Just get out of here, and never speak to me again. Go."

Will moved until he was completely towering over Bill, staring angrily down into his quivering face. He raised one finger and poked it roughly into Bill's chest, emphasizing his words. "If you ever, _ever_ come near Elizabeth again...or go near my sister again...I will make it my personal goal to make your life a living hell. Do you understand me?"

"Yes...yes, I do. Perfectly. I'm sorry, you're right, I-I shouldn't have come. I'm sorry."

"Just go, Bill," Elizabeth said. She was shaking now, not out of fear, but just because of the intensity of the moment.

Bill left her deck, practically running down the steps, and Will followed at a distance, standing out in front of the house until Bill's car was gone from his sight. Sighing, he turned and walked back up the stairs to Elizabeth. She was standing on the deck, staring out at the ocean.

"Oh my God," she said quietly, turning to him. "I can't believe he came here."

"I wanted to kill him, I really did. I wanted to beat him to a pulp." His heart was still thrumming in his chest, adrenaline coursing through his body.

"You handled yourself very well."

Will shook his head, rubbing his eyes with one hand. He certainly didn't feel like he handled himself very well.

"What's the matter?" Elizabeth asked, stilling his arm. He kept his hand raised, covering his eyes.

"Nothing." Finally he lowered his hand. "Nothing. He's gone. If he ever tries to contact you again, you have to tell me, okay? Please tell me if he shows up again. Jesus, he could go to your office..."

"I don't think he will. I think he'll stay away from Woods Hole, everyone knows him down there, and everyone knows what he did. He'd be too embarrassed to show his face."

"I hope so. You'll tell me if he does, though, won't you?" He reached up to cup one cheek. "You have to tell me."

"I would tell you, of course I would."

He looked down at her, his face still wearing the same serious expression. "Are you sure you're okay? Did he scare you or make you nervous? I want to – I _need_ to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine, Will, really. He didn't scare me at all. I was just shocked to see him...he was the last person I expected to see when I opened the door." She nudged him with one hip. "Come on, let's take a walk on the beach, I think we both need it." He nodded quietly, and they headed down the stairs, both barefoot, and walked onto the soft sand. The sun was low in the sky.

They didn't talk much as they walked. Elizabeth could see that Will was still completely preoccupied with what had just happened, which was understandable. She thought about what she had told him, about not being scared of Bill Collins, and she really wasn't; now, if it had been Wickham at her door, she may have been a little nervous. Knowing he was locked away in a jail cell was a comforting thought.

Elizabeth's voice broke into Will's thoughts. "Are you hungry? It's almost eight. We should have some dinner."

He nodded. "Sure, I could eat." Her hand was grasped tightly in his, and he lifted it to brush a quick kiss across the back of it.

She stopped walking, making him stop as well. "Tell me what you're thinking. You're a million miles away."

He sighed, and she could tell he was feeling exasperated. "I'm thinking a lot of things. I'm thinking that I could barely restrain myself when he was in front of me. I wanted to tear him limb from limb. If you weren't there, or if I had run into him somewhere else...I can't keep having reactions like that. 'Knee jerk' reactions, that's what Charles calls them."

"Will, your reaction to him was normal. He hurt your sister, of course you would want to hurt him back. I don't think you overreacted at all. The important thing is, you didn't let it take over. You kept your cool."

"Barely."

She shrugged. "So you barely kept your cool. You still kept it." Pulling on his hand, she turned them around and headed them back toward her house again.

"What if I hadn't been there when he showed up? Who knows what he's capable of."

"I have an idea of what he's capable of...I don't think he's like his cousin."

"Please tell me you're not defending him."

"Of course I'm not. I just think that if George Wickham hadn't been at that party on New Years Eve, if Bill had been there without him, nothing would have happened to Georgiana. That's my gut feeling. What he did was despicable and wrong, but he was not the instigator that night, I'm pretty sure about that."

Will was silent for a moment as they walked, until Elizabeth squeezed his hand. "Sorry," he said. "You're probably right, but I can't look at him as someone who got caught up in a situation, even if that's what it was. He had every chance to make things right, and he chose not too."

"I know that," she replied. "It makes him just as guilty as George Wickham."

Will nodded. "Exactly."

They approached Elizabeth's house and walked up the steps. Once on the deck, Will dropped down into the lounge chair and tugged on Elizabeth's hand so she would sit with him. Instead of seating herself between his legs, she straddled them and faced him. "Do you feel a little better?"

He quirked an eyebrow. "Somewhat. I still feel like he's looming out there...and now I'm going to be worried that he'll try to approach you again." He exhaled loudly. "I know I can't be with you all the time, but I feel like I should do something...a restraining order? Should you get one?"

"Oh, Will, I don't know if that's necessary. I don't think it is." She looked at him, stared into those bottomless root-beer barrels, and she could see that he was battling himself again. Without a doubt, he was biting his tongue, holding back the argument that was at the tip of it. She knew he wanted to push it. But he didn't.

He exhaled again. "Okay. It's your decision, but you have to tell me if he-"

She interrupted him with a long kiss, leaning into his chest, reaching to hold his face in her hands. As she slowly pulled away, she started into his eyes again. "I know. I told you I would, and if it happens again, I will. Okay?"

He swallowed. "Okay."

Elizabeth smiled sweetly at him and gave him another soft kiss. "Come on, it's time to eat. I can hear your belly talking to me, you need some food I think."

Before she had the chance to stand up from his lap, he wrapped his arms around her and held her in a tight embrace. "No...I just need you, Lizzy. Just you."

* * *

><p><em>So, that was it...the final completed chapter! I've been warning you that this day was coming! I'm working furiously on chapter 48, and hope to finish it and post it this weekend (she says as she crosses her fingers). After that, I'll miss a post, as I'll be away, so there will be a two-week gap. So sorry! Please leave a review if you can. Thanks!<em>


	48. Chapter 48

_Just a reminder, no post next week! I'll be on vacation. Thanks to everyone for your patience, and thanks for reading!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 48<strong>

Elizabeth sat on her deck at nine o'clock on Thursday morning, soaking in the warm, salty air. Already she could feel it changing; the humidity was finally disappearing, and the air had that particular smell...when she was younger, she would have said that it 'smelled like school'. It was the faint scent of fall in the air, announcing that it would soon be knocking on everyone's door.

She was waiting for Jane to pick her up, so that they could make the rounds of shops on Main Street. The first stop would be at the florist, to take a final look at the centerpieces, then on to Rosy Cheeks to pick up her 'going away' dress, which had needed a few minor alterations. From Falmouth, they would head back to Mashpee, making a quick stop at the bakery that was producing the cake, and then they'd go on to Charles' house, so that they could review the seating chart.

Jane was in a bit of a tizzy about the guest list, understandably so. She had given Elizabeth a very brief version of what had transpired at their parent's condo the previous day, and Elizabeth was shocked, to say the least. On top of that, Elizabeth still hadn't filled Jane in on her conversation with Lydia, or about what had transpired the previous night.

Her cell phone rang, interrupting her thoughts. She smiled when she saw that it was Will.

"You're a little late today," she said, by way of a greeting.

"Well...good morning to you too," he said lightly. "I didn't realize you had me on a schedule."

"You always call me early...you've left me with expectations."

He laughed. "I'll remember that. Any chance I'll get to see you today?"

"Mm...possibly. Jane and I will be heading to Charles' house – _their_ house – eventually. Maybe I'll take a walk down your end of the beach."

"That would be nice."

"I think I'll be able to squeeze you in." She paused for a moment. "How are you doing today? Better?"

The remainder of their evening had been rather subdued, after their encounter with Bill Collins. Despite a valiant effort, Will couldn't shake the uneasiness that had descended on him. It was as if their heated interlude on the couch hadn't even happened, and although he was eventually able to relax somewhat, it wasn't the same. She wanted to ask him, too, about his hesitancy with her on the couch yesterday. He was holding back, and she wanted to know why.

He sighed. "I'm fine. As fine as I can be. That whole episode completely threw me off-kilter. I still can't believe he showed up at your house, and I'm worried he'll do it again. Are you sure you won't consider trying to get a restraining order or something? I don't trust him."

"I don't think it's necessary, I really don't. I think you scared him off."

Will shook his head. He hated, absolutely _hated_, feeling so vulnerable. If anything were to happen to Elizabeth, he would never forgive himself. He couldn't force her hand though; he had to let her decide on her own how to handle this. As much as he wanted to insist that she go to the police now and get it taken care of, or go there himself, he had to respect her decision and not push her into doing what _he_ wanted her to do. He was praying that her instincts about Collins were right.

"Can I ask you a question?" she said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Of course."

"Before he came to the house, before we were...interrupted...why were you trying to stop what I was very obviously trying to start?"

Will sighed, thinking for a moment. "I thought that you might have been upset about Lydia, and maybe you were just trying to distract yourself from thinking about what happened. I didn't want to do something that you might not feel so good about...after."

"Is that what you really think?"

"Well...yes."

"Hm."

"Hm? That's all you're going to say?"

"I'm trying to decide if I should be offended, or if you should be insulted."

"Oh, okay...well, you shouldn't be offended, not at all. And I'm certainly not insulted."

"Well, if I was coming on to you to forget about Lydia, that wouldn't be very nice, would it?"

"Anytime you're coming on to me for any reason is very nice."

"Ha ha."

Will chuckled. "I was worried that you were more hurt than you were letting on, that's all. And if we've decided to go slow, I'll be damned if the first time we make love again, it will be on your couch, in a fumbling rush."

"I thought we were fumbling along quite well."

He sighed, remembering the moment her hands began to stroke him, and instantly felt a rush of heat in his groin. "We were."

"It...it wasn't all about Lydia...I don't want you to think that." She sighed. "I don't want to wait anymore, Will," she said quietly, "I need you, all of you. I _want_ all of you."

Will groaned inwardly, closing his eyes. He wanted her too, _all_ of her. For some reason though, it was like he had this mental barrier in his head, one that he had to overcome before he could move to the next level with her. He wanted to have everything out there, on the table, before their physical intimacy resumed. He didn't know why, exactly...it just felt like the right thing to do.

"I want you too, Lizzy, never doubt that for a second. I...I still have so much more to say to you, so much more I need to open up to you about. It feels right to me, doing it this way, going slowly. I know that probably sounds ridiculous, coming from me, but...it's how I feel. We'll set aside time to talk, after the wedding, and we'll go from there."

Elizabeth couldn't help but smile lightly. "It doesn't sound ridiculous at all, especially coming from you," she said softly. "Maybe Sunday...why don't we spend the day together?"

"That sounds perfect. Will you be my date for the wedding?"

She could hear the tease in his voice. "Now that's a silly question."

"Well, I didn't want to assume."

"Smart man."

"I just want to enjoy the day with you...celebrate with Jane and Charles, dance with you, romance you a little...I can't wait to see you in your little peach dress."

"How do you know it's peach?"

"Because my shirt is the exact same color. I ended up having to get one dyed, you know. That shade of peach is not easy to come by in a dress shirt."

Elizabeth giggled. "You'll look dapper in peach, I'm sure."

"Mmm, and you'll look edible, I'm sure," he said softly.

They both laughed and sighed, and Elizabeth felt goose bumps travel up her spine. She heard footsteps on the stairs, and turned to see Jane coming up. "Oh, Jane's here, I have to run."

"Come visit me later."

"I will, I promise. Bye Will."

"Bye love, have fun."

* * *

><p>Charles sat at home, feet up on his desk, checking things off on his honey-do list. He mumbled to himself as he went over the tasks he had finished, marking them off as he held the paper against his leg.<p>

"Caterer, check. Band, check. Bartender service, check. Tents, check. Photographer, check." He set the paper back on his desk and stretched his arms over his head, glancing at his watch. Almost eleven-thirty, which meant Jane would be back soon.

Aside from yesterday's unpleasant visit to the Bennet household, the past few days with Jane had been near perfect. He had half-seriously referred to their time alone as a 'pre-wedding honeymoon', and his fiancée had certainly gotten into the spirit of things. Quite enthusiastically. _Must be the sea air_, he thought, smiling. He had muscles aching that he didn't even know he had.

After leaving the Bennet's yesterday, Jane had been a little emotional, but not exceedingly so. As the day wore on, however, he could tell that something was bothering her, but he wasn't sure exactly what. Was it her mother's remarks, or was it Charles' stance on the matter, stepping in and taking over, making such a huge decision on his own? At the time, she had seemed grateful for his interference, but now he wasn't so sure. She had been awfully quiet for the better part of the evening.

He had finally broached the topic with her, and she seemed relieved that he did.

"I don't know how I feel now," Jane said quietly. They were curled up together on the king bed in the master bedroom, after having spent some time going over what to pack for their honeymoon. Her head was resting on Charles' chest, and the motion of his hand as it stroked through her hair was so relaxing, she didn't want to move an inch. "Is it completely pitiful that even now, after everything that has happened, I feel badly that my parents won't be at my wedding?"

He sighed. "Of course not. Look, if you want them there, I understand, it's fine. Maybe I overstepped my bounds yesterday, maybe I shouldn't have-"

Jane interrupted him. "You didn't overstep your bounds at all. I'm glad you spoke up; you put my mother in her place, and that's what she needed."

"I took the decision out of your hands, though. That wasn't right of me."

"You didn't take it out of my hands. I know myself well enough to know that I have to step away from such a...an emotionally charged situation like that before I can make a rational decision."

Charles smirked and tugged her hair. "So I'm irrational?"

Jane rolled over onto her stomach and pushed herself up so that she was facing him, lying across his chest. She grinned lightly, looking into his baby blues. "You are, by far, _the_ most rational person I know. You were sticking up for me, protecting me, taking care of what's yours. I love that. It's very sexy."

He raised his eyebrows. "Taking care of what's mine? Sexy? Hm. I love _that_." He leaned forward to give her a peck on the lips before laying his head back down again. "So...what do you want to do about your parents? And Lydia?"

Jane sighed and shrugged. "I have to sleep on it a little more, I guess. Though, I really can't wait much longer...they have friends on the guest list, I would need to uninvite them..." Her voice trailed off in frustration. "I wish I could just...I don't know, shake them or something."

"Slap some sense into them?" Charles asked, smiling broadly.

Jane giggled. "Yes, something like that." She paused for a moment, and became serious again. "I just don't understand how they can't see it...how they are so shortsighted when it comes to their own behavior, even though they keep a running commentary on everyone else's. Especially Lizzy's. It just baffles me."

"I wish I had a theory, but I don't. It's just the way they are – or at least, the way your mother is."

"But she hasn't always been like this. My dad, well...he's always been kind of clueless...but not downright ignorant of things. Growing up, it wasn't like this in our house. We weren't the 'dysfunctional Bennets'. I mean, my mother has always been a bit critical, and she's always compared Lizzy and me...it drove us nuts growing up, but it was never mean-spirited or harsh. She was a loving mom. The past few years, though...she's just become so bitter. I can't figure it out."

They were quiet for a spell, Charles playing with Jane's hair again as she stared, unseeing, at the buttons on his shirt. Finally, she looked up at him again.

"I guess I can't decide if it's fair. I mean, we grew up pretty happy...we were a normal family. As much as you could _call_ a family 'normal', anyway. Then, all of a sudden, everything implodes. I mean, the build-up has been happening, but it's just this sudden eruption...and then I cut them off?"

Charles waited for her to finish speaking, knowing that she was trying to think things through and put the whole situation in perspective.

"Every thought of my wedding, from the time I was little, has always included me walking down the aisle on my father's arm, with him giving me away." Tears sprang to her eyes, but she kept them in check. "To give that up...I don't know if I can do that, Charles. I'm sorry...it might make me seem weak, or like I'm giving in, but it's how I feel. I really am sorry."

"Why are you apologizing to me?" He asked quietly, sitting up on the bed, making her sit up with him. "Do you know what my main concern is?"

She shook her head, staring at him.

He held her hands. "My main concern is _you, _Jane. Your feelings, and your happiness, on our wedding day...and for the rest of your life after that. Ultimately, this decision is yours to make. I'll stand behind you whatever you choose to do, you know that."

She tugged her hands from his, only to reach forward and wrap them around him, pulling him close to her for a tight embrace. "Thank you," she said softly, turning her head to plant a warm kiss on his neck, then climbing onto his lap and snuggling into him. "I love you."

Remembering what came after that sweet, warm kiss on his neck made him smile. The sudden chime of the doorbell brought him out of his reverie, however, and he stood from his desk and headed for the entryway. Likely, the ladies had too many packages, and neither had a free hand to open the door. When he opened it, the last person he expected to see was David Bennet.

"Hello Charles," Mr. Bennet said quietly.

"David."

"Would you mind if I came in?"

Charles stepped back from the door and gestured for the older man to enter.

"I was given a message by my wife that if I had an issue with anything that occurred at my home yesterday, I was welcome to come and see you, as you'd be more than happy to discuss it with me."

Charles led the way into the great room. "You know, you could have saved yourself the trouble of a trip over here if you had been at home when we came by, as you were supposed to be. You _were_ aware that we were coming, weren't you?"

Mr. Bennet looked at him for a long moment before replying. "Yes, I was aware of it."

"And yet, you chose to make yourself unavailable. Somehow, though, I find myself doubting that your presence would have made much of a difference in how things transpired. I'm sure that you would have made yourself unavailable, even if you were at home."

"That's enough, Mr. Bingley."

"Enough what, Mr. Bennet?"

"I came here to discuss my daughter's wedding, not to be reprimanded about my whereabouts."

"I'm not reprimanding you; I'm simply stating the facts. It's the lawyer in me. Your daughter's wedding is _my_ wedding as well, by the way. Don't forget that. Again, if you'd been home yesterday..." Charles let his sentence trail off, raising his eyebrows.

Mr. Bennet looked flustered. "My wife and I would like to attend the wedding, naturally."

"Of course you would."

"Is Jane here? Maybe we should all be talking about this."

"She's out with Elizabeth, actually, though I expect that they'll be back soon."

Mr. Bennet finally sat down on the couch, staring out the sliding door to the ocean beyond. He was silent for a long moment. "We need to repair what's happened, Charles."

Charles glanced at him in surprise. "_We_ need to repair it? Who is the 'we' that you're referring to? I hope it isn't Jane and me, because I'm afraid I don't quite see it that way, as I don't think we're responsible for any of the damage."

Their short conversation was interrupted by the sound of Jane and Elizabeth coming through the front door. Their voices carried into the great room, and the sound of their laughter and incessant chatter brought a smile to Charles' face. Mr. Bennet smiled as well, but the emotion behind it was not quite the same.

The women came walking into the great room, packages in hand, Jane still chatting away until she saw her father. She stopped then, and the smile vanished from her face. Elizabeth looked just as surprised to see him.

"Hello girls," Mr. Bennet said quietly.

"Hi dad," they replied simultaneously.

"What are you doing here?" Jane asked.

"Well, I came by to talk to you...and Charles...about the wedding."

Elizabeth cleared her throat. "Jane, why don't you give me those things and I'll go put them away. Where do you want them?"

"Oh...upstairs, in the bedroom on the left at the end of the hall. Thanks Lizzy."

Elizabeth took the garment bag from Jane that held her new dress and began walking toward the stairs. She deposited everything in its rightful place, and then headed back downstairs.

"I'm just going to head down to Will's house, I told him I'd stop in."

Mr. Bennet was obviously surprised. "William Darcy's house?"

"Yes, dad, William Darcy," Elizabeth said flatly.

"Oh...oh. Tell him I said hello."

Elizabeth responded with a nod, and Jane walked her to the slider.

"You okay?" Elizabeth asked her quietly.

"I'm fine. Just surprised to see him, that's all."

"You and me both. I'll stay at Will's for a while...text or call when the coast is clear."

"Okay. Hey, can you call the spa and confirm our appointments for Saturday morning?"

"Sure." She gave Jane a quick hug. "See you in a bit."

With that, Elizabeth was out the door and on her way down the beach to Will's house. She called the spa as she walked, and made sure they were all set for their 'buffing and polishing' on Saturday. Full-body massages first, then hair, then nails. Elizabeth was looking forward to being pampered again.

As she approached Will's property, she was surprised to see him sitting in one of the adirondack chairs. His head was back, and she could tell his eyes were closed, as he hadn't reacted at all to her presence. When she was within about twenty feet of him, she stopped to look at him for a moment. He looked deliciously rumpled and comfy in a pair of faded out denim carpenter shorts and an equally faded maroon Harvard t-shirt. Her heart gave it's now familiar flip-flop as she looked at him, and she found herself beginning to smile.

His eyes suddenly popped opened, and a huge grin spread across his face when he noticed her standing there.

He rose from the chair and they walked toward each other. "I thought I was seeing things for a minute there."

They shared a warm kiss, but Elizabeth could tell he was still smiling, so she pulled away curiously. "What is that grin all about?"

He laughed. "I'm just happy to see you, that's all. I knew I would at some point today, I just didn't expect it to be this soon. Come sit with me."

They strolled back to the chairs, and Will positioned them closer before they sat.

"I thought you were napping when I saw you sitting here," Elizabeth said, raising a brow. "I was going to sneak up on you."

"No, I wasn't sleeping. Just thinking."

"About what?"

He sighed, looking out at the ocean. "I have to go to California again. Well, I don't _have_ to, but I should."

Elizabeth was a bit surprised. "Oh. I didn't know you had another trip coming up."

"Well, I wasn't sure if I was going to go or not. I didn't want to say anything until I knew for sure. I really don't want to..." He reached over and took her hand in his, stroking over each finger before holding it tightly. "I talked to Richard this morning, and he feels it's important for me to be there on the first official day that FRD Design is 'open'. Tuesday is that day...he thinks I should be there to make a motivational speech or something." He rolled his eyes slightly.

"He's right, you should be there." Elizabeth said quietly. She couldn't quite keep the disappointment from her voice, and he noticed right away.

"I'm sorry," he said, squeezing her hand, making her look at him. "I really, really don't want to go, not now, not when everything is...going so well. I'll keep the trip as short as possible, though."

She shook her head. "It's okay. I'm being selfish...I don't want you to go either, no matter how short the trip is."

They were quiet for a moment, when suddenly his face lit up. "Why don't you come with me?"

Her eyebrows rose. She could practically see the light-bulb glowing over his head. "Go with you?"

"Yes, yes, come with me."

"But...I would miss work."

His brows furrowed. "True...but only one day. We could fly out Monday, and fly back Tuesday afternoon. You have Monday off anyway for Labor Day." He was full-on smiling now, dimples and all. "Would you be willing to miss one day?" He was being impulsive, he knew it, but had a feeling that this was what Mrs. R meant when she said it all depended on the situation. This was the _good_ impulsive.

Will's excitement was contagious, and she found herself smiling back. "I would be very willing; I'd just have to get the okay from work."

He stood up, pulling her along with him. "Come on, you have a phone call to make."

She stopped him before he got too carried away. "Wait...are you sure this is a good idea? You didn't really…think it through. Are you sure you want me to go with you?"

He looked at her for a moment, his face an expression of disbelief. "This is a great idea," he said seriously. "I don't have anything to think through. I know it's a spur of the moment thing, but it's just one night in California. I want you there with me, if you want to be there." He reached up to touch her cheek. "What do you think?"

Smiling, she looked at the earnest expression on his face, and her decision was made. "I think I'm going to California."

* * *

><p>Walking back toward the house, Elizabeth had filled Will in on everything that had happened at her parent's house the previous day. He wasn't surprised at anything, but was happy that Charles had spoken up and defended Jane and Elizabeth. He <em>was<em> surprised to hear that Mr. Bennet had actually shown up at Charles' house this morning; he'd love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation.

Elizabeth made her call to work, and was passed from person to person until she was given someone to talk to in Human Resources. Since no one had been named yet to take Bill Collins' place, there was no one directly above her to grant her the day off. She had asked for the time off for Jane's wedding as soon as she'd known the date, and at the time, Bill was still there, so it was easy. Now, being as it was so last minute, she was positive it wasn't going to work out. Every time her call was passed to someone else, her hopes faded that much more.

The Human Resources employee, a very nice but slightly distracted woman named Patricia, asked Elizabeth a few questions.

"So...you need what day off? Monday?"

"No...we all have Monday off, it's Labor Day. I need the next day off, Tuesday. The 7th."

"Oh...Labor Day is here already? My God, where did the summer go? Um, okay, sorry, I don't usually have to handle these requests directly, but with Collins gone...did you hear about all that stuff he was involved with? I couldn't believe it. And you worked with him?"

Elizabeth cringed. "Um, I haven't really been listening to much of anything. I was away for a while on a project trip, so...I'd rather not know any more than I have to."

"Oh, sure. Okay. So, Tuesday? The 14th?"

Elizabeth took a deep breath and rolled her eyes at Will. "No. Tuesday, the 7th, as in the Tuesday that's coming up."

"Oh. What should I put in for the reason? Is it for medical purposes, like a doctor's appointment? That's an automatic, you can take sick time for that."

Elizabeth jumped at it. "Yes, I have...I have a physical that day."

Will looked at her curiously, and Elizabeth just shrugged and smiled at him, holding up her fingers on one hand to show that she had crossed them. He chuckled at her.

"Okay, Miss Benedict, you're all set."

"Great, thanks...wait, what did you say? Did you say Benedict?"

"Yes...but no! I meant Bennet. Elizabeth Bennet. Don't worry, I'm looking at you. Well, I'm looking at your file. Not you directly. You know what I mean. Elizabeth Bennet. Is your date of birth 7-8-79?"

"Yes, that's me." Another eye roll.

"Yup, I got it. You're all set. Sick pay for Tuesday, the 7th of September."

"Thanks Patricia, I appreciate it. Have a great weekend."

"You too."

Elizabeth hung up, and turned to look at Will, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "I just lied to get the day off."

"Is that okay?"

She didn't hesitate. "Yes."

He laughed. "You know, I _could_ give you a physical," he said, wiggling his eyebrows. "Then it wouldn't be a lie."

"Promises, promises," she said, laughing when he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her close for a very thorough kiss.

After a long moment, he pulled away slowly, his heart pounding in his chest. "Well, your lips work just fine."

"The rest of me does too," she said, winking up at him, feeling slightly breathless. Her phone chirped in her hand, and she looked down to see a text message from Jane.

"Oh great."

"What is it?"

"Apparently, my father would like to talk to me...and my mother is on her way over too. Ugh, I really don't want to do this right now." She sighed. "Do you think Jane would believe me if I told her I had an appointment for a physical?"

Will smiled sympathetically. "I don't think so, sweetheart. Would you like me to go with you?"

"I _would_ like that, very much. I'm sure it's not going to be pretty, though. Anything could happen."

He shrugged. "I know. I'll be there for moral support." _And to put a stop to anything that gets out of control_, he thought to himself. There was no way he was going to let Elizabeth walk into that lion's den alone.

"Okay, then...let's go."

* * *

><p>The air in the great room of Charles' house was fraught with tension, and no one was speaking. Mrs. Bennet said hello to her daughters, and stared at Will and Charles as if she thought they might bite her. Finally, Elizabeth had had enough of the silence and spoke up.<p>

"Why are we all here? It certainly wasn't my idea, so someone needs to speak up and tell me what's going on." She held Will's hand as they stood in front of the fireplace, leaning against the mantle, and he gave it a tight squeeze, silently showing his support.

Mr. and Mrs. Bennet were situated on the loveseat, and Charles and Jane were on the couch.

"Your mother and I felt that we needed to say a few things, didn't we Frances?"

Mrs. Bennet nodded. "Yes."

Mr. Bennet continued. "Both of us feel terrible about this situation that we've found ourselves in, and we owe you all an apology."

"Yes," Mrs. Bennet said, "we do. We owe you an apology."

"Yes, you do," Jane said. "Do you really understand what you're apologizing for?"

"Of course we do," Mrs. Bennet replied. "I never should have said those things to you yesterday. I was angry and frustrated about everything."

Jane's eyes opened wide. "_You_ were angry and frustrated? Now you know how I've felt – how Elizabeth has felt – for years. I'm not going to speak for Lizzy, she's perfectly capable of speaking for herself." She glanced over at her sister, who lightly smiled back, encouraging her to continue. "Something...something has got to give. Something has to change. _You_ have to change, you and dad both. I don't expect it to happen overnight, but it has to happen, or else we're just going to grow further and further apart."

Before giving her parents a chance to respond, Elizabeth spoke. "Jane's right," she said. "Ever since our last conversation...when was that, almost three weeks ago? Ever since then, I haven't heard a peep from you, mum. I thought that maybe you would finally understand everything, understand me...instead, I've gotten nothing from you but silence."

Mrs. Bennet was staring at her hands, which were fidgeting in her lap. "I'm sorry about that," she said, practically whispering.

"What?" Elizabeth said, unable to hear her.

"I said I'm sorry about that," Mrs. Bennet repeated, slightly louder this time. "I...I didn't know what to do. I was so terribly...shocked by everything you told me." She raised her eyes to Elizabeth's, but immediately lowered them again. "I felt horrible when you left that day, I just didn't know what to do."

Elizabeth shook her head. "You could have just called me."

"I didn't know what to say...what does a mother say to her daughter, after hearing all that? Anything that I said would have been inadequate, and entirely too late."

Tears welled in Elizabeth's eyes. "You're right. I needed you to say whatever those words were six years ago. I needed my mother then, but she wasn't there for me. You haven't been there for me, at all, in any shape or form, for so long that I've almost _forgotten_ what it was like when you _were_ there for me."

"Elizabeth-" Mr. Bennet interrupted.

"No, dad, don't interrupt," Jane said. "Elizabeth has every right to be angry, and to say what she feels. Let her speak."

Mr. Bennet looked at Jane, and then turned to look at Elizabeth. She stood tall, and he noticed that William Darcy had his arm around her waist, supporting her. _In every way,_ he thought to himself. _He's supporting her like I never have. _He nodded, allowing Elizabeth to finish.

"Like Jane said...I don't expect things to change overnight, but something _does_ have to change." She lifted her chin slightly, and took a deep breath, looking directly at her mother. "You're missing out on something, you know. You're missing out on the chance of having a relationship with a good person, a loving person; me. Your daughter. You have a lot to be proud of, and you don't even see it. You raised me, you should be happy at the way I've turned out, at the person I've become, the things I've accomplished...but you're so...so blinded...by Lydia, and by your own foolish ideas, that you can't even see _me, _the _real_ me. All you can see is the person that you've created in your head. I feel sorry for you, mum."

When Elizabeth was done speaking, she leaned into Will, feeling relieved and drained at the same time. He absorbed her weight, holding her tightly, smiling down at her softly, letting her know he was right there and wasn't going anywhere. She had wanted to say those words to her mother for so long, but could never find the strength, or the courage, to do it. Today...she didn't know why, but today felt different. Maybe it was because both Will and Jane were there, and Charles too, silently supporting her.

Her mother finally raised her eyes and looked at her again, and this time she didn't look away. "I'm so sorry, Elizabeth. I truly am. You're right, I've behaved horribly. I don't know where to begin...I don't know how to...how to start to make things better." Tears slowly slid down her cheeks. She turned to look at her husband. "I've been awful, haven't I?"

"I've been just as bad, Frances. I saw the way you treated Elizabeth, and I just turned away from it." He looked at Jane. "You, my dear girl...you filled the role that should have been mine, by rights. You became the protector, and that should have been my job. I'm sorry I left you to it."

Elizabeth looked at Jane. "She's damn good at it." The sisters shared a watery smile. Elizabeth sighed and looked at her parents. "I have to be honest with both of you; hearing your apologies, listening to what you have to say... right now, it's all just words. It doesn't really make me feel...anything. I had a similar conversation with Lydia just yesterday, and I told her the same thing. Actions will always speak louder than words. It's cliché, but it's the truth. So, as I said to Lydia...you'll understand if I don't take you at your word right now."

Mr. and Mrs. Bennet both nodded.

"It's a start, though, isn't it?" Mr. Bennet asked.

Elizabeth glanced at Will, then at Jane and Charles, then back to her parents. "It's a start."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Jane held hands in the vestibule of the small but charming Grace Memorial Chapel. Both were teary eyed, but both wanted to keep themselves in check so as to avoid red, runny noses. The four o'clock ceremony was due to start at any minute.<p>

"You look beautiful," Elizabeth said. "Drop dead gorgeous. Charles is going to faint."

"He better not!" Jane giggled. "Well, if he does, Will better catch him." She smiled, her lips trembling slightly. "God, I'm nervous. Can you believe it? Me, nervous!"

"I can believe it...but you shouldn't be. You look stunning, and you're happier than I've ever seen you." She squeezed her older sister's hands. "I'm so thrilled for you...this is the start of a whole new life, isn't it?"

Jane nodded. "It is." She was silent for a moment. "I'm happy for you too, Lizzy. I see how much Will loves you..." Her voice trailed off.

"I love him too, Jane. We're going to be okay."

Jane nodded. "I know you will." She laughed, breaking the seriousness of the moment. "Speaking of fainting...he might not be able to catch Charles, he'll be passed out himself."

The sisters looked stunning in their dresses. Jane's wedding dress was a white, sleek, one-shouldered number that accentuated her beautiful figure and made her look like a goddess. The hairdresser at the spa had managed to put some long, loose curls into her blonde hair, and it looked absolutely gorgeous.

Elizabeth wore a playful peach-colored dress that ran from shorter in the front to longer in the back. She had a pair of silver heels on, and kept her hair loose and wavy. With Jane's approval, she had decided to wear the starfish jewelry set that Will had given her on Martha's Vineyard. Both girls had been pampered all day at the spa, and had arrived at the chapel feeling relaxed and rejuvenated. Until the last five minutes, that is.

"He's worried that his shirt won't match my dress."

Jane giggled. "That's adorable."

Elizabeth joined her giggling. "It is, isn't it?"

Both girls stopped laughing, as they realized their nerves were getting the best of them.

"I love you, Lizzy." Jane smiled, her eyes tearing up again. "You're not just my sister, you know...you're my best friend."

Elizabeth smiled back, unable to speak. Instead, she held Jane tightly. After a few seconds, she was finally able to speak. "I love you too, Jane. Always."

They stepped apart, holding hands again, and both took deep breaths. "Are you ready?" Elizabeth asked softly.

Jane nodded, smiling. "I'm ready."

They heard a knock at the door. Slowly, it opened, and there stood Mr. Bennet. He took in the picture of his two daughters holding hands, all grown up, and could not stop the tears from pooling in his eyes. He gave them a wistful smile. "It's time, girls."

* * *

><p>The crowd milling at the reception in the backyard of Charles' and Jane's home was a happy, boisterous one. Jane and Elizabeth were inside at the moment, freshening up in the master bedroom, and giggling, once again, like schoolgirls.<p>

Just as before, they were talking about Charles and Will, and their reactions to seeing the sisters in their dresses.

"The ceremony was just perfect, Jane. I really _did_ think that Charles was going to hit the floor! He turned very pink, very quickly," Elizabeth said, laughing. She was fussing with her hair, trying to tame the curls a little, and Jane batted her hand away.

"Will you stop messing with your hair? It looks fine."

"Okay, okay." They smiled at each other in the mirror. Elizabeth took a moment to glance around the bedroom. "This is a nice room."

Jane smiled. "Yes it is." They both giggled again. "God, we are behaving like fools. We need to get outside."

Jane and Charles were married by a Justice of the Peace in the non-denominational chapel, and both had chosen traditional wedding vows. Even then, they were both overwhelmed with emotion as they recited the words to each other. Charles struggled to keep his composure, while with Jane, it was a lost cause. Tears streamed steadily down her cheeks, and by the end of the short but beautiful ceremony, there wasn't a dry eye in the chapel.

Elizabeth and Will had barely kept it together as well; Elizabeth could see that Will was near tears, and though his eyes were on her for most of the ceremony, she had to keep looking away from him in order to keep the tears at bay.

The backyard reception was flawless. Two enormous, open sided tents graced the back lawn. They were set up end to end, and there were hundreds of white fairy lights adorning the outside and inside of each. The meal was served under one tent, while the second tent held the portable dance floor and the band. While the guests enjoyed dinner, they played quiet jazz music. The sunset was glorious, and the gentle breeze coming in off the water was just enough to keep everything cool, without blowing everything around too harshly.

After being introduced as Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bingley for the first time, Jane and Charles settled in for their first dance as a married couple. It was no surprise to Elizabeth or Will that they had chosen a Beatles song; both were big fans, and the song, 'Here, There, and Everywhere', was perfect. They had eyes only for each other during the dance, smiling and whispering between numerous soft kisses. At the end of the dance, the crowd cheered as they kissed again.

As the only members of the wedding party, Will and Elizabeth shared a small 'head table' with the bride and groom. Will stood to deliver his toast, glass of champagne in hand. Elizabeth knew he was nervous, and had deliberated at length over what he should say. He didn't want to be too emotional and gushy, but he wanted it to be meaningful. In the end, his words, though simple, were heartfelt.

"Good evening, everyone. Just a few words...I met Charles a long time ago. We've been friends, best friends, for about thirty years." He turned to Charles, placing one hand on his shoulder. "We've been through a lot together in those thirty years, and in that time, he has proven himself to be not only a great friend, but a truly good man as well. I value my friendship with him tremendously, and although I haven't known his lovely bride for _quite_ as long," he turned and smiled at Jane, and she returned his smile, "I look forward to enjoying the same great friendship with her someday as well. I do know one very important thing about Jane already; she has made Charles happier then I have ever seen him." He raised his glass. "Today is a day of joy and happiness for all of us, but it's also the beginning of a beautiful new life between Charles and Jane." He looked down at the newly-married couple. "I wish you both health and happiness for many years to come. Congratulations."

The guests cheered and toasted the couple, and Charles, feeling a little too emotional to speak, rose to give Will a handshake and a warm hug. Will hugged Jane as well, and she thanked him for the wonderful toast.

The meal was a 'surf and turf' dinner that was typical of the Cape; a petite filet mignon, served with a one-and-a-quarter pound lobster. For the vegetarian guests, the caterer had cooked up a delicious porcini mushroom ravioli.

Charles and Jane had kissed pretty much throughout the entire dinner, due to the guests taking up the age-old tradition of tapping silverware against a glass to get the newlyweds to lock lips; usually, the guilty 'tapper' would wait until both had a mouthful of food, which had most of the guests laughing.

After dinner, Elizabeth had excused herself to go to the bathroom, and had spied her Aunt Vee with her Uncle Ed over at the bar.

The two women had managed to escape their family for a few moments the night before, after the rehearsal dinner, when everyone met for drinks at the Popponesset Inn. They had stood together outside on the deck, looking out at the ocean.

"Tell me Lizzy, how are you? I've been thinking about you so much lately! I'm happy to see you."

"I'm fine, Aunt Vee...I'm happy to see you too. How have you been, how's Uncle Ed?"

"We're fine, just fine. Looking forward to tomorrow, of course. Jane looks wonderful, I haven't seen her in so long!"

"Well, wait til you see her in her dress, she's a knockout."

"And your dress? I'm sure you'll look stunning as well."

"Oh, I love my dress, it's gorgeous. Thank God Jane is easy to please...she just wanted me to get something I liked. I bought it right off the rack."

"Oh, that _is_ nice." She paused, and her voice became quieter. "Will is serving as Charles' best man, I see. You two seem to be…getting along?"

Elizabeth nodded, smiling a little. "We are. I can't believe I haven't spoken to you since I visited during the storm, I feel like I should apologize for not staying in touch."

"Oh, nonsense, you don't owe me an apology. You have a lot going on, I don't expect you to call me all the time. We always find time to catch up."

"I know." She paused. "We're trying Aunt Vee, we really are. We want to make it work."

"Oh, Lizzy, that's wonderful news."

Elizabeth smiled. "It is. I wanted to thank you, again, for being so supportive. Everything you said to me that day, about regret, and about second chances...it really made me think. That, and the fact that Will showed up in South Carolina."

"He did _what_? He went down there?"

Elizabeth sighed. "He did. Some things happened when he was there...a lot happened, actually...things just became a little clearer in my mind, and in my heart, I guess. I took some time after that to really think about what I want...and what I want is him. The thought of living without him is so much worse than the thought of being hurt again, that's what it all came down to. He's worth it, he's worth...putting myself out there again, taking a chance."

"I'm so glad. I have a good feeling about the two of you."

Elizabeth grinned. "Thanks. I do too."

"Now...how are things with your mother and father?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and glanced at her watch. "How long have you got?"

"Maybe we should save that conversation for another time?"

Elizabeth nodded. "That's probably a very good idea."

Now, as she joined her Aunt and Uncle at the bar, she greeted them both with a kiss on the cheek. Her Uncle ordered her a glass of wine.

"You look beautiful, Lizzy."

"Thanks Uncle Ed."

"I was just telling your mother, she's very lucky to have such beautiful girls...all three of you. She's a bit subdued today, is everything okay?"

"It is, right now...it's a long story, and one better told on a different day."

"Ah. I understand. I was also telling her that I drove by the old homestead a few days ago, it's for sale again. Shame, it just keeps bouncing from person to person. I'd love to see it restored to its former glory, but I don't think the right person will come along."

Elizabeth felt slightly saddened at this news, as she always did when she found out her grandparent's home was back on the market. She always said that if she ever won the lottery, the first thing she'd do is buy that house back. However, since she didn't even _play_ the lottery, the chances of that happening were pretty darn slim. "I'd love to get my hands on that place...although, I'd be apprehensive about seeing what it looks like on the inside. I think it would break my heart if everything was torn apart. I guess it's better not knowing."

Uncle Ed reached up and wrapped an arm around her, squeezing her shoulders. "You're probably right."

* * *

><p>The dancing was finally in full swing. The band had brought in a female singer as well, expanding their repertoire of songs, which thrilled Jane and Charles. The woman had a smoky voice that blended well with the male lead singer's voice, and they sounded fantastic.<p>

Elizabeth was standing with Lydia, talking to her quietly. She had managed to be civil to her younger sister, and she could see that Lydia was making every effort to behave like an adult, which was a nice change. Elizabeth had yet to see her have a single drink; as far as she could see, she was sticking to water. They talked about the wedding, the reception, the dresses, etc., but nothing much deeper than that. Now was not the time.

Elizabeth spotted Will across the tent, standing at the bar with Charles. The two men were laughing so hard, they were both practically doubled over, holding their stomachs. Charles was trying to finish whatever he was saying, but was laughing so hard it seemed he couldn't finish. Just watching them made Elizabeth start laughing, but she slowly stopped as she let her eyes just soak in the vision of Will, looking so handsome in his suit, his dimples on full display as he smiled at his best friend.

He had already removed his tie and unbuttoned a few buttons on his perfectly peach shirt. The suit jacket and pants were a light brown, almost tan color. Charles wore the same color jacket and pants, but with a white shirt. Will had promised to dance with her as often as she liked, so she knew it would only be a matter of time before the jacket was taken off too...and his shirt sleeves rolled up. _Hmmm._ She was looking forward to it already.

Will looked around, and spotted Elizabeth standing with Lydia. He looked at her questioningly, but she smiled, so he knew she was alright. He then very obviously let his eyes wander slowly down her body and back up again, only to be met with an arched brow from her. The band started playing a song that had a country twang to it, and he nodded toward the dance floor with his head, his brows raised, silently asking her for a dance. She nodded, smiling, and told Lydia she'd talk to her a bit later.

Will met Elizabeth on the dance floor, pulling her close, giving her a long kiss. The floor was filled with dancers, but there was plenty of space for everyone to move, without constantly bumping into other couples. When the words began, Will pulled away from her slightly so he could look her up and down again, clearly singing the flirty song to her.

_Love the way you look in that dress  
><em>_Mmm, you got me thinkin' thoughts in my head  
><em>_The way your body's movin', slowly to the music  
><em>_Only leaves me wantin' more.  
><em>_So baby let's don't call it a night  
><em>_Love the way you're holdin' me tight  
><em>_When you're next to me, there's no place I'd rather be  
><em>_Everything is feelin' so right  
><em>_So baby, let's don't call it a night.*_

It was obvious to Elizabeth that Will was very relaxed and was enjoying himself immensely. He looked her in the eyes as he sang, smiling, holding her tightly by the waist, moving her around, pulling her close and singing in her ear, and just being very, very flirtatious and carefree. His hands were everywhere, wandering over her back, floating through her hair, back to her waist, sliding down her hips...she reveled in it, enjoying the fact that she was very much the center of his attention.

Throughout the evening, even when they weren't standing together, she'd catch a glimpse of him, and most of the time, although he'd be talking with someone else, he'd be watching her. It reminded her of Charles' Memorial Day cookout, when they were just beginning to get to know each other. It honestly seemed like a lifetime ago. When she did catch him looking, she felt that little flicker of awareness course through her body, and wondered if he felt the same thing when he caught her staring at him.

They danced to a few more songs, both slightly faster in tempo. Elizabeth couldn't believe he was actually dancing, and was pleasantly surprised to see that he was really very good at it. On the Vineyard, they'd barely had room to wiggle, but here, as she watched him, she could see he had a natural rhythm, and looked comfortable letting his body move. When Charles and Jane joined them, they ended up switching partners, Will dancing with Jane, and Elizabeth dancing with her new brother-in-law, the four of them laughing together, enjoying the moment.

When the fourth song ended, Will grabbed Elizabeth by the hand and led her over to their table so they could sit for a few moments, leaving the newlyweds on the dance floor. He took off his jacket and tossed it over a chair, then rolled up his sleeves. Elizabeth watched him, again thinking that this small action was unbelievably sexy...and definitively masculine. There was just something about his arms...and his hands...that she loved. She started to sit, but he pulled her down into his lap, startling her, as she expected to land in her own seat.

"No, you sit here," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her. "I haven't had a moment alone with you tonight."

She wrapped her arms loosely around his neck. "We just danced together, didn't we?"

"Yes, on a crowded dance floor."

Elizabeth smiled. "Oh...were there other people dancing? I didn't notice."

He grinned back at her and kissed her again. "You look stunning, have I told you that?"

"You have, several times. Not that I tire of hearing it." She brought her hands back around to his chest, resting them on the fabric-covered muscles there. "You look pretty damn good yourself. Peach becomes you." And it did. The soft color contrasted wonderfully with his dark hair and eyes, and brought out the rich color of his tan.

"You think so?" He chuckled, and his gaze dropped low. "I like the way this dress is made...lots of skin showing here," he said, as he watched his hand stroke over her smooth, bare legs. "Very nice."

Elizabeth instantly felt a little ball of anticipation start bouncing around in her stomach as his hand drifted over her thighs.

"If we were alone..." his voice trailed off.

"If we were alone...what?" Elizabeth asked, feeling her heart begin to beat quickly. His fingers hadn't stopped that mesmerizing circular pattern, slowly moving higher up her thigh with each sweep.

"If we were alone...my mouth would be here instead of my hand," he said quietly, staring into her eyes. "And this dress, you could leave it on…" his eyes traveled over her body, down to her legs, before meeting her eyes again, and she felt herself flush. "Mmm, I think I'd want you to leave it on," he said, his voice rough, "I would just have to push it up...just a little." As he said the words, his hand slipped under the hem of her dress, moving higher, coming precariously close to crossing into 'inappropriate public behavior' territory. He leaned in to nuzzle her neck, letting his lips drift over her pulse point, kissing her there a little, before gently pulling her earlobe into his mouth and biting it lightly. He felt a little jolt travel through her body, making him smile against her skin, and he let his hand travel up just a _tiny bit _higher.

Elizabeth felt like she was about to burst into flames. Just those few words, along with the heated touch of his hand and lips, filled her with an intense longing for him. "Will," she said, slightly breathless.

His lips continued to travel over her neck. "Mmm."

"If you don't-" she paused and gasped lightly as she felt his teeth grazing the curve between her neck and shoulder, and her whole body shuddered. Once again, she felt his lips as they smiled against her. "If you don't...plan on-" She stopped speaking as his lips traveled along her jaw, coming back to her lips.

He kissed her slowly, pouring his heart into it, letting his lips caress hers, making it soft and sensuous and breathtaking. When he slowly pulled away, she was completely speechless, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew that her face was pink, she could feel the heat in her cheeks, and every other part of her body was either throbbing or tingling with want. She was acutely aware of the feeling of his erection pressed against her hip, and she knew that he felt the electrical current moving between them just as intensely as she did. When she opened her eyes, he was staring at her, his face close to hers.

"If I don't plan on what?" he whispered, reaching to push her hair back with one hand, letting it stay buried in her curls, holding her steady so he could kiss her again, just as deeply as before.

When he released her this time, Elizabeth shook her head slightly. "Good Lord," she whispered.

Will grinned at her, and shifted himself slightly so she could feel how aroused he was. He looked into her deep green eyes, filled with desire. "What were you saying?" His voice was hoarse.

"I was saying...trying to say...if you don't plan on finishing...you probably shouldn't be starting. And you're definitely starting."

"I'm just...indulging." His voice sounded rough. "Isn't that what you said we were doing Wednesday? Indulging? I'm just building up the anticipation, that's all." He grinned again, a look of pure mischief on his face, but she could see the underlying desire there as well, burning in his eyes. She leaned forward to bite his bottom lip softly, making him jump. They shared another long kiss before she pulled away.

"Anticipation is one thing...turning me completely inside out is another. I won't be able to function for the rest of the night, and there are still two hours left of this party." Her hands glided over his chest again, then up and around his shoulders, pulling him as close as she could.

Will reached forward with one hand, grabbed the bottle of champagne from the table, and poured the remaining contents into a glass. "Remember the champagne we drank on the Vineyard?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Ohhh, in the bathroom...that tub..." Her voice trailed off, and their minds traveled to the exact same place as they gazed at each other. "That was...nice."

He smiled at her and took a sip of champagne, never taking his eyes from hers, before holding the glass to her lips and tilting it for her to drink. She could see the heat in his eyes as she swallowed the sweet, fizzy liquid. She licked her lips slowly and deliberately, watching as his eyes followed the movement of her tongue. "Mmm. Very, very nice," he whispered, before leaning in to kiss her yet again.

From across the tent, Caroline Bingley stood near the bar, watching Will as he _canoodled_ with Eliza Bennet. Again. She had maintained her distance from him all evening, in fact had maintained distance from him for weeks now. Her brother had let her know quite forcefully just what was expected of her, not just at his wedding, but for good. _You've embarrassed yourself, and me,_ _repeatedly_, Charles had said to her, _and it has to stop __now__._

"Ugh, such public displays of affection," she said, mumbling to herself. Just the same, she couldn't seem to stop staring at them. It had been that way all evening; wherever they were, her eyes seemed to seek them out. It was becoming annoying.

"Pardon?" the girl next to her said.

"Ohh, sorry. Nothing. I was just...remarking on the scenery."

"Oh." Lydia looked around, following the eye-line of the gaudily dressed woman standing next to her, until her gaze fell on Elizabeth and Will. "Oh, you're looking at the happy couple over there."

"Mmm, yes, the _happy_ couple. It's nauseating, isn't it? Don't they have any manners? I mean, really. Get a room already."

Lydia shrugged. "They're happy. In love." She glanced around again. "No one's paying any attention to them anyway...well, except you, that is."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "In _love_? Hmph. I think not. _That_ love is _temporary_, at best."

Lydia laughed. "Temporary? Why do you say that?"

Caroline turned to finally look at the woman she was talking to. "Who are you?"

"Who are _you?" _Lydia countered, furrowing her brows.

Caroline sighed and rolled her eyes. "No one important, apparently," she said with a touch of sarcasm in her voice.

Lydia laughed again. "Yeah...me too. So, tell me...why do you think they're temporary?" She wasn't in any hurry to divulge that she was Elizabeth's sister. She really wanted to hear what this uptight woman had to say.

"Isn't it obvious?" Caroline asked. "I mean, really...Darcy is the epitome of all that is first class and upstanding, and little Eliza...well, she's not. She's not in his league at all, really. She can't possibly think that she's good enough for him. It's the same old story...the poor girl wanting to sink her claws into the rich boy. She's just a gold-digger."

"Oh _really_?" Lydia asked, suddenly feeling very irritated. "So what does that make you?"

Caroline's eyes widened as she looked at Lydia. "Excuse me?"

"Who are you again?"

"I'm the _sister_ of the _groom_, if you don't mind."

Lydia's eyes opened wide. "Ohhhh, now I see. You want Mr. First Class over there for yourself, don't you? You'd rather sink your _own_ gold-digging claws into him."

Caroline sputtered. "No, that's not it...Darcy and I have known each other forever...he's my brother's best friend, we...we're _supposed_ to be together. It's destiny, really. It's fate. I'm perfect for him, a far better match than that _chit_ could ever be. It will take him some time to come around, but he'll see it eventually. Once he's done with _her_."

Lydia was beside herself. "Who are you calling a _chit_?" Her eyes looked over Caroline's attire. "Look at yourself, and then look at her. What in the _hell_ makes you think that he'd give her up for you? You're delusional, obviously. He's _in_ _love_ with her, and she is _in_ _love_ with him. It's not temporary, not by a long shot."

Caroline looked furious. "Who did you say you were again?"

"Actually, I didn't say. My name is Lydia – Lydia Bennet. That poverty-stricken gold-digging _chit_ over there is my sister, and so is the _bride_. Boy, you are one jealous, crazy bitch, aren't you? I've heard about women like you, looking for a sugar daddy to take care of you for the rest of your life."

"You...you're her _sister_? I can't believe it! The _nerve_ of you, baiting me like that."

Lydia shrugged, smiling gleefully, as she watched Caroline's face turn a deeper shade of red. "I just wanted to know what you had to say. So, _now_ I can tell you to stay the hell away from my sister and her boyfriend, or believe me, I'll embarrass you so badly, you'll never recover. I'm _really_ good at that, trust me. So stop staring at them, and find yourself another innocent victim to hunt down. _That_ one is off limits." She glanced over at Elizabeth and Will, locked in yet another lengthy kiss. Turning her eyes back to Caroline, her voice softened slightly. "Just back the fuck off, okay? She...she deserves some happiness for a change. That's a losing battle for you. Deal with it. He wants her, and she wants him. They're happy. Just leave them alone."

* * *

><p><em>Part 1 of the wedding is done! There will be more in the next chapter...in two weeks. Please leave a review! Thanks!<em>


	49. Chapter 49

_Surprise! The chapter was done and beta'd, so I figured I'd just post early. If I didn't, I'd just end up messing around with it. Best just to post! This chapter marks the end of Part 6. Thanks for reading and reviewing!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 49<strong>

The rest of the reception seemed to pass quickly. Will pulled Mrs. Reynolds out onto the floor for a few slower dances, guiding her around gracefully. Elizabeth watched as the beloved older woman smiled up at him in obvious adoration.

Will smiled down at her in return. "You look very lovely, Mrs. R. Are you having a good time?"

"Oh, thank you William, I'm having a wonderful time. I just _love_ weddings. Mr. R and I had a very small ceremony, and just a dinner afterward. Nothing like this, we had no money to spend on such a lavish occasion." She smiled wistfully. "I wouldn't have changed a thing about it though. What kind of wedding will you have, I wonder?"

Will's eyes opened wide at her brashness. "Me?" He laughed as she nodded. "Don't get too far ahead of yourself – or me – please. I haven't even thought about that. _We_ haven't thought about that, it's a long way off."

"Oh, come now, you can't tell me you haven't considered it at least once today. How could you not, with all this love and happiness in the air?"

Will smirked and shook his head at her as they moved slowly around the floor. "Well, maybe I thought about it once. It's hard not to," he trailed off. He caught Mrs. Reynolds' look and squinted his eyes at her. "Stop looking at me like that! It's not anything that will happen soon."

"But it will happen."

He shrugged, and felt his cheeks begin to pink. "God, how is it that you can still make me blush? Yes, I hope it will happen. _Someday_. We're not anywhere near that point yet...but that's what I want for us, in time. I hope that's what she wants too. I think it is."

"There's only one way to find out."

"Alice Reynolds," he said with mock firmness.

"Fitzwilliam Darcy," she said, with the same tone of voice. "I'm not rushing you, that's the last thing I would do. Marriage is not something you do..._impulsively_." She emphasized that last word, and laughed when he rolled his eyes at her. "It's always good to know, though, that you are both working toward the same goal."

"I think we are. I think we both want the same thing, in the end."

"I think so too. The way she looks at you…you don't see her staring at you, but I've seen it enough, just tonight, to know that she loves you deeply."

Will smiled down at her. "I feel the same way. I'm lucky that she loves me, that she gave me a second chance."

"She's lucky too, William. You're a good man."

He leaned in and gave her a gentle hug. "Thank you for everything, Mrs. R. I don't think I've said it to you often enough. You've always been there for me, and for Georgie." His eyes misted as he realized that some day, she _wouldn't_ be there. "Talking to you, especially over the past two weeks, has helped me so much, I don't know if you realize it."

Mrs. Reynolds looked at him with tears in her eyes. "Your happiness, Georgiana's happiness...that's my thanks. It's all the thanks I need."

When they finished their dance, they headed to where Elizabeth was standing with Georgiana and Matt. Georgiana was stunning, as usual, in a little black dress, and Matt looked very handsome in his black suit as well, although like Will, he had shed his jacket quite a while ago. Elizabeth could see that he was finding it very hard not to stare at Georgie, which she found adorable. Will seemed to be less 'fatherly' around the two of them, as he had pretty much gotten used to the fact that Matt wasn't going anywhere. Will liked him, and Elizabeth could see that there was a friendship beginning between them, and steadily growing.

The band broke into a thumping rendition of a song by Pink, and Georgiana grinned. "Lizzy, I'm taking your man for a spin on the floor," she called out, as she grabbed Will and headed into the throng of people on the dance floor. Elizabeth laughed as Will looked back at her helplessly.

"Then I'll take yours," Elizabeth called back. She took Matt's hand and pulled him out to dance alongside Will and Georgie.

They danced to a few songs, eventually switching back to their own partners, which was fine with Will. Even while he danced with his sister, he couldn't keep his eyes off of his girlfriend. As the four of them left the floor, out of breath but feeling exhilarated, Matt pulled Georgiana away for a stroll down the beach. Elizabeth found Jane again, just coming off the dance floor with Charles, and the two women chatted while downing another glass of champagne. Will's eyebrows rose as he tried to figure out how many glasses Elizabeth had consumed throughout the night. _Oh well_, he shrugged, _she's celebrating with her sister, she deserves to cut loose a little_.

He spotted Charles talking to Mr. Bennet, and chose to avoid that conversation. A voice called from behind him.

"William," Ed Gardner said jovially.

Will turned around and shook his hand. "Ed, it's nice to see you again. Sorry we didn't have much of a chance to talk at the rehearsal last night."

"Oh, that's fine. I know what it's like to be a best man, there was enough to keep you busy."

"Oh, it could have been much worse, I'm sure. Charles is an easy groom. I just had to show up and hold on to the rings."

"Lucky for you. How are things? How's business?"

They made small talk for a while, and though it was pleasant and relaxed, Will constantly felt this nagging sensation that he had disappointed Elizabeth's aunt and uncle. He had told Ed, back on the Vineyard that weekend, that he wasn't going anywhere, that he wouldn't hurt Elizabeth, and yet it was exactly what he had ended up doing. Finally, he felt the only way to settle it was to put it out into the open.

"Lizzy says you made it through the storm without much damage?"

"Oh, we were fine," Ed replied. "A few shingles flew off, but that's about it. I'm lucky, really. A friend of ours who owns an inn just three blocks away had an entire tree crash through his roof. Horrible damage."

"That's too bad," Will replied, shifting his feet. He cleared his throat before speaking again. "I'm glad Lizzy went to see you then. I was..." He hesitated, unsure of what to say."Well, honestly, I was being a complete bastard. I did just what I said I wouldn't do; I walked away from her. I hurt her. I'm glad she had you and Vee to turn to."

Ed was staring at him intently. "I don't know what happened between you and Lizzy. I know she talked to Vee about it, but Vee kept it to herself, and that's okay, she didn't need to tell me. All I want to know is this; are you working it out? Fixing it?"

Will nodded. "Yes."

"Do you love and appreciate her, the person she is?"

"I do, very much. Of course I do."

Mr. Gardner paused for a moment, looking Will in the eyes. "Will it happen again?"

Will didn't hesitate now. "No sir, it won't."

Ed paused again, still looking at him closely. "Let me tell you something. I've been there, so I know how it feels. I've been in your shoes. It feels like you've been handed a gift, doesn't it? A precious, fragile gift, and you're scared shitless that you'll drop it, shatter it into a million pieces, right? Is that how you're feeling?"

Will swallowed, nodding. "A little, yeah...I'm afraid that I'll screw it up again somehow." _I'm afraid that I'll fail._

Ed chuckled softly, slapping him on the back. "A little fear is good, my boy. It goes a long way. Lizzy's not the type to hold anything over your head. Neither was my Valerie. You two will be just fine; Vee is sure of it, and if she's sure of it, that's good enough for me."

Will raised his eyebrows. "A little fear is good, huh? I should be all set then." He looked up to where Elizabeth was still standing with Jane. Their heads were bent close together, and they were talking seriously, sharing some kind of sisterly wisdom, he was sure. Elizabeth looked toward him then and caught his eye, smiling softly at him, and he smiled back, feeling himself warm a little under her gaze.

He heard Ed chuckle again. "You just keep looking at her like that, son, and you'll be just fine."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stood with Jane, chatting about the honeymoon she and Charles had planned in the Maldives. Jane was a nervous flier, and wasn't looking forward to being on a plane for such an extended period of time.<p>

"We have a layover at JFK first thing, which is fine, but then it's a ridiculously long flight after that. And we have to switch planes again at some point. It will all be worth it, though. I can't wait to just relax and have Charles to myself for a week."

"I bet. You'll have a fantastic time," Elizabeth replied. She glanced around and spotted Will standing with her uncle. She flashed him a smile, and received a disarming one in return, turning her insides to jelly.

"Oh, the two of you!" Jane said, laughing. "Steamy looks from across a crowded room. Good grief."

Elizabeth nudged her sister. "I can't help it, he's so damn hot." She giggled, her face pinking.

Jane laughed at her. "How much champagne have you had?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "Not a ton...a few glasses. Funny, Will just asked me that same question not too long ago."

Jane quirked a brow at her.

"What?! I'm not drunk or anything, I'm...pleasantly buzzed. I feel good. Oh, and Uncle Ed bought me a glass of wine."

Jane laughed. "Let the good times roll."

"I am. They are. Rolling right along."

"I'm glad you're having fun."

Elizabeth smiled. "It _has_ been fun. Are _you_ having fun? That's the important part."

"I am. It's kind of surreal, but it's been wonderful." She smiled as she looked for and found Charles, surprisingly taking a turn on the dance floor with Caroline. They looked like they were in the midst of a serious conversation. "I hope nothing ruins it."

Elizabeth followed her eyes. "Oh geez. She's been avoiding Will and me like the plague, which is fine with me."

"She's barely even spoken to me! I did see her talking to mum quite a bit."

Elizabeth's eyes opened wide. "Oh, great. A woman who can't stand me has been gas-bagging with mum. That's all I need."

Jane looked at her seriously. "Have you spoken to mum or dad at all?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "A little, last night. Not much today. Mum told me I looked beautiful, dad gave me a kiss on the cheek at the church, and that's about it. Uncle Ed said that mum is pretty subdued...maybe something we said the other day got through to her. Time will tell I guess."

"What about Lydia? She's pretty quiet too."

"I chatted with her a little. I did notice that she hasn't been drinking anything but water." Elizabeth sighed. "This may sound selfish, but I didn't really want to deal with any of them today. Will and I had it in our minds that we were going to have fun, celebrate with you and Charles, and just...relax and be worry-free for the day. I think that's why I've been avoiding the three of them. I just don't want to take the chance that some drama will pop up."

"It's not selfish at all, Lizzy. You have every right to feel that way, and you and Will deserve a day to just have fun and cut loose."

"Oh! Guess what?" Elizabeth said, suddenly breaking out in a huge smile.

"What?"

"I'm going to California with him for a business trip."

Jane smiled. "You are? When?"

"We leave Monday, and we're coming back Tuesday."

Jane frowned. "Oh...that's not much of a trip."

"It was too short notice for me to get more time off from work. I don't care, though...we're still going away together. I know, it's just one night, but still...I'm looking forward to it. We'll fit some playtime in."

Jane noticed the sparkle in her sister's eyes, so pronounced, and knew who, and what, had put it there. It was time to cut Will a little slack. Just a little. "I'm happy for you, Lizzy, I really am."

Elizabeth knew that Jane was talking about more than just the trip to California. "Thanks Jane."

It was nearing eleven o'clock, and the reception began to wind down. The bride and groom were asked to come to the floor for their final dance, and the piano could be heard as the band began playing the last song* of the evening. The guests surrounded the dance floor, watching the happy couple. Jane and Charles didn't speak; they just held each other close and swayed gently to the music, completely wrapped up in each other.

Elizabeth sighed and watched the newlyweds with tears in her eyes, sipping a glass of champagne. Will stood behind her, his arms around her waist, swaying her back and forth as well. When the words to the song finally began, he sang softly into her ear, and she leaned back into him, closing her eyes, letting the deep tones of his voice wash over her.

As the song ended, Jane and Charles embraced for a long moment on the dance floor, and Elizabeth could see that her sister was silently crying again, which of course led to tears of her own. Will grinned and kissed them away. "I'm so happy for them," she whispered.

"Me too," Will said, holding her tight.

The guests slowly dwindled away, coming in off the beach and slowly leaving the tents, most carrying their shoes and jackets, all agreeing that it was a wonderful day. Jane and Charles expressed their thanks and bid farewell to everyone, waiting until the end to say their goodbyes to family.

Will said goodnight to Mrs. Reynolds. He had wanted her to stay at the house with him, but she adamantly refused, and instead booked a room at a nearby hotel. Even Georgiana couldn't convince her to stay at the guest house. He knew she felt as if she would be intruding, despite his insistence that she wouldn't be. Georgiana and Matt said their good-nights too, as they were driving Mrs. Reynolds to her hotel before heading back to Georgie's house. The five of them made tentative plans for breakfast at Will's house the next day.

Will watched as Elizabeth helped Jane with her dress and helped her locate her shoes. He turned to stare out at the ocean, and was startled when he came face to face with Caroline Bingley. Before he was aware of it, he scowled, it couldn't be helped.

"Hello Darcy," she said, with that condescending air that she usually reserved for other people.

"Caroline," Will replied, his voice completely devoid of warmth.

"I have a few things I'd like to say, if you have a moment."

He shrugged noncommittally. "I doubt it's anything I want to hear, but go ahead."

She looked momentarily unsure of herself, but plowed ahead anyway. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior of late. I'm afraid I've presented myself in a very unflattering light."

"Is that what you're sorry for?"

"Well, _yes_, but not just that. It wasn't my intention to make you angry at me, obviously..." her voice trailed off as she looked at him, and suddenly she reached forward, placing her hand on his arm. "I wish you could just _see_ it, though...can't you see that she's not right for you? What is it going to take to get you to realize that she's nothing, a nobody?" Her voice had taken on a desperate, urgent tone, though she was still talking quietly.

Will glanced over Caroline's shoulder at Elizabeth, who had slowly walked up behind her, and by the look on her face, had heard every word that Caroline had just uttered.

"What did you just say?" Elizabeth said to Caroline's back.

Caroline looked up in horror at Will, who only pursed his lips and shrugged. She spun around and looked at Elizabeth. "Oh! I – I didn't say anything. I – I didn't know you were standing there."

Elizabeth looked at her shrewdly, sipping yet another glass of champagne. "You didn't say anything? That's funny, because I could have _sworn_ I heard you call me a nobody." Despite her anger, she kept her voice low, not wanting to make any kind of scene or draw attention to them in any way. She leaned closer to Caroline, until she was inches from her face. "_You_ are a nobody, Caroline. To Will, and to me, _you_ are nothing. It's time you gave up on him, don't you think? Even if I _didn't_ have him – which I_ do_, most definitely – you_ never _would_. __You're_ the one who isn't good enough for _him_. Now, I think you should do us all a favor and get your _skinny little ass_ away from us before I do something that will embarrass us both."

Caroline looked appalled; her mouth dropped open as her hand fluttered to her chest. Just as quickly, her mouth snapped shut and she sneered at Elizabeth, then turned to look at Will. "Ugh, don't you see? Did you hear her, the way she was speaking to me?" Her eyes flew back to Elizabeth. "Your sister is just the same – vulgar and crass."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "Don't you dare talk about Jane that way-"

Caroline rolled her eyes and interrupted. "Not Jane, the other one, Linda or whatever her name is. She already tried to intimidate me with her threats and crude language. You – and your entire family, for that matter – have no manners, no class at all."

"Of course I have no class, I'm just a beach girl, remember?"

"Ugh," Caroline replied, lifting her nose, unaware that her brother had been watching what was happening and had walked up behind her. She turned her stony gaze to Will again. "Your family name will be forever tarnished by her, Darcy. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Charles very lightly, but firmly, grabbed her arm. "And don't say I didn't warn _you,_" he hissed quietly into her ear as he began walking away with her. "So, Will's family name will be tarnished by Elizabeth, hmm? Is that right? You _do_ know that my wife is her sister, don't you?"

"But...but Jane is _different_, Charles! She's – she's – well, she's just _different_."

"The only reason why she's _different_ to you is because Darcy wasn't interested in her," he said, anger evident in his voice. They walked outside of the tent, out of hearing range of the few lingering guests. "Did nothing that we discussed before the wedding, and _during_ this reception, sink into that brain of yours? Will is _in love_ with Elizabeth Bennet, and I wouldn't be surprised if the next wedding I attend is theirs. They are _in love_, Caroline, do you get it? It has nothing to do with money, or who has what, or what anyone's name is. Get it through your thick skull. He doesn't want you, he never has, and he never will. _Move on._"

Caroline jerked her arm out of his grasp. "Fine. Someday, you'll all be eating your words. You'll see. They won't last, she won't be able to handle his world."

"_This_ is his world, Caroline! Not Boston, not fundraisers and balls and all those other goddamned society events. _This_ is his world, _with_ _Elizabeth_, and you are not a part of it. Get used to it."

Caroline blinked a few times, and for a minute, Charles thought she was about to lose it. Instead, she took a deep breath, straightened her posture, and stared straight at him, unflinching. "My congratulations on your nuptials, Charles. Have a lovely honeymoon. I'll see you when you return home."

"Caroline-" he said, his temper deflating as he suddenly felt like a mean older brother. What he said to her _had_ to be said, though, he knew that. In fact, it had already been said, many times, over and over again. It just never seemed to sink in.

"Goodnight, Charles." She turned and walked away. He took a deep breath, letting her go, then turned and walked back into the tent.

He spied Will and Elizabeth sitting together at a table, talking quietly, and not wanting to disturb them, he went to find his bride.

Will was laughing lightly as he pulled Elizabeth's bare feet up onto his lap. "_Skinny_ _little_ _ass_? Did I really hear you say that to her?"

Elizabeth giggled. "That was the champagne talking. It just came out." She sank lower into her chair and let her eyes drift shut. "I couldn't help it. Did you see the look on her face?" she said, giggling again. "Priceless. Totally worth it. She's such a bitch, she really is. Oh, don't tell Charles I said that."

Will grinned. "I'm pretty sure Charles is aware of that little fact already." He paused, and when he spoke again, his voice was rough. "I liked hearing you tell her that I was yours, though. That _definitely_ got my attention." His hands moved to her calves, gently massaging them, his fingers stroking lightly from behind her knee, down to her ankle.

She groaned with pleasure at the touch of his hands. Her eyes opened slowly and immediately went to his face, taking in the playful expression there. She sighed, feeling slightly embarrassed. "I told you, the words just flew out of my mouth, I couldn't stop them. It was probably a little immature, staking my claim on you like that."

Will shook his head slightly, still staring at her. "No, it didn't sound immature at all. It sounded perfect. I am yours."

He smiled then, flashing his dimples, continuing his attentions to her legs. Elizabeth felt herself blush hotly under his gaze.

Chuckling, he squeezed her calves gently. "You're a little bit drunk, I think," he said, a tease in his voice.

"Just a little. Not really drunk, just...a teeny bit tipsy. How come you're not? You drank as much champagne as I did."

"Actually," he said, glancing at her partly-bare thighs and resisting the urge to slide his hands up even further, "I didn't drink as much as you, because you kept drinking mine. _And_, even if I did drink as much...I _think_ I'm a little heavier than you. It doesn't affect me the same way. Plus, I have to drive you home, so..."

Her brows furrowed as she looked at him. "We need to discuss that."

At that moment, Charles and Jane came walking over, with Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, Lydia, and the Gardners in tow, interrupting their conversation. Elizabeth and Will rose from their seats and exchanged pleasant, if not awkward, goodnight wishes with her parents and Lydia. She pulled her aunt aside briefly to find out their travel plans for the next day, hoping they'd have a chance to connect before they took the boat back to the Vineyard.

And then it was just the four of them again. Charles and Jane didn't linger for long, but told Will and Elizabeth to take their time. The sisters hugged for a long moment while Will and Charles talked quietly, shaking hands, and then it was time to say goodbye. Elizabeth gave Charles a kiss on the cheek and they embraced tightly.

"Take good care of my sister," Elizabeth whispered to him, finding herself near tears again.

"I will, Lizzy, I promise. Always."

Will and Jane hugged as well, and Will congratulated the happy couple again.

The newlyweds made their way across the backyard, walking slowly, holding hands. Suddenly, Elizabeth and Will heard a loud shriek, and were not entirely surprised to see that Charles had picked Jane up and had thrown her over his shoulder. They smiled as they watched her arms flailing, slapping Charles' bottom, trying to right herself. She was laughing hysterically, in between demands for her new husband to _put her down_. Charles held her tight, ascending the steps to the deck with little effort, then finally set her down, kissing her deeply, before lifting her again to properly carry her over the threshold and into their home. They disappeared inside, and not a minute later, the house was dark.

Will and Elizabeth smiled at each other, amused at the scene they had just witnessed. Behind them, the members of the band were sitting for a spell, relaxing and having a beer before they had to pack everything up. They were still playing some songs without using the sound system, just goofing around.

"Want to walk on the beach?" Elizabeth asked.

"Sure."

They walked from under the tent, already barefoot, holding hands. Just as they reached the cool sand, someone started to quietly play the piano, and not long after, the male singer joined in, his vocals sounding clear and pristine, even without the benefit of a microphone.

_Oh, this is the start of something good, don't you agree?  
><em>_I, haven't felt like this in so many moons, you know what I mean?_

"Ohh, I love this song," Elizabeth said, tugging on Will's hand. She twirled in the sand, looking up at him, smiling flirtatiously. "Dance with me."

_How can I resist those beautiful eyes?_ They danced slowly, holding each other close, and Will listened as Elizabeth sang along quietly. He'd heard her sing before, but usually it happened by accident, without her knowing; she was shy about it, even though she had a pretty, melodious voice. At the moment, though, perhaps due to the champagne she had consumed, she didn't seem self-conscious at all. She tucked her head under his chin and sang against his chest, swaying with him in the moonlight. He smiled into her hair and listened to the lyrics as she softly sang them.

_And we can build through this destruction,  
><em>_As we are standing on our feet...  
><em>_So, since you wanna be with me  
><em>_You'll have to follow through  
><em>_With every word you say.  
><em>_And I, all I really want is you,  
><em>_You to stick around  
><em>_I'll see you every day  
><em>_But you have to follow through...you have to follow through._

Will swallowed thickly as the message of the song sank in. Obviously, it wasn't anything she had intended; it was random chance that the band had chosen this particular song to sing, but still...the words were fitting, echoing in his mind. He had a sudden urge to drop down onto his knees and promise her that he _would_ stick around, he _would_ follow through. Instead of doing that, he just continued to hold her close, afraid to ruin the moment.

_These reeling emotions, they just keep me alive, keep me in tune.  
><em>_Oh, look what I'm holding here in my fire,  
><em>_This is for you.  
><em>_Am I too obvious to preach it?  
><em>_You're so hypnotic on my heart.  
><em>_So, since you wanna be with me  
><em>_You'll have to follow through  
><em>_With every word you say.  
><em>_And I, all I really want is you,  
><em>_You to stick around  
><em>_I'll see you every day  
><em>_But you have to follow through...you have to follow through.**_

They heard the members of the band clapping and whooping as the song ended abruptly, but they continued to hold each other, standing quietly in the moonlight, listening to the waves as they crashed on the shore. Eventually Elizabeth lifted her head and raised her eyes to his. She slowly rose on her tiptoes to kiss him, hanging onto his shoulders for balance.

Will reached up to cradle her face in his hands, caressing her lips with his. Her lips parted, allowing the kiss to deepen, and he pushed his hands into her hair, holding her against him, not wanting to release her. Their tongues stroked together rhythmically, and he could feel his heartbeat quicken when the kiss became more urgent. Her hands slid from his shoulders, down his chest to his waist, and she gripped his hips tightly, swaying a little at first, then leaning her weight into him. He dragged his lips from hers and kissed across her jaw to her ear, then slowly down her neck, letting his tongue dance across her skin, relishing the taste of her.

Elizabeth raised her hands from Will's waist until she was holding his head in her hands, and she slowly lifted it so that their lips could join again. She was pressed against him so tightly, she could feel the vibration in his chest when he groaned. Her hands wound into his hair as his glided down her back, curving over her bottom, pressing her up against him.

She pulled her lips from his, just enough so that she could talk, and opened her eyes.

"Will," she said, and her voice sounded raspy, not at all like her own. Before she had a chance to clear her throat or say anything else, he leaned in to kiss her again, but she was able to lean back slightly, away from his lips. "Will," she repeated, this time a little stronger.

His eyes opened slowly, and in the moonlight they looked black, although she knew that at this precise moment, if she could see them clearly, they would be a beautiful, rich, chocolaty brown. He leaned forward, his breathing unsteady, until his lips were just barely touching hers.

"I love kissing you," he whispered, before slowly drawing her bottom lip into his mouth, sucking on it slowly, then running his tongue across it before releasing it. "You taste so sweet."

Elizabeth drew a shaky breath, feeling the effect of his words deep in the pit of her stomach and lower. "Don't take me home tonight," she said quietly, whispering against his neck. "Please, Will. I don't want to go home."

Will sighed, brushing his lips across her cheek. He didn't _want_ to take her home, not now. How could such a perfect day end with him taking her home? It just didn't seem right. On the flip side of that, she'd been drinking, and though she definitely wasn't drunk, she was certainly feeling the effects of all the champagne she'd drank throughout the day and into the evening. If she stayed...would he be able to control himself?

Before he had a chance to respond to her words, she reached up to kiss him again, lingering at his lips, playing with them, teasing them with her tongue. He groaned again, feeling completely torn. In the end, her next words made the decision for him.

"I know what you're thinking, I do...but we'll just sleep, okay? I know I had a _little_ too much champagne, and I'm just a _teeny_ _bit_ drunk, but not really, just a _little_...and we already talked about everything and I know how you feel about waiting, and that's okay, it is, I just want to stay with you, I need you to hold me and I want to hold you-"

"Elizabeth," Will interrupted, reaching up to cup her face in his big hands again, smiling at her, "stop babbling."

Her eyes were wide as she stared up at him. "I'm sorry, I just...I just don't want to go home."

He lowered his head to give her a slow, sweet kiss. "I don't want you to go home either. I want you to stay."

Not ten minutes later, they were walking back to Will's house via the beach. Well, Will was walking; Elizabeth had decided to hike up her dress a little and hitch a ride on his back. Tanned arms hung around his shoulders, her little silver heels dangling from one hand, and he clasped her gently under her smooth thighs. Her legs were wrapped tightly around his waist, her breasts were pressed firmly into his back, and he could feel her warm breath on the back of his neck. The heat from her skin was searing his body through his clothing, and as he walked, all he kept thinking was that this little stroll down the beach was definitely not helping him to keep his resolve tonight.

Elizabeth kissed the side of Will's neck, and smiled as she heard him sigh. She laid her cheek against his hair as he strode down the beach. She was humming the tune of the last song they had danced to while she stared out at the twinkling lights of Martha's Vineyard, and he smiled while he listened to her.

"Can you see the lights on the Vineyard?" she asked him softly.

He turned his head in that direction. "I see them."

"Can we go back there again in the fall? I want to go back."

Will smiled, happy to make any plans with her for any point in the future. "Of course we can go back, I'd like that."

She sighed deeply, but didn't say anything else, and he sensed that she was preoccupied with something.

"Are you okay?" he asked, squeezing her legs gently. "Getting sleepy back there? We're almost home."

"No, I'm not sleepy. I was just thinking...I was talking to Uncle Ed tonight, he mentioned that my grandparent's house is for sale. Again. It makes me sad to think that it's just going from one person to another, and none of these people know the story behind it, it doesn't mean anything to them, it's just a house..." Her voice trailed off, and she sighed again. "I'd be afraid to see what it looks like inside, I think. It can't possibly be the same. I don't see how it could be."

Will felt an idea flicker to life in his mind, but he was too tired to pay much attention to it at the moment. It was there, and it wasn't going anywhere, so he'd think about it tomorrow. He walked up the beach to his backyard, and began to walk up the lawn. Surprisingly, they ran into Georgiana and Matt, sitting out in the adirondack chairs.

"Well, look at this!" Georgiana exclaimed. "Welcome home, you two."

Elizabeth grinned from over Will's shoulder. "Hi guys!"

"Poor Will, reduced to being a taxi," Georgiana laughed. "Where's your car?"

"Still at Bingley's," Will said smiling, "I'll get it in the morning."

"Not too early," Elizabeth whispered in his ear.

He grinned and peeked at her out of the corner of his eye, then turned back to his sister and Matt. "Well, we're going up to the house. I guess we'll see you in the morning for breakfast. How about nine?" He heard Elizabeth groan softly. "Or ten? How about ten?"

Georgiana looked at Matt before answering. "Ten is good. I'll call Mrs. R in the morning to let her know we'll pick her up, and we'll bring her back here."

"Sounds good," Will said. "Well, goodnight you two."

They all said their good-nights, and Will ambled up the lawn with Elizabeth still attached to his back. "Don't get used to this," he said jokingly.

By the time they were settled up in his room, it was just about midnight. Elizabeth had raided Will's dresser to find an old t-shirt of his to wear. They climbed into bed together, and Will took a deep breath, knowing this was going to be a test of his willpower. One look at Elizabeth, at the mischievous grin on her face, and that knowledge was confirmed.

"Don't look at me like that," he said, wagging his finger at her. "You said you'd behave."

"Oh, I know," she said, still grinning, "I will." As soon as he laid down, she curled up against him, hooking one leg over both of his, resting her head on his shoulder, hugging him close to her. She kissed his neck, sighing. "I miss this."

He turned to press a soft kiss on her lips. "I do too."

She swallowed, forcing herself to stop her hands from wandering. "Did you have a good day?"

He nodded and kissed her head. "I did, it was a lot of fun. Did you?"

"It was wonderful. Everything was perfect...the ceremony, the reception, the weather...being with you...it was just perfect. Well, except for that little bit with Caroline at the end." She was quiet for a minute. "What do you think she was talking about when she mentioned Lydia?"

Will shrugged. "I have no idea. You'll have to ask Lydia, because I'm sure I won't be talking to Caroline anytime soon."

Elizabeth grunted her agreement.

Will's thoughts turned suddenly to the conversation he had with Mrs. Reynolds when they were dancing. _His wedding._ _Marriage. _He was being truthful when he told her he hadn't really thought about it until today. Standing in the little chapel with Jane and Charles, looking at Elizabeth across from him...of _course_ it had entered his mind then, what it would be like to be standing there with her, saying those vows to her, hearing her say them back. Strangely, the thought had excited him a little. They had never discussed it though, not once. What if she wasn't thinking that way?

"Elizabeth?"

"Mmm."

She was obviously half asleep already. "Do you...have you ever thought..." he stammered over the words.

"Hmmm?"

"Do you want to get married?"

Her body sprang up into a sitting position. She looked down at him, her mouth open, eyes wide. "_What?_"

"No, no, no, not – not right _now_. That – that wasn't a proposal."

She sighed, closing her eyes. "God, you just gave me a heart attack."

He frowned at her. "I did? Why would...why would that give you a heart attack?"

She looked down at him and had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing at the perplexed look on his face. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it _that_ way...I just didn't expect to hear those words, that's all. You caught me off guard."

He shrugged. "Sorry." One hand reached up to cup her cheek. "I meant...someday. Have you thought about it? I mean, is that what you want, eventually?" His thumb stroked over the smooth skin of her jaw.

"Is it what you want?" she asked quietly, leaning into his hand.

He nodded, but said nothing, just continued to stare up at her, into her large green eyes.

Elizabeth could see that he was serious, that he wanted to know if they were ultimately working toward the same thing, together. She turned to plant a kiss on his palm, covering his hand with one of hers. Slowly, she nodded. "Me too...someday. I want to get married, have a family, have kids."

Will smiled faintly. _Kids. Wow. _His smile grew.

"Why are you smiling?" she asked, even as she found herself grinning back.

His smile broadened until his dimples appeared, and he shrugged again. "I really don't know. I guess I just...like the sound of that."

She leaned over to kiss each dimple before claiming his lips, resting her hands on his chest, and his arms came up to encircle her. After a long moment she pulled away, but stayed hovering over his face, staring down into his beautiful brown eyes. "I like the sound of it too."

* * *

><p>Breakfast the next morning was a lively affair. Georgiana and Matt drove to pick up Mrs. Reynolds, and the three of them appeared at Will's house at ten o'clock.<p>

Georgiana filled everyone in on her experience getting her classroom ready. She was happy to have met a few of the other teachers, one of whom was a transfer in from another elementary school in Falmouth. In that respect, they were both 'new', and formed an instant rapport.

"I still have to go get some more supplies today, but just little things. I think I'm ready."

"So, as of Tuesday, you'll officially be 'Miss Darcy' again to a crowd of little ones. How exciting," Mrs. Reynolds replied, grinning from ear to ear.

"Yes...Miss Darcy," Georgiana replied, eyes wide. "I'm a little nervous, but I know it's just 'new job jitters'. I think it will be fine."

"Of course it will be," Will agreed, taking a sip of coffee. "You'll do great, I know you will."

Georgiana smiled at him. "Thanks Will."

Matt smiled at his girlfriend, reaching up to clasp the back of her neck, stroking her there reassuringly. "Good thing none of my teachers looked like you when I was growing up," he said jokingly. "I'd still be in elementary school if they did."

Georgiana blushed as Matt leaned over to kiss her cheek, the rest of the group laughing.

Elizabeth and Georgiana offered to do clean-up since Will and Matt had cooked the delicious omelet breakfast, so they stood from the table and headed into the kitchen, arms laden with plates. Matt excused himself to head to Georgiana's to grab his phone, leaving Will with Mrs. Reynolds.

"How are you getting back to Boston today?" he asked.

"Oh, the bus, probably. That's how I got here, Georgie picked me up Saturday afternoon."

"Why don't I drive you home?"

"Nonsense. I can take the bus, it's fine, I've done it a million times before."

"I know...but Elizabeth and I are flying to California tomorrow...maybe we'll stay in Boston tonight. I can take Georgie's car into the city, and leave her mine."

"I don't want you to go out of your way, William."

"It's not out of the way at all, I want to do it. I'm sure Elizabeth won't mind."

Elizabeth walked back into the room, dish towel over her shoulder. "You're sure I won't mind what?"

"What do you think about going into Boston today? We can drive Mrs. R home, and spend the night at my place. It'll be easier getting to Logan tomorrow."

Elizabeth smiled, liking the idea very much. "Sounds fine to me."

"Are you sure?" Mrs. Reynolds asked. "I don't want you to change plans on my account."

"Of course I'm sure, we'd love to drive you home. Maybe you can tell me more childhood stories about Will? I'm sure you have a few to share."

Mrs. Reynolds' eyes lit up. "Oh, where should I start?"

Will groaned, and Elizabeth giggled at the look on his face. She went to stand behind his chair, leaning down to wrap her arms around his shoulders, and planted a kiss on his warm cheek. "Blushing already? We haven't even hit the road yet."

* * *

><p>They agreed to leave for Boston by three, knowing the traffic would be light, as most people visiting the Cape would be staying through until Monday. Elizabeth spoke to her aunt, and agreed to meet up with them at the Island Queen at one o'clock. This would give Elizabeth and Will time to stop at her house so that she could pack a bag for their short trip before meeting her aunt and uncle at the dock, then return back to New Seabury to pick up Mrs. Reynolds at her hotel.<p>

Before leaving, Elizabeth and Will each showered and Elizabeth got dressed in some clothes that she had borrowed from Georgie, as she had nothing else with her to wear except for her dress. When they left Will's at noon, they walked to Charles' and Jane's house via the beach, where Will let them in with a spare key.

The newlyweds had left bright and early for the airport, and by now, were well underway on their honeymoon trip. Elizabeth went up to the spare room she had slept in Friday night, now crowded with wedding gifts, and grabbed her bag that she had left behind, after her impromptu 'sleepover' at Will's. After making sure everything was in order, they locked up tight and headed down to Will's car.

Elizabeth was quiet as they drove into Falmouth, prompting Will to ask her what she was thinking.

"I'm just wondering about Lydia again. I hope nothing happened between her and Caroline. Jane said Caroline was talking a lot to my mother as well...although I'm sure they were discussing the wedding."

Will nodded, hoping she was correct. "Maybe you should call Lydia?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I will, when we get back from California. Not today." She gave him a weak smile. "It's probably bad of me, I know, but...I just want to put off all of that...all of that _stuff_ until we get back. I'll call my parents, and Lydia, after our little trip."

He smiled and squeezed her hand. "Good idea."

She stared at him, looking at his profile, admiring his features. "Will we have time to talk today?"

Will glanced at her quickly. "Of course we will. Once we get Mrs. R settled at home, we'll have the rest of the day, and the night, to ourselves."

She smiled. "Okay."

They were only at her house for a little while. Elizabeth got changed out of Georgiana's clothes and into her own, and packed what she needed for the trip. While she did that, Will made sure all the windows were closed and locked, the unwanted image of Bill Collins' face popping into his head. The very thought of him turned his stomach.

After leaving the house, they made the five-minute drive to the Island Queen and pulled into the small parking area, where there were no available spaces. They were immediately asked to move to another lot.

"We're just saying goodbye to someone, can we please just park on the side here for a few minutes?" Elizabeth pleaded with the parking attendant.

"Alright, alright," he said, although he didn't look happy. "You have fifteen minutes."

"Thanks!" Elizabeth said appreciatively. She and Will found her aunt and uncle in the ticket line, and Elizabeth gave them each a hug.

"I'm afraid we only have a few minutes," Elizabeth said apologetically. "Tight parking."

"Oh, that's okay, I'm glad you came anyway," Aunt Vee said. "Wasn't yesterday beautiful? Jane was simply glowing, and Charles...he's such a nice man. They looked so happy."

Elizabeth grinned. "They are happy. It's amazing that they've only really known each other for a little over six months, it seems like they've been together forever."

"Charles is a good guy, I've known him all my life," Will said. "He'll take good care of Jane."

"Glad to hear it," Uncle Ed chimed in.

Once Ed and Vee had purchased their tickets, they moved out of the line and under the large veranda that shaded the outside waiting area. Elizabeth and her aunt were soon engrossed in their own conversation, discussing every detail of the wedding. Will took the opportunity to discreetly indicate to Ed that he wanted to have a private word with him. They walked further out onto the large dock, and Will looked down the length of Falmouth Harbor, making a show of looking at all the boats moored there.

"I'd like to ask you something, Ed," Will said seriously.

Ed looked at him, having no idea what he was about to hear. "Okay, go ahead."

"Elizabeth told me last night that her grandparent's house is for sale. Your childhood home. Is that true?"

Ed nodded. "It is, yes. It's been on the market for less than a week, I believe."

Will paused and cleared his throat before speaking. "I want it."

Ed's eyes widened. "You...you want it? The house?"

"Yes, for Lizzy. I want to buy it. I need your help, obviously...we're off to California tomorrow, but only for one night. If you can, would you find out the name of the realtor?"

Ed still looked shocked. "Yes – yes, of course I can do that."

"Great. And, if you're comfortable with it...would you talk to the realtor? Tell them I want the property, period. I want to know what they've got it listed at, but the price doesn't matter. I'll give them the asking price, or if they have another offer, I'll beat it. Whichever it is."

Ed nodded. "I have no problem talking to the realtor, it's probably someone I know anyway. I'll get you the information. How should I...how do I get in contact with you?"

Will reached into his pocket and pulled out his business card. He pointed to a number on it. "That's my private cell number. Call me as soon as you have any information. I know tomorrow is a holiday, so you won't get much info before Tuesday, but as soon as you have it, I'd like to know."

Ed looked at him for a long moment. "Are you sure about this William?" He paused. "This is...well, this is a very big step. Huge, actually. This isn't something that you should make an impulsive decision on."

Will smiled slightly at his choice of words. "I know that. Believe me, I know all about being impulsive."

"Are you sure, then?"

"Yes, I'm very, very sure."

Ed stared at him again, and Will stared back, not breaking eye contact. Whatever Ed saw, it seemed to satisfy him. "Alright. I'll see what I can find out."

Will grinned. "Thanks Ed. Oh, and one more thing...don't tell Lizzy, whatever you do."

Ed chuckled. "I won't. I'm not even sure I should tell Vee."

"You can if you want to, I don't mind. I just don't want Lizzy to know yet, in case something falls through, you know? I don't want to get her hopes up."

Ed nodded. "Good thinking."

"If I do get the house – _when_ I get the house – I may still need your help with a few things."

Ed looked puzzled, but offered his assistance. "I'll help in any way I can."

Will smiled. "I appreciate that. What I'll need is pictures of the inside of the house, to show what it looked like when your parents lived there. Do you have any?"

Ed laughed outright. "I do, I have plenty of pictures, but you won't need them. I knew – I _know_ – that entire house from top to bottom. It was built by my father, after all. He taught me about every beam, every nail, every bit of love he put into it. It's all right up here," he said, tapping his temple with one finger.

Will felt a tremor of excitement vibrating through his entire body. If he could do this, if he could get that house, and turn it back into the house she remembered, the _home_ that she treasured...he wanted to do it so badly for her.

He smiled at Mr. Gardner and offered his hand. "Well...I guess you and I will be talking a lot, then."

Mr. Gardner smiled at the young man standing before him, who was about to take on his very own labor of love, and reached out to grasp his hand, shaking it firmly. "I guess we will."

* * *

><p><em>So now it's off to Boston for some talking and...stuff. :) Thanks for reading, please leave a review if you have the time! Next chapter will be up on Aug. 18th.<em>

_*I always thought that Jane & Charles last dance would be to "Colour My World" by Chicago._

_**"Follow Through" by Gavin DeGraw_


	50. Chapter 50

_Not much of an intro for this chapter. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Part 7<strong>

**Chapter 50**

The drive to Boston passed quickly, thanks to Mrs. Reynolds amusing Elizabeth with tales of Will's youth. Fortunately for Will, most of the stories were fairly mild, as he never really did get into much trouble when he was younger. She mostly spoke of how it was to watch him and Georgiana grow up, and she talked quite a bit about his parents, what they were like.

Elizabeth was enthralled, but noticed that as the conversation went more and more in the direction of Will's parents, he seemed to become a bit reserved. When the stories were about him and Georgiana, or about him and Charles, he smiled and laughed, and sometimes rolled his eyes as Mrs. Reynolds talked. Now, he seemed a bit withdrawn.

Mrs. Reynolds seemed to sense it as well, and soon began asking Will questions about the upcoming trip to California. He slowly returned back to his normal self, and even showed a bit of nervous excitement when he spoke about FRD Designs. Still, Elizabeth was concerned about his change in demeanor, enough that she knew she would ask him about it later.

They dropped Mrs. Reynolds off at her cozy apartment, and Will carried up her bags while Elizabeth waited in the car, which was double-parked out front.

As they stood just inside her door, Mrs. Reynolds looked at him thoughtfully. "Did I touch on a nerve when I mentioned your parents?"

Will looked surprised at her question. "No, not at all. Why would you think that?"

"You became awfully quiet, that's all. Are you still dwelling on everything we talked about concerning your father?"

He shrugged. "I'm not _dwelling_ on it, that's not really the right word. Talking about them sometimes makes me think about all the things I still need to sort out, that's all. You were right, you know, when you said I have to let stuff go. It's hard, though. It's like a habit that I have to figure out how to break."

Mrs. Reynolds sighed. "I wish I could help you."

Will leaned down to kiss her cheek and hug her, comforted by her return embrace. He stood straight again and smiled down at her. "I told you yesterday, you've been a huge help to me, and I feel like I haven't thanked you enough." She started to speak, but he interrupted her. "I know, I know, my happiness and Georgie's happiness are thanks enough, right?" He smiled at her softly. "They're not, though. I really do appreciate everything you do for us."

She smiled at him and reached up to pat his cheek, a familiar gesture from her that he treasured. "I know you do, William. Now, you need to get moving, you can't leave that lovely young lady waiting in the car for too long. Have a safe trip, and we'll talk when you get back."

He grinned. "Alright, alright, I'm going." He looked at her for a moment before leaning down to hug her again. "I love you, Mrs. R."

Tears sprang to her eyes as she returned the hug. "I love you too, William."

He stepped back from her and smiled. "Bye. Talk to you soon."

"Goodbye William."

* * *

><p>During the short ride to Will's home, he was mostly quiet, and Elizabeth tried to draw him out a bit by asking about their trip.<p>

She reached over to grasp his hand, toying with his fingers. "What time does our flight leave?"

"Nine."

She nodded. "And where are we staying?"

"The Four Seasons."

His answers were short and to the point, an obvious sign that he was distracted. "Are you okay?"

He glanced at her quickly and nodded, squeezing her hand. "Yes, sorry, I'm fine. Just...thinking about the trip."

She raised her eyebrows, knowing that it was more than that, but willing to let it go until they were in better surroundings. "Have you stayed at the hotel before?"

He nodded. "I have. I like it, it's a nice place. Close to the RJD offices. Um, in the afternoon, once we get settled, we can go somewhere if you'd like...there's Union Square, or we could go to Fisherman's Wharf. Whatever you'd like to do."

Elizabeth smiled. "We'll figure it out when we get there."

"I'm thinking that Richard might want us to go out for dinner somewhere, with him and Lauren, if that's okay."

Elizabeth smiled. "Sure."

They parked Georgiana's car and headed up the steps to the townhouse. Once inside, Elizabeth stopped and looked around the foyer, recalling the last time she was here, for Georgiana's birthday party. Even though it was just a couple of weeks ago, it felt like much longer than that. So much had transpired since then, so many things had changed.

As she was thinking all of this, she turned to look at Will, who was texting someone, presumably either Richard or Georgiana. As she watched him, focused on his task, her heart swelled, and she felt choked up for a moment. Their conversation from the night before drifted into her head, and she smiled to herself as she pictured his face again, when she had been so surprised at his mention of marriage. Yes, she was completely startled, but thinking about it now, she felt a sense of security, as if that short discussion had solidified everything that they were doing, everything that they were feeling.

Will finished texting and his eyes rose to meet hers. His distracted gaze softened instantly, and he walked over to take her hand, leading her into the living room, leaving their bags in the foyer. He just wanted to sit with her, hold her for a bit, while he tried to put all the thoughts that were running frantically through his head into some kind of order. If he could just write everything down as it came into his mind, he'd be all set. Of course, nothing on the paper would make sense to anyone else but him, but at least then he would remember everything he wanted to say.

Elizabeth let him lead her into the living room, and she could easily tell that he was feeling overwhelmed. He hadn't spoken much, and she knew that to be a sure sign that he was turning something around in his mind, approaching it from every angle, dissecting it to death. He looked as if he needed to be held, comforted, reassured. She made a decision then, and when Will tugged her hand to get her to sit, she shook her head and instead, tugged him back toward the doorway, through to the stairs.

"Elizabeth," he said softly as he halted their progress, knowing exactly where she was heading. She held a finger to his lips, quieting him. Again, she tugged his hand, and he followed, up to the second floor, then up to the third and into the master bedroom.

Before he had a chance to say anything, Elizabeth stepped toward him and reached up to wrap her hand around the back of his neck, pulling his mouth down to hers. She kissed him slowly, sensuously, and though he responded, she could sense that he was holding back. Ending the kiss with a nip to his bottom lip, she stepped away from him and began to unbutton her top, watching his reaction, never taking her eyes from his.

"Elizabeth," he said again, his hesitation obvious. But then she saw it; the moment his thoughts changed from those of uncertainty and conflict, to those of yearning and desire. The expression on his face, the heat in his eyes, encouraged her to continue.

Will watched Elizabeth's fingers as she unbuttoned her blouse, revealing a lacy black bra. Any thoughts of any discussion they were about to have left his mind, and instead all he could do was focus on the woman before him. He reached up and gently pushed the shirt off of her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor.

His busy mind slowed to a stop, as his sole focus became Elizabeth and the affect she had on his senses; touching and seeing her body, tasting her lips, smelling her skin, hearing her sighs.

Elizabeth felt his breath burning her neck as he drew his mouth over her throat, down to the swell of her breasts. His hands unfastened the button on her shorts, and he quickly lowered them over her hips and past her thighs. She finished pushing them down with her feet and stepped out of them as he lifted his head to look at her.

Will groaned at the sight of her in her black thong. His eyes devoured her, and he felt every bit of blood in his body rush to his groin. He reached out to stroke his fingers along her jaw, letting them trail down her neck and over one breast, then down to her hip.

"You're so beautiful, Lizzy. So beautiful," he murmured. The memory of the last time he saw her in the thong, right here in this very room, quickly flitted through his mind and disappeared.

He was so engrossed in the vision of her, standing before him, that he wasn't even aware that she was unbuttoning his shirt now, taking her time, slowly easing it open. When she finished, she pushed it away from his chest and leaned in to press warm kisses there, while her hand dropped down to stroke him over his shorts, tracing over the outline of his erection, down low to the base, where she circled her palm around him, forcing a shaky sigh from his lips.

Elizabeth trailed warm, wet kisses up his chest to his neck, stopping to lick the hollow at the base of his throat, before moving up further to his jaw, then to his mouth. As she reached to wrap her arms around his shoulders, he caught her hands and moved them back to his shorts, encouraging her to touch him more. He pushed into her hands, and she took it upon herself to unsnap and lower the zipper on his shorts, letting them drop to the floor, followed by his boxer briefs. She ran her nails up, over his abdominal muscles, making him suck in a sharp breath, before lowering her hands to let her fingers run up and down the length of him. She smiled against his lips, causing him to move his mouth to her neck again, then to her shoulder.

"_Lizzy I need you I love you so much_,"she heard him whisper in a rush of words against her skin, in between hot kisses that trailed back up her neck. Suddenly she was turned, so her back was to his front, and she felt his hands at the clasp of her bra, unhooking it rapidly, pushing the straps down her arms, freeing her breasts. He reached around to cup them, molding them with his hands, his thumbs stroking over the tight peaks. He teased them, tugging and rolling them between his fingers, making her squirm. She felt him surge up against her, his erection hot against her bottom. One hand slowly lowered, gliding down her side, stroking over her hip. She leaned back into him, completely awash in sensation, and he nibbled the sensitive curve of her shoulder, making her shudder.

His hand strayed across her stomach and lower, sliding under the thin elastic of her thong. She felt one finger gently slide against her, opening her, and heard him pull in another shaky breath as he felt her wet heat. He took a moment to tease her, slowly caressing her, letting his finger swirl gently around her nub before moving lower to slide it into her body. He did this over and over again, his finger gliding in and out of her as his other hand still played with her breasts, pulling her body back so she was arched against him.

"Take me to bed, Will," Elizabeth whispered, breathing heavily now, already feeling as though she was on the verge of climaxing. She pushed herself back against him before turning around to look in his eyes. The look she saw there made her stomach flutter, and she felt her heart surge into a full gallop. She missed that look so much; that hungry look, the one that made her feel as if she was about to be consumed, the one that told her how much he wanted her, how much he ached for her, just as she ached for him. There was love in that look too, she could see it, locked in the smoldering heat.

Elizabeth slowly began backing up toward the bed, pulling him with her, letting herself fall back onto it. Instead of moving over her, covering her with his body as she wanted him to do, he slowly peeled the thong off of her, edging it down her legs. He tossed it to the floor, and kneeling in front of her, he grasped an ankle in each hand and gently bent her legs, opening them. His eyes pinned hers for a long moment, and all she could hear was their shallow breathing and the pounding of her heart. His gaze shifted, moving down her body, lingering at her breasts before finally coming to rest at the juncture of her thighs.

Will took several deep breaths, forcing himself to get control of his raging body before he ended things too soon. He tried, but couldn't form a coherent thought; instead, single words were flashing through his mind

_want mine give take need love_

as he lowered his head to nestle between her thighs, the desire to taste her overriding everything else in his mind.

Elizabeth felt the touch of his tongue against her flesh, and her heart pounded furiously, echoing so loudly in her head that she wasn't aware of the soft noises she had begun to make. Every sensation, every nerve ending, was concentrated at the point where his mouth met her body. Gradually, his long, languid strokes began to change to more precise touches with the tip of his tongue, caressing and circling her swollen flesh. She couldn't stop herself from moving her hips and moaning when she felt one finger, then another, slide into her, all while his tongue continued its sensuous torture.

Will began to move his fingers in and out, still working her with his mouth, until he felt a gradual but steady swell of spasms overtake her. She cried out, and he felt her hands fist in his hair as she rocked her hips against his mouth and hand. He let his fingers slide deep and continued caressing her lightly with his tongue, drawing out her climax, until her body finally quieted. Her hands still held his hair, but she must have realized how tightly she was grasping it. She slowly released his curls, but left her hands there, lightly holding his head.

Elizabeth felt him push himself up to rest his head on her stomach. He pressed gentle, soft kisses there, and she could feel the warm, solid length of his erection pressed against her leg. She pulled his hair a little to get his attention, and he smiled softly at her as he rose up over her on his elbows. Dropping his head to her breasts, he took one tight tip into his mouth, running his tongue and teeth over it before switching to the other to do the same. He smiled against her skin as he felt the muscles in her abdomen tighten, knowing other muscles were clenching as well. Finally he lifted his head from her breasts and gave her a long, thorough kiss.

"I want you inside of me," she whispered against his lips when he broke away from her. She licked and nibbled at his mouth, playing with him, teasing him. He dropped his head next to hers on the pillow, pulling more air into his lungs. He was trying so hard to make it last, but he knew that as soon as he moved into her, he would be lost to the demands of his body.

He felt her hand reach down to stroke him, and he went motionless, afraid to move. She stroked up and down his length, stopping to spread the drop of moisture at the tip, causing a bolt of pleasure to shoot through his body. At the same time, she wrapped her other hand around his back, urging him to lower his weight onto her.

"We have to go slow, Lizzy," he said on an exhalation of air. With that thought, he pushed up fully on his arms, extending them, and watched himself as he slowly entered her. He had to stop when he was only inches inside of her, and felt a light sweat break out on his lower back as he struggled to maintain control. Elizabeth had other plans. She lifted her hips, bringing him into her even further, forcing a moan from deep in his chest.

"I want you to let go, Will, please...just let go, I want all of you, I want to feel all of you," she said, her voice low and breathy. Their eyes locked, and he took in the sight of her, those beautiful deep green eyes, her cheeks flushed pink, the loose curls framing her face damp with sweat. She gripped his hips, pulling him toward her, and he couldn't hold out any longer. He did as she asked, surging into her in one long thrust.

Elizabeth groaned in pleasure at the feeling of him finally filling her, welcoming the powerful feel of his body as he immediately began a steady rhythm, lowering himself down over her, surging in and out. He reached to hook one of her legs over his arm, lifting it, enabling him to push into her even further. Her arms wrapped around him, hands molding to the taut muscles in his back, feeling the strength there. He hit a sensitive spot, deep inside of her, and she gasped as he did it again and again, the pressure causing waves of pleasure to cascade through her body.

Will released her leg and reached between them to stroke her sensitive flesh, knowing he wouldn't last much longer, wanting her to come again before he let himself go. She did, her hips bucking against his, the spasms making her clench around him, pulling at him, until he finally came in one long, forceful thrust. He lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her until they were both gasping for breath, until he was completely spent inside of her.

They didn't move for a long while. Will knew he was probably too heavy for her, laying dead-weight on her like he was, but she didn't seem inclined to have him move, so he didn't. They were still joined together, hence the reason he was reluctant to alter their position. Instead, he rolled to his side, pulling her with him, hooking her leg over his hip, careful with his movements, determined to keep his body tucked comfortably inside hers.

His eyes were closed, and when he finally opened them, Elizabeth's face was just inches from his, sharing the same pillow. Her eyes were focused on him but looked sleepy, and she wore a small, satisfied grin, one that he couldn't resist kissing. He reached up with one hand to cup her cheek, looking at her intently.

"Ohh, Lizzy...I love you so much," he said softly, his voice rough with emotion. He paused to kiss her again, tenderly, letting his lips caress hers. "So, so much." His hand left her face to slowly drift down over her breast, stopping to stroke the tender tip, before coming to rest on her hip.

"I love you too," she whispered, reaching up to kiss him, wetness seeping from the corners of her eyes. "You feel so good."

Will groaned his agreement and sighed against her lips, kissing her again. She reached up to let her fingers dance over the muscles of his chest. Her hand wandered to his face, slowly tracing the outline of his lips, his nose, up over his brow, back down to his jawline, and over his lips again. He nipped at one finger, drawing it into his mouth and sucking on it gently before releasing it.

Elizabeth smiled at him, a full, beaming, megawatt smile, and his heart constricted until it felt like it was about to break through the wall of his chest. He returned the smile, feeling completely at peace – at least for the moment – but also feeling utterly and deliriously happy and sated.

She moved toward him to kiss him again before nestling as close as possible into his body. He wrapped his arm around her back, hugging her lower body to his, intent on keeping them joined for as long as possible. He felt her breath on his chest, then her nose as she nuzzled him, rubbing her face in the light sprinkling of hair, making him chuckle.

Elizabeth inhaled deeply, breathing in the faint scent of his cologne, mixed with the masculine scent of sweat on his skin. "I love hearing you laugh," she said quietly, kissing his throat.

"You do?"

"Mmm, yes. Very much. It lets me know you're happy." She pulled back to look into his eyes, and found what she was looking for; the spark that was there, just for her.

He held her gaze. "Of course I'm happy, how could I not be?"

She shrugged lightly. "We went a little...out of order with things. I know you wanted to talk today."

"And we will," he said, leaning in to kiss her again. He sighed as his eyes wandered down what he could see of her body, then traveled back up to her eyes, to be greeted by a perfectly arched brow. "Why I was denying myself this – denying myself _you – _over the past couple of days is beyond me."

"It's beyond me too." She laughed as he pinched her bottom. "I'm sorry, I'll be serious." It was quiet for a long moment before Elizabeth began to speak again. She reached up to stroke his hair, letting her hand run through the thick waves.

"I think I know what you were trying to do, and I understand it. I just think that this...," her gaze dropped to where they were joined, "is a way for us to seek solace with each other, find comfort. _Give_ comfort. Express our feelings. I want this connection with you...I _need_ it. You need it too."

He nodded, agreeing with her, but Elizabeth could see by the distracted expression on his face, and by the way that his eyes were no longer on hers, that his thoughts were already moving away, back to whatever it was he wanted to talk to her about.

"Can I say something before we talk?" she asked.

Will's eyes focused back on her face again. "Of course."

Her hand left his hair and trailed around to cup his chin gently, making sure his gaze stayed locked on hers. "You need to understand, before you say anything, that whatever you tell me, whatever it is that has you so knotted up...we'll figure it out. And maybe, once we talk about it...maybe it won't seem so daunting."

Will struggled for the right words. "It's not that bad, it really isn't. It's just that there hasn't been an opportunity, we haven't had a lot of time alone...and I guess I felt like I wanted to have a – a clean slate, before we resumed...things. That's all. I wanted us to have a fresh start, with everything out there."

"I feel that way already," Elizabeth said earnestly, making sure he was still looking her in the eyes. "We _have_ our fresh start." She sighed and shook her head. "After you came to South Carolina...looking back at that now, I realize that even though we still weren't really _together_ again, I knew that we would be. It took a little bit of time for me to admit to myself that it was what I wanted, just because I was afraid. But I knew. So maybe that was our fresh start." She smirked. "As messy as it was."

Will grinned softly. "Seductress."

"I am no such thing," Elizabeth laughed, rolling her eyes.

"Well, okay, maybe 'seductress' doesn't really work for what happened in South Carolina, but today..." His voice trailed off.

"It wasn't my plan to do that."

Will's eyes opened wide as he laughed. "You wore that thong! I seem to remember you calling it 'butt floss' at one point in time. Why would you wear that if you weren't planning to jump me?"

Elizabeth grinned widely. "Oh, I was planning to jump you, just not this quickly." She planted a soft kiss on his lips. "I was really done with giving you a choice in the matter." She crinkled her nose. "Sorry."

He smirked again. "You're not sorry."

She sighed. "No, I'm really not. Neither are you."

He shook his head. "No, I'm not." He kissed her, holding and stroking her cheek, letting his lips linger on hers a little, before slowly breaking the connection. "Not sorry at all," he said softly, nuzzling her throat.

They lay snuggled together for a little while longer, neither talking, until Will eventually broke the silence.

"I'm hungry. Are you hungry?" he asked, his hands stroking over her back.

She nodded. "Famished. We haven't eaten since breakfast."

"Why don't we get takeout? There's a little Chinese place around the corner."

"That sounds good."

The problem with the plan, Will realized, was that it would entail moving, which would mean his body would need to separate from hers.

Elizabeth read the look in his eyes. "We'll meet back here later," she said, smiling flirtatiously. She slowly backed her lower body away from his, and they both sighed as he slipped out of her.

Elizabeth rose from the bed first, and Will propped himself up on his pillow, watching as she disappeared inside the bathroom. He watched again as she came out a few minutes later, his eyes never leaving her lithe body as she walked toward his closet. Her hair was loose and flowing over her shoulders, and her cheeks were still a little flushed from their lovemaking. He felt his body stir in response to the view, all the blood pumping straight to his groin, making him groan softly.

She heard the noise and glanced at him as he lay stretched out in all his naked glory on top of the bed. Her eyes roamed up and down his beautiful, toned body, stopping at various points along the way. "Are you getting up?"

He smiled wickedly.

Her heartbeat spiked wildly in her chest, and she shook her head, knowing exactly what he was thinking. Arching a brow, she rephrased her question. "Are you getting out of bed?"

Will chuckled as he got up and walked straight toward her, kissing her on the nose before heading into his closet. "Yes to both questions."

* * *

><p>They sat at the coffee table in the living room, sharing dinner, eating straight from the cartons, feeling no need to bother with plates. Will had cracked a bottle of red wine and turned on some music, and they sat next to each other on the floor, backs against the couch. They ate at a leisurely pace, not ready to settle into serious conversation yet.<p>

When she was finished, Elizabeth sat back and sighed. "Ohh, that was delicious. I made a total pig of myself."

"We were hungry. We worked up an appetite."

She grinned at him. "I guess we did."

He surprised her by leaning in to kiss her thoroughly, holding her head still with his hands. It was a kiss full of desire and promise.

"I'm having _you_ for dessert later," he whispered, nuzzling her neck up to her ear. "You. Taste. _Delicious_," he said, punctuating each word with a nibble along her neck, making her shudder.

Elizabeth felt her body flush as she sighed, reaching up to hold his head where it was, feeling herself becoming aroused again. He worked his way back up to her lips and kissed her with surprising hunger, pressing her against the couch. One hand coasted over her breast, unbound under one of his t-shirts, and her nipple instantly hardened in reaction. She lowered her hand to his lap and felt his erection through the loose sweatpants he had thrown on, and that was it. There was no way she was stopping now.

Will felt her hands move over him, stroking him firmly, and he pinched and tugged at her nipple before moving his hand again to slide under the t-shirt, needing skin on skin contact. He groaned as he realized she hadn't bothered to put on any panties. His hand lingered on her bottom, stroking her softly before moving up. She moaned as he cupped her breast, playing with the weight of it, stroking over the tip with his thumb.

He began to push himself up, away from her, and her eyes flew open. "No, no, where are you going?" she asked, her voice thick with desire.

"Here," he said, letting himself fall back into a seated position on the couch. He reached down to tug her on top of him, bringing her up to straddle him. "I can't wait 'til later," he said, lifting the t-shirt up and over her head, dropping it to the floor. She reached to remove his and he helped her pull it off, tossing it to the side.

Will raised his hips slightly and slid his sweatpants down to mid-thigh. Before he could do anything else, Elizabeth moved over him and sank down onto him, sheathing him completely in one long motion. His eyes slammed shut in surprise and he grabbed at her hips, trying to still her for a moment. "Oh God Lizzy don't move don't move," he said in a long exhalation. He felt her answering wriggle, which made him grunt out another breath. "Wait, wait, _please_ don't move." She was so warm, and wet, and tight, and _his_...it was almost too much.

Elizabeth leaned in to kiss his neck, letting her lips drift over his pulse point, smiling at the feeling of the hammering vibration against her lips. She moved up to his ear and played with his earlobe for a moment, sucking it in and out of her mouth, before slowly traveling to his jaw, then his lips. He kissed her hungrily, and finally opened his eyes to look at her. Smiling, she bit the tip of his nose.

"Hi there," she said playfully, making him half-groan, half-laugh.

"Hi yourself," he said, trying to maintain some semblance of control. His eyes dropped to her breasts, and he leaned her back slightly so he could take one tight tip into his mouth. He felt her grind down onto him, sending bolts of sensation up his spine, and he felt himself grow harder inside of her. His lips moved to her other breast, and he could hear the way her breathing changed, feel the way her skin was heating up.

Elizabeth reached up to grip his head, pushing herself into his mouth, then rose up a little before grinding down on him again. That heated sensation raced up his spine one more time, causing him to hold her hips up slightly so he could thrust up into her. She sank back down onto him, and leaned to kiss him again, but they were both breathing so heavily that their lips couldn't stay joined for long.

She felt Will trail one hand from her hip until it rested between her thighs, and then the moment of bliss when she felt the pad of his thumb massage her, applying just the right amount of pressure, at just the right speed. He let his body slide down on the couch slightly, changing the angle of his thrusts, but still kept his thumb at her center, increasing the pressure now in tight little circles. His lips moved to her neck, then her shoulder, and when he started to nibble and bite at that sensitive spot on her skin, she felt herself begin to climax. The hand holding her hip reached up to fondle her breast, teasing the hardened tip, and that was all it took to push her over the edge.

The moment Will felt her muscles clamp down on him, he moved his hands to her hips, holding them tightly as he surged into her, watching with fascination as his body moved in and out of hers. He came almost immediately, his hips coming completely off the couch as he spilled into her, then dropping back down. The urge to thrust was still there, and he went with it, holding her tightly to him as he moved inside of her, until finally he slowed to a stop.

Elizabeth let her head drop to his shoulder as she tried to regulate her breathing. She felt as if she could immediately drop off into a spectacular sleep. His hands moved up to her shoulders, then down along her spine to the curve of her bottom, then back up again, caressing her lovingly. She smiled against his skin and heard him sigh as he tried to catch his breath too.

"I can't move," she said quietly against his neck.

"Don't," he said, kissing her shoulder. "We can sleep here, just like this. It could get a little chilly, but I'll warm you up."

She giggled into his shoulder. "What was in that Chinese food, anyway? Some kind of aphrodisiac?"

"Mmmm. Must have been the Kung Pao Triple Delight," he said, chuckling. "We still have two delights left."

Elizabeth laughed with him, snuggling closer into his body, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I think we can manage that." She lifted her head to look into his eyes, and was undone by the love there, shining out at her from those deep brown depths. "I love you," she said, whispering against his lips before kissing him softly. She felt his smile against her mouth.

"I love you too."

They were still for another long moment, relishing the quiet and the closeness. Elizabeth finally spoke. "I guess we should get up and put away the food." She slowly rose off of him, dislodging him from her body. He sighed, and she leaned to plant a kiss on his forehead.

The cartons of food were cleaned up and the wine glasses washed before they returned back upstairs, both wanting to shower before settling in to talk. Will was more than happy to shower together to 'conserve water', but Elizabeth knew better; showering together would lead to another delay in their conversation. As it was, she was having a hard time not throwing herself at him again, as she watched him walk around in just his sweatpants, which rode obscenely low on his hips. He hadn't bothered putting his t-shirt back on, which suited her just fine. She didn't bother to try and hide the fact that she was ogling him at every opportunity.

After showering – separately – they cozied up on the couch in the living room. Though they were both feeling sated, relaxed, and happy, Elizabeth noticed that Will had gradually become more and more quiet. She waited patiently, holding his hand and stroking his fingers, letting him figure out what he wanted to say.

Finally, he cleared his throat, and squeezed her hand. "I feel like I've made this into a big deal, or that its become a big deal, even though it's not," he said quietly. "It's not like I have some great secret to tell you, it's just that I didn't want distractions, which is why I wanted to wait until after the wedding."

"I know that."

"I've talked to Mrs. Reynolds a lot lately, about different things. She knows me pretty well, and I guess she's had the opportunity to see the type of person I am, who I've become, without having the bias of being my parent. Does that make sense?"

"Mmhm."

"I talked to her about my father last week. And about my mother a bit too. I feel like I've been walking through life with their ghosts looking over my shoulder. I don't know how else to describe it. When I was younger, my father made his expectations about me, and what I would do with my life, pretty clear."

"Like going to Harvard instead of Berklee*."

"Yes, like that. I told you about that, and it wasn't as if he expected me to just _give_ _up_ music, it just wasn't something I would be able to pursue as a career." He shook his head in frustration, feeling like he wasn't expressing himself well enough. "But that's fine, I'm not – I'm not resentful about that. At first I was angry, of course, but now...I'm glad I took the path that I did, the one he wanted me to take. I like my role, I like the feeling that I'm a part of something that my family created. It meant something to me, to take over when he died, and carry on his legacy. I'll have something to hand off to my kids someday – if they want it. Or who knows, maybe Georgie will have kids that want to become a part of the Darcy business."

Elizabeth smiled lightly. "Anything is possible."

He nodded. "Right. Anything is possible." He hugged her closer to his body, wrapping his loose arm around her shoulders, giving her a quick kiss on the head.

"So, with all that in mind, I finally realized that part of my – my problem, I guess, or my issue, is that I feel like I was never given the opportunity to show my father what I've done, what I've become. And really, it's not even that; it's more like I was never given the chance to hear him say that I've done well. Every choice I make, whether it's a business decision, or whether it's been something to do with Georgie, or even something to do with my personal life...I've always had this voice in my head, asking me, _'What would your father think?'_

"How have you answered that question?"

Will shrugged. "It depends on the situation." He hesitated for a moment. "Obviously, the whole thing with Georgie was hard for me, you know that. I swore I would look after her, I promised my mother before she died, and when my dad passed so suddenly...I couldn't tell him to his face that I would take care of her, but I still promised him that I would."

"And you have, remarkably well," Elizabeth said softly.

"I know that. Well, I'm _learning_ that, anyway. But it was hard not to feel like I didn't do my job as her protector, as her brother, her closest family member. It was hard not to feel like I had failed at doing what I said I would do." He was quiet again, taking a moment to think.

"To my parents, I was always the ideal son, and I _know_ that I was. I heard them say it when they would talk about me to their friends..._'He never gets into trouble, great grades, talented, good head on his shoulders. The perfect son.'_ You hear that often enough, you start to believe it. I had this image of myself in the back of my mind, one formed by my parents, and all this time, it has fed into this insecurity that I have about failure, and about letting people down. Letting my parents down."

Elizabeth turned her head to look up into his eyes. "If they were alive today, they would tell you that you haven't let them down. They would be so proud of you, and Georgiana. Do you not see that?"

He stared back at her. "I _don't_ see that, not for myself, that's just the problem; I see a lot of the shit, not the good stuff. That whole thing with Richard, my reaction to that whole situation, was based on speculation of what could happen if Lauren turned out to be this – this money hungry woman, who could potentially wreak havoc on RJD. It brought to the surface an extreme fear of fucking up everything my father worked so hard to create and build. If that happened, it would have been my fault. It would have been my failure."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose, and she sat up straight, turning to face him. "That whole situation was _not_ your fault. Richard was responsible for putting Lauren in a position that, ethically, he shouldn't have. He hid it from you, which is proof enough that he knew he was doing wrong. If something had happened, _he_ would have been responsible for it, not you."

"Possibly."

Elizabeth sighed in frustration. "Not possibly, definitely."

He grinned softly at her. "You're getting defensive for me, and you don't have to. But now you can see, at least a little bit, how this has all been messed up in my head."

She nodded. "I wish we had talked about all of this a long time ago."

He shrugged. "Me too. But at least we're talking about it now."

She thought back to the conversation that they had on the phone when he was in California, interviewing architects. "You told me at one point that you were nervous about FRD Designs failing. Is that all tied to this?"

"Of course it is, definitely. When you suggested that name I was thrilled, because I thought that it would release my father from having to bear the scars of a failed business venture. It would be on me, not him."

"Will, your father wouldn't bear those scars...he's gone."

"But the scars would be on his _name_. A RJD subsidiary that failed. If it failed."

"It won't. You're too meticulous about these things, you've put too much time into it. It's going to be unbelievably successful."

He leaned in to kiss her. "Thank you for the vote of confidence, because believe it or not, it's one thing I don't have a lot of right now."

Her eyebrows flew up again. "You? Lacking confidence? What happened to my 'arrogant versus confident' man?"

He chuckled. "Let me tell you something. When we were having that conversation over dinner on our first date-"

Elizabeth interrupted. "Second date."

He smiled, reaching up to stroke her cheek. "Okay, _second_ date...when I was saying to you that I was confident, not arrogant, my stomach was in my throat. I felt somewhat confident, but I was winging it one-hundred percent. I was trying to come off as Mr. Suave, when really, I had no idea what I was doing, because I had never found myself in that situation before."

"At dinner with a woman?" she teased.

"At dinner with a woman that I wanted to _keep_ having dinners with. And more." He paused for a moment. "I told you, before, about how my father used to tell me to keep most people at arms length, until I'd gotten to know them well enough to find out if they were genuine or not. Apparently, my mother wasn't like that. She trusted easily, and was taken advantage of enough times that I think he felt like he really needed to drive the point home with me. As I got older, it became more about _'_women', and not just _'_people'.

She smiled. "Because you're unbelievably sexy, drop-dead gorgeous, and extremely wealthy?"

He rolled his eyes. "Um, I think it was more the 'wealthy' part with him. Anyway, I took his words to heart, and avoided getting involved too deeply with anyone. I didn't want to set myself up to be used." Grasping her chin, he leaned forward to kiss her softly. "You blew all that out of the water."

"How romantic."

He laughed. "You know what I mean. I was incredibly drawn to you, I could feel it the day that I came to your house to get the pictures. I noticed your eyes then, really noticed them, and they got stuck in my head, and would pop into my mind at any given moment. Then I saw you at Monday Night Madness, then at Wicked...I knew, when I left that restaurant, that I was nursing a full-blown crush."

She smiled broadly. "Aw, you had a crush on me? That's so sweet," she teased again. It was her turn to lean forward to kiss him, and she did, although she couldn't quite repress her grin.

He smiled in return, feeling relieved that they were able to discuss this without being sullen or morose.

"Despite all that, though," he said, turning serious again, "looking back on it now, I know I was waiting for something bad to happen. I told you that. I don't think that I believed in myself enough to think that you would want me for _me_, because I had been told too often that people _wouldn't_ want me for me. They'd want something else, something that I had."

Her eyes shifted away from his, dropping to her lap, but he caught a glimpse of the sadness there, still lingering, even though they had made so many positive strides.

"Don't look away from me," he said quietly, tipping her chin so she would look at him again. "It wasn't you, love. It was all me. You opened yourself up to me, and even though I felt I was doing the same thing, I really wasn't. I still had that voice in my head, telling me that it was all a lie, and that it would all implode eventually." He sighed. "When I found those pictures in your house, that voice went front and center. I felt like my father was looking down on me, shaking his head, calling me a fool."

"That voice inside your head..." Elizabeth said softly, "you know it's his voice, don't you? It's not your own voice. It's his, and you have to let it go."

He nodded, reaching to hold both of her hands, enfolding them in his. "I know," he said quietly, "but it's easier said than done. I just told Mrs. Reynolds today, it's like a habit. That voice is _always_ there. It will take time, that's all. At least I recognize, now, how it has affected me. I'm just sorry that it affected _us_. I'll never forgive myself for running out on you like I did."

She reached up to stroke his cheek. "You came back."

He sighed. "You _let_ me come back. If you hadn't-"

Elizabeth covered his lips with her finger, the second time she had done so that day. "But I did," she said, looking him in the eyes, making him see that she was right where she wanted to be. She leaned in to kiss him again, expressing her love and her commitment to him in that one lengthy connection.

Will reached up to cup her face. When they broke apart this time, he kept his forehead pressed to hers, letting his thumbs stroke over the soft skin of her cheeks. His whisper was so soft, she almost didn't hear it.

"Thank you."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth woke up before the alarm clock sounded on Monday morning. She stretched lazily, relishing the feel of Will's warm body pressed up against her, the sound of his steady breathing mixed with the sound of rain against the windows. She rose up on one elbow to peek over his body at the clock, seeing that it was nearing six. His alarm would be going off in half an hour.<p>

Neither of them had wanted to stay up late, as they were both a bit tired from the wedding. They had snuggled under the sheets, watching the Red Sox game with the volume down low. The television had been the only light in the room, and it had felt cozy and intimate. After a while, he had started to talk a little bit more about what he had been feeling.

Will had confided to her that he was afraid of screwing things up again, afraid of losing her somehow. He had mentioned his conversation with her uncle, and how Ed had said that a little fear was alright. Elizabeth agreed, but only to a point. Yes, she admitted, at this stage in their relationship, everything _was_ still very fragile as they worked on building a life together, so it was natural to be wary of something tearing them apart. She knew in her heart, though, and told him as much, that it wouldn't happen. Not now, not when he had told her how he felt, and where all those feelings had stemmed from. Not when they both knew what they were up against.

As they lay in bed, he had promised her again that he would never leave her, he would never close himself off like that, or shut her out. After all they had been through, she believed him. And really, that's all she wanted; his love and his assurances that he would stay and share himself with her. She had assured him, too, that she wasn't going anywhere, and that he was all she wanted. Neither was oblivious to the fact that mistakes would be made along the way; they also knew, though, that as long as they worked through those mistakes together and allowed for forgiveness, they would have a solid, healthy, loving relationship.

They had made love again, slowly, taking the time to rediscover each other, letting pleasure and passion carry them away, until they collapsed, trembling, in each others arms. Feeling exhausted but happy, they had curled together and both had fallen asleep almost instantly.

Laying in bed now, Elizabeth recalled how Will had woken her up at three-thirty, his mouth at one breast, one of his hands lightly stroking her center. She was already completely aroused, and as soon as he could feel that she was waking up, he slid two fingers inside of her, and moved his mouth to pleasure her other breast. Her hips began an involuntary dance in response to the thrusts of his fingers, and she tugged on his head, pulling his mouth up to meet hers. They kissed hungrily, and when she felt the hard length of him pressed up against her hip, she moved to pull his body over hers, cradling him between her thighs.

Will had raised his head and looked at her, and without saying a word, he slowly pushed into her, watching her as he became completely immersed in her warm body. He didn't move at all, just stayed there, filling her, until _she_ was the one who started to squirm under him, trying to move in any way that would create that delicious friction she craved.

"I'm glad you're awake," he had whispered against her mouth as she writhed under him. "It seems I can't get enough of you." As he spoke, he pulled out almost all the way before thrusting into her again, making her push out an uneven breath.

"Keep – keep doing that."

He repeated his movement with agonizing slowness. "That?"

Elizabeth groaned as she grasped his hips. "Yessss, that. Don't stop."

She smiled to herself now as she pulled one of his hands to her mouth to place a kiss on it. _Thank God he's__ a good listener._

Rolling over, she pressed her head against his chest, and felt his arms wrap her up tightly. She could tell he was waking up. His eyes opened slowly, and she reached up to nibble on his chin, loving the feel of his whiskers.

"Why are you awake?" he asked hoarsely, closing his eyes again.

She shrugged. "I think the rain woke me. I'm going to get up and hit the shower. Want to join me?"

He groaned, pulling her closer. "That's a trick question. Yes, I want to join you, but it would mean I have to get up. I don't want to get up."

"Then don't, stay in bed. It probably wouldn't be a good idea for us to shower together anyway, we might get distracted."

Will's eyes opened again. "Hm. Good point." Suddenly and without warning, he kicked the sheets back off of their naked bodies, making Elizabeth squeal in surprise. "Let's go."

* * *

><p>The flight to California was quiet. Will had purchased first class seats, so they were able to stretch out comfortably. Both had brought along things to keep them busy.<p>

Will was looking over reports on his laptop, and was examining the new FRD Designs website that had been built over the past few weeks. Richard had hired the firm that designed it, and Will had to admit that he was pleased with the results. It was very well done, and had a sleek, contemporary look to it.

Elizabeth pointed to one section of the website, which said that FRD would do consulting as well. "I thought you were strictly doing architecture and design, not consulting."

Will shook his head. "At first, that was the plan, but then Stephanie pointed out that if we offered ourselves up as consultants as well, it would open up a whole other market to us. Some clients don't want to go completely green, so we wouldn't be the architect of record, but we can still advise other architectural firms, or contractors and developers on those projects. Plus, a lot of green design solutions can be pricey, so if a client wants a reliable alternative, we can offer it to them, or give them what Stephanie calls 'sequence phasing', which allows a green project to develop over a period of time."

Elizabeth stared at him as he spoke, listening to every word. He sounded so confident, so knowledgeable, and she couldn't help wondering how he could possibly think that this new venture would fail. He interrupted her thoughts.

"What do you think?"

"I think it sounds amazing, and I think Stephanie sounds like the right person to head your design team."

"Well, she knows her business, that's for sure."

"_You_ know it too."

He nodded. "It's been my focus lately, learning as much as I can about it. Richard has been doing the same, and he's had the benefit of being around Stephanie, and the two other architects that were hired, quite a bit. He's become pretty familiar with everything."

"You only have three people working right now?"

Will smiled. "Yes, only three. Architects aren't cheap, you know. All three are very well established, and will earn very nice six-figure incomes from FRD. We have to make sure there's a need for more help before we hire additional people."

They talked more about his work, and then Elizabeth showed him what she was reading, which was a report on 'seaweed salad'.

"Seaweed salad?" Will asked with a grimace on his face.

"Yes. Gracilaria salad, to be precise. It's supposed to be pretty good. Kind of tangy and crunchy, I guess. The aquaculture center out at the MBL is looking into it. Seaweed helps remove nitrogen from estuaries, so if they grow the seaweed, they'll get double the bang from their buck. It will help the estuary, and as it gets overgrown, it can be harvested and turned into food. They've been nibbling on it, apparently, over the past couple of weeks. I can't wait to try it."

She laughed at his expression. "Shellfish help too, so right now, they're looking into farming gracilaria _and_ oysters out at the estuary. Do oysters sound more appetizing to you?"

He grinned and leaned in toward her, wiggling his eyebrows. "Oysters sound much more appetizing...and I've heard they have great, um, benefits as well."

She kissed him. "Anything that helps with nitrogen loading is okay in my book, although I'm sure that's _not_ the benefit that you're thinking of. They'll help with the algae blooms and oxygen depletion in the water, caused by the nitrogen loading."

"Okay, so what causes the nitrogen loading to begin with?"

She sighed. "On the Cape? Residential septic systems, mostly. It's much worse in the summer, when all those summer homes become occupied again."

They stayed busy for the rest of the flight, doing work, but also reading and working on a crossword puzzle together. They landed in San Francisco on time, and were greeted by Richard and Lauren, both looking tanned and happy.

Elizabeth and Lauren hugged, and Elizabeth made note of Lauren's tiny baby bump, as Lauren rubbed her hand over it lightly. "I heard you were dealing with some morning sickness."

Lauren rolled her eyes. "I was, but I think the worst of it is over. I've felt pretty good for the past few days, so..." she held up a hand with two fingers crossed. "I was sick all the time, not just in the morning. It was brutal."

"Well, you look fantastic," Elizabeth said, and she meant it. Lauren was the perfect picture of a glowing pregnant woman.

Will turned to greet Lauren after talking a bit with Richard, and Elizabeth noticed that they were a little awkward with each other. She hoped that in time, it would pass.

Richard gave Elizabeth a quick peck on the cheek. "It's very nice to see you," he said quietly.

Elizabeth heard the hidden meaning behind his words, and turned to look at Will, speaking quietly to Lauren. "It's very nice to be here."

* * *

><p><em>So, is everyone happy with the turn of events? Leave me a review if you have time. Next chapter will be up 825. Thanks!_

_*Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA_


	51. Chapter 51

_California, here we come! Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 51<strong>

When Will and Elizabeth arrived in California, Richard and Lauren met them at the airport and drove them to the hotel, and the four made plans to have dinner together that night.

At The Four Seasons, their 15th floor one-bedroom suite was gorgeous, with a spectacular view of the Yerba Buena Gardens and the city below.

"I can't believe you booked this suite," Elizabeth said, gazing out the floor to ceiling windows, amazed that he would do something so lavish for only one night.

Will wrapped his arms around her from behind and shrugged nonchalantly. "I had a regular room, but upgraded when you decided to come with me."

She turned in his arms and smiled up at him. "You know I don't expect things like this, right? I mean, the first class seats on the plane were enough of a treat."

He leaned in for a kiss. "It's _because_ you don't expect things like this, that I want to give them to you. I want to pamper you. There's a spa, too, if you want to get a massage or something."

"I only want a massage from _you_. Your hands feel better on my body than any masseuse's hands could." She kissed him again, and pressed her body to his, reaching up to wrap her arms loosely around his neck. "So...shall we do his and hers massages?"

He nuzzled her neck and smiled against her skin. "I think I could be persuaded to let you work out my kinks."

His response made her chuckle, and they hugged tightly.

"Why don't we get changed and head out somewhere, though," Will said. "We should take advantage of the little bit of free time we have."

Elizabeth sighed dramatically. "I thought I was taking advantage."

"Yes," he replied, grinning, "of me. Which I love, and will let you do later, definitely."

"Okay," she grinned back. "Where should we go?"

As they changed, they made plans to head to Union Square to do some shopping. Elizabeth was surprised to find out that it really wasn't a square at all; in fact, it encompassed quite a few blocks of buildings, all containing dozens of shops, boutiques, and restaurants. Some were indoor, as if you were in a mall, but a lot of them were outdoor as well. Knowing they only had a few hours before they had to meet Richard and Lauren for dinner, she let Will lead the way, as he had been there before.

Elizabeth had brought along her digital camera, and had already taken dozens of shots. Many were of the buildings and the scenery, and the view from their room; several were of Will himself, of course, most of which were taken when he wasn't looking; and a bunch of Union Square. The people, the places, the outdoor sculptures; everything was worth a photo. She'd weed through them later, and delete the ones that she didn't like.

As they walked along, browsing the shops and window fronts, Will dragged her into the Coach store.

"Aren't these Coach bags or pocketbooks, or whatever, popular? Don't you want one of these?" he asked, holding up a huge bag.

She laughed. "They're popular, yes, but I don't need one." The price tag made her blanch.

"I didn't ask if you _needed_ one, I asked if you _wanted_ one. C'mon, look, this one's nice," he said, holding up another. The sales rep was watching them, probably in total disbelief that Will was actually having to talk Elizabeth into letting him buy her a Coach bag. It probably wasn't something that happened very often in that store.

"What about the Dior store?" he asked her. They had already been in there as well. "Did you see something in there? There had to be something that you liked."

"Well, I did see a pair of pretty red pumps..." she said, smiling teasingly at him.

Will stared at Elizabeth, and his mind flew to an image of her wearing red spiked heels...and nothing else. He set the bag down and took her by the hand. "Let's go back there."

"Will, I'm kidding," she replied, wide eyed.

"I'm not. Let's go."

Thirty minutes later, Elizabeth was leaving Dior with a pair of jaw-droppingly expensive red fuck-me pumps.

"You can model those for me later," Will whispered in her ear as they walked out.

"I just modeled them in the store, do you really need to see them again?" she asked, keeping a completely innocent look on her face.

"Yes. As much as I enjoyed seeing you walk around in them, I really would like to see what they look like...up in the air."

Elizabeth felt a zip of excitement shoot through her body, and her face warmed. Will chuckled at her, witnessing the effect of his words.

They went into several other stores, and Elizabeth managed to convince Will to spend a little money on himself at the Polo store. She enjoyed helping him pick out a few things, for purely selfish reasons, as she knew what colors she liked to see him in. They both began to feel a bit hungry, so they stopped at the Honey Honey Cafe and Crepery, and decided to split a SBK Crepe – strawberry, banana, and kiwi, with cinnamon and brown sugar. Both were so intoxicated by the flavors that they didn't even speak to each other for the first few minutes that they ate, until finally they glanced up at each other simultaneously and laughed.

They were due to meet Richard and Lauren at a place called BIX Restaurant at six-thirty, so they headed back to the hotel to get ready. Elizabeth had brought along a simple but sexy, figure-flattering 'little black dress' that would fit any occasion, and decided that she might as well be daring and wear her new shoes with it. The affect that the ensemble had on Will was immediate and obvious, as his gaze slowly traveled from her face, down her body, finally coming to rest on the shoes.

"This is going to be a long dinner," he groaned as she walked toward him.

Elizabeth smiled, taking in his appearance. He wore nicely fitting black dress pants, pairing them up with one of his purchases at the Polo store, a black, gray, and white striped dress shirt that emphasized his trim physique. "You look very handsome," she said, letting her hands drift up and over his chest, before they encircled his shoulders. "Maybe we should just stay in."

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her tightly to him. "Tease."

They kissed for a long while, once again letting the anticipation and lust build. "I really do love kissing you," Will whispered against her mouth. His hands had drifted from behind her back to her hips, and were now making their way up to her ribs and higher. She felt his thumbs drift across her nipples, already tightened in arousal, and she shivered. He was aroused as well, if the hard object pressed against her was any indication.

Elizabeth slowly pulled away. "We should probably stop," she said, her voice slightly froggy, "or we'll never get out of here."

They finally did leave the hotel, and were actually at the restaurant a few minutes early. Richard and Lauren hadn't arrived yet, but Will was already excited by Richard's choice. "This place is perfect. Apparently it's known for offering up some pretty impressive jazz shows. Tonight they have a solo piano player."

When Richard and Lauren arrived a few minutes later, they were all taken to their table.

"Nice shoes," Lauren said quietly to Elizabeth, grinning slightly.

Elizabeth blushed. "Oh, thanks. I got them today" she said, grinning back. "Um, Will helped me pick them out."

"I bet he did," Lauren replied, and both women laughed.

The four of them conversed easily over dinner. The food was fantastic, and the ambiance of the restaurant was intimate and cozy, thanks in part to the warm sounds of the live piano. They were seated on the upper level, overlooking the crowded main dining room, which was noisy, but not overly so.

"Great choice, Richard," Will said to his cousin.

"I knew you'd like it. We've only been here once, it was a special occasion. They had a jazz trio that night that was incredible. It's a popular spot for the local talent."

"Can I be nosy and ask what the special occasion was?" Elizabeth asked.

"Oh, sure, it was when we found out about the baby," Lauren answered, running a hand over her belly lightly. "After he got over the shock, Richard decided he was hungry."

They all chuckled. "No, I had _already_ decided I was hungry," Richard said, still grinning, "I just hadn't said anything yet. Luckily you told me you were pregnant right then, or you would have been dragged to In-N-Out Burger." He cast a warm, loving glance at Lauren, then cleared his throat. "So, um, we're celebrating another special occasion tonight."

Will raised his brows, and Elizabeth leaned forward in curiosity. "What, what is it?" she asked.

Richard took Lauren's hand. "We're getting married."

Elizabeth clapped her hands lightly. "That's fantastic!" she said, excited by the news.

Will smiled genuinely at Richard and Lauren. "Congratulations," he said, lifting his glass of wine, prompting everyone to toast with their drinks. Lauren lifted her glass of water with them. "To Richard and Lauren," Will said, smiling at his cousin.

Elizabeth repeated his words, and they all sipped from their glasses.

"So, have you set a date?" Elizabeth asked.

Lauren looked at Richard, who winked at her, then looked back at Elizabeth and Will. "Um, yes, we have. Tomorrow, actually."

Will nearly choked on his drink. "Tomorrow?" Elizabeth looked just as shocked.

"Yes, tomorrow. It's a long story, but," Richard hesitated, glancing at Lauren, "neither one of us wants a big wedding, we just want to get married. No frills, no church, no big reception, just us. And a few others, of course. We picked tomorrow because I knew that if I pressured you enough, you'd come out here for the first day of business for FRD."

"You were right," Will said.

"I knew it would work," Richard said, grinning at him. "Anyway, we've invited a few people. Catherine and Anne will be there, and Lauren's parents and her brother Adam as well. Just family. I even called Georgie last week to talk to her about it, I really wanted her to come, but with school starting, she really couldn't. She gave me her blessing to let the show go on without her. I made her promise not to say anything to you, though." He sighed. "Of course, Catherine has insisted on throwing us a celebratory dinner tomorrow night. Lauren convinced me to indulge her."

Will frowned. "Sorry we'll miss it."

Richard shrugged. "I'm just glad you'll be here for the wedding. Don't worry about anything else."

"Wow, two weddings in four days," Elizabeth said. "The marriage bug has been busy."

"Apparently," Richard said, casting a sidelong glance and smiling mischievously at Will, who purposely ignored him.

"How was Jane and Charles' wedding? I want to hear all about it," Lauren said to Elizabeth, which lead to a long discussion of all of the events that took place between Friday and Saturday.

Throughout dinner, Elizabeth watched Will's interaction with Lauren, and noted that he was visibly more relaxed and at ease around her. She thought that the news of their surprise wedding tomorrow may have had a lot to do with it. As much as he had come to the realization that Lauren's intentions were honorable, and that she really did love Richard, Elizabeth knew that the whole situation still rattled him a bit. Now, though, it seemed he would be able to say goodbye to those worries, at least.

After dinner, they parted ways outside the restaurant. Will was due to meet Richard at nine o'clock at the FRD offices, and then they would all go to the courthouse for the eleven o'clock wedding. They would be cutting it close, as Will and Elizabeth had to catch a return flight at two-thirty, but Richard assured them they'd make it with time to spare.

As Elizabeth and Will rode the elevator up to their floor, she noticed he was a bit pensive. They weren't alone, so she didn't want to start a conversation right then, but she squeezed his hand to get his attention, and he looked at her, giving her a soft smile and a squeeze in return.

They walked into the hotel room, and Will immediately reached for Elizabeth, pulling her close to kiss her. After a moment of indulgence, Elizabeth pulled away.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

"I will be, as soon as you're out of this dress," he replied, kissing up her neck to her ear, over her jaw, and back to her lips again.

After another long kiss, Elizabeth spoke again. "Wait, Will, are you _sure_ you're okay?"

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," he said, a little too impatiently.

Elizabeth arched a brow and took a step back, making him grunt quietly and run a hand through his hair. She waited patiently.

He sighed in exasperation. "The only thing I've been thinking about since we left this room is coming _back_ to this room. Do you see that nice, comfortable window seat right there?" He pointed to the long, backless, cushioned bench that ran along the giant panes of glass. "Throughout that entire dinner, all I could think about was you sitting – or, God help me, _laying_ – right there, wearing nothing but those heels."

Elizabeth's eyes opened wide, her glance flying to the large glass panes, then back to his face. "In front of the windows?" she asked incredulously.

"Yes, in front of the windows," he repeated, nodding his head emphatically. He paused for a moment, and his voice softened. "You do know they're tinted, right? No one can see in."

She exhaled loudly. "No, I hadn't really noticed that I guess."

That made him smile. "Do you think I want to show you off to all of San Francisco?"

She laughed, shaking her head, and quickly got back to her original point. "You were obviously thinking of something else in the elevator. Is something bothering you?"

"No, not really. I was just...deliberating on my past behavior with Richard and Lauren, that's all. I couldn't have been more wrong about Lauren than I was, and I feel badly about it. Just like I feel badly about the things I thought about Georgie, the things I thought about you..." his voice trailed off. "Everything just came crashing back into my head again, that's all. I know Richard isn't angry anymore, but...I did some damage, you know? He's been like a brother to me, and I fucked that up with my reaction to that whole situation."

He stopped Elizabeth when she started to interrupt. "I know, I know, he put me in the situation to begin with, I get that. But still...I went overboard."

"Why are you rehashing all this now?" Elizabeth asked, slightly exasperated. "You know what you did, and Richard knows what part he played in all of it too. So now, just move forward. Get to know Lauren, make the effort, and Richard will see that. He knows you're a good person, Will. You don't have to prove anything to him. Just be yourself around her, talk to her, and he'll see that you're sincere. They both will."

He was quiet for a moment as he thought about what she was saying. "You're right." Reaching up, he rubbed his face with both hands. "I'm sorry."

She looked at him, confused. "For what?"

"Ruining the mood."

"You didn't ruin the mood." She nodded toward the couch, the lights of San Francisco a beautiful backdrop behind it. "There's a nice view from over on that cushy little seat." Lifting one foot, she rested it, shoe and all, against his upper thigh. "I still have these things on. Don't you want to see if they live up to their nickname?"

Will smiled, reaching down to stroke her bare leg, the sight of the red shoe pressed against his pants making his blood stir. "Nickname? What's the nickname?" he said quietly, not taking his eyes from her leg as he caressed it.

Smiling wickedly, she lowered her foot to the floor and took his hand, bringing it to her lips for a soft kiss before leading him toward the windows. "Come on over here and I'll show you."

* * *

><p>Will had insisted that Elizabeth join him at the little 'grand opening' of FRD Designs. She would have been content waiting at the hotel, but he wasn't having it.<p>

"This is a big thing...I want you there. I want you to be a part of it," he had said as they both dawdled in bed in the morning. She was touched by his desire to share the moment with her, so of course she agreed to go.

Climbing out of bed, she felt twinges of aches in her legs. _He certainly saw those shoes in the air enough last night. _They had thoroughly enjoyed the view of the city from that well-placed window seat. Twice, in fact. She grinned at the memory, and thought that every moment of it was worth a few sore muscles.

They both showered and headed to the RJD building, which also housed FRD Designs. They enjoyed the beautiful September morning, holding hands and sipping coffee as they walked. Elizabeth was thankful that she had brought along some semi-dressy clothes. Yes, Will was the boss, but people would be looking at her, too, knowing that she was his 'girlfriend'.

It was a small group that had gathered at the office. The three architects and their 'significant others', the new FRD office staff, a few upper level employees from RJD, and of course Richard and Lauren. Elizabeth was pleased that Lauren had come as well, as she knew Will would be making the circuit, chatting with everyone, and at least this way, she could keep busy talking to Lauren.

Will gave a short speech, introducing the architects to everyone gathered, and then saying a few words on what would be the sure success of this new business venture. Elizabeth discreetly took a few photos of him while he was in his 'Mr. Darcy' mode, loving that professional, business side of his personality; she found it very sexy and attractive. Everyone applauded at the end, and he smiled self-consciously before telling everyone to continue their celebration.

Elizabeth was correct, in that Will did make the rounds of the room; what she didn't know was that he'd want her glued to his arm, so that he could introduce her to everyone. She liked Stephanie Hanscom very much, and was happy to meet her boyfriend, Caleb. She chatted with him about the Cape, as he was originally from Connecticut, and had been to the Cape several times as a youngster.

The other female architect, Bonnie, seemed to Elizabeth to be a bit of a throwback to the seventies, but Elizabeth also liked her a great deal. She and Will met her partner, Nicole, and the four of them talked a great deal on green designs and 'building green', and how it obviously tied into the concerns and challenges involving the environment that Elizabeth faced at her job on a daily basis.

The third architect was a man, Jared, and Elizabeth thought he was nice, though a little quiet. He had his wife, Jennifer, with him, and she had brought along their three year old son, Marcus. Talking to them proved quite difficult, as neither seemed very interested in making conversation.

Will joked with Elizabeth while they stood together, apart from everyone else for the moment. "Good thing I had you with me when we were talking to Jared, or there would have been no conversation at all."

She poked his ribs. "It wasn't that bad. I didn't know you were going to introduce me to everyone."

He raised his eyebrows. "They would have all been wondering who the gorgeous woman was, so of course I wanted to introduce you."

That deserved a kiss, so she gave him one.

"You know how I am," he went on, "about making conversation with people I don't know well. It's hard for me. It's a defense mechanism I think."

"So that's why you brought me along...for my mouth. Hm."

He gazed down at her and smiled, his eyes dropping to her lips. "I can think of much better ways to occupy your-"

They were interrupted by Richard and Lauren as they walked over. "Almost ready to go? We have a date at the courthouse," Richard said, smiling.

Lauren had a beautiful pale yellow dress on, which complemented her coloring perfectly. Richard wore an immaculately tailored navy blue suit, with a white shirt and a matching pale yellow tie. They made a gorgeous couple.

"We're ready when you are," Will replied, still looking at Elizabeth's mouth.

They made the rounds of the room, saying their goodbyes and best wishes to everyone, and headed out into the bright sunshine.

* * *

><p>The wedding ceremony took all of twenty minutes. Elizabeth had originally thought that it would be perfunctory and cold, but she very quickly discovered that she was wrong. The judge that married Richard and Lauren obviously enjoyed his job, and performed the ceremony as if he knew them personally. Despite the surroundings, it was warm and heartfelt, and Elizabeth found herself getting teary, as she always did at weddings.<p>

They all gathered together afterward, out in the sunshine, in a small park across the street from the courthouse. Elizabeth took several pictures of Lauren and Richard together, and seeing them through the camera lens, she once again acknowledged what an attractive couple they were. She was pleased with the pictures she took, and already knew that she'd be able to frame several as a wedding gift.

She then handed her camera over to Anne, so that she could have some pictures taken of her and Will. Anne kept clicking away, long before Elizabeth and Will were ready, and Will took advantage of the moment and became playful, dipping Elizabeth low for a kiss, then lifting her back up and spinning her around. They were both laughing, enjoying the moment. Even when they were finally ready for a nicely-posed photo, Will turned to plant a loud, wet kiss on Elizabeth's cheek just as Anne was taking the picture, causing Elizabeth to crack up again. Eventually, he became serious enough that Anne was able to get several beautiful pictures of them, but Elizabeth knew she'd treasure all those goofy, silly ones just as much.

Richard and Anne had some pictures taken together as well; they did have a special bond, and really were the closest thing that each had to a true sibling. Will knew that as much as Anne drove him crazy, Richard really did care about her a great deal, and always made sure he knew what she was up to, what was going on in her life. He had hinted to Will that he thought she was seeing someone, but as Anne had been very vague about it with him, it was hard to tell. It was definitely something that Catherine hadn't caught wind of, because if she had, she would have tried to squash it immediately.

Elizabeth and Will both enjoyed meeting Lauren's family. Her parents were extremely outgoing, and her father had a quick wit. It was clear that they liked Richard very much, and were thrilled that their very first grandchild was on its way. Lauren's brother Adam, five years younger than her, was outgoing as well, and it was obvious he and Lauren were close. She teased him good-naturedly about his lack of a girlfriend, while he teased her back about how she would soon be lacking a waistline. Everyone was happy and thrilled to be celebrating such a joyous occasion together.

Will did have the opportunity to say a few words to Richard, when they had a brief moment of privacy.

"I'm very happy for you, Richard," Will said, sincerity in his voice.

Richard nodded. "I know you are, Darcy." He knew what Will was really eluding to. "All that shit that happened...it's water under the bridge, okay?" He reached up to slap Will on the shoulder. "When's the next wedding, anyway?"

Will shook his head. "Christ, you're just as bad as Mrs. Reynolds."

Richard laughed. "Oh, once she starts in, you're finished. Forget it. Seriously, though...it's obvious you're happy. Elizabeth is too, anyone can see that. I'm glad that whatever it was, you worked it out."

"I am happy. I never thought I could _be_ this happy..." His voice trailed off as he watched Elizabeth laugh with Lauren and Adam. He turned to look back at Richard, who smiled at him broadly. Will felt his face flush slightly. "We're getting through things, you know? We're on the same page, but we're in no rush."

"That's great. I'm happy for you, too."

Catherine had kept her distance through most of the morning's activities, which was just fine with Will. He knew she was watching him, and each time he kissed Elizabeth – which was often, he couldn't help himself – or became flirtatious with her, he would swear that he could feel Catherine's eyes burning holes into his back. Really, he could care less; he treated her with civility, but only because she was Anne's mother, and technically, Richard's stepmother. If it wasn't for that slight connection, he wouldn't give her the time of day.

At one point, Will glanced at his watch, and turned to Elizabeth to let her know they had to get going if they were going to catch their flight. Unfortunately, Catherine overheard.

"Come now, Fitzwilliam, you can't possibly leave this afternoon."

"I'm sorry, Catherine, but our flight leaves at two-thirty, and it's already past twelve. We still have to go back to the hotel to get our bags before we head to the airport."

"Well, you should have planned better."

"With all due respect, we didn't even know Richard and Lauren were getting married until last night. Our plans were already made."

"Catherine, leave it alone," Richard said firmly. "It's fine. They were here for the important part, that's all that matters."

"Nonsense," she said to Richard with a haughty tone. "I'm giving a dinner in _your_ honor tonight, and your _only_ male relative should be there!" She turned to Will. "You'll reschedule your flight, and leave tomorrow."

Will shook his head. "No, we won't. Elizabeth needs to return to work early tomorrow morning. We're leaving today."

She turned to Elizabeth. "_You_ have to return to work, Miss Bennet? Fine. _You_ return to the east coast on your _own_, and Fitzwilliam will stay here to attend his cousin's wedding dinner. I'm sure you don't mind."

Elizabeth was so shocked, she could only stammer out a few words. "I – um – I-"

Catherine turned once again to Will, completely ignoring Elizabeth. "So, it's settled then. I'm sure Anne would be thrilled to be escorted to dinner by you tonight."

"Mother!" Anne said, appalled. She had been talking to Lauren's brother, and was just catching wind of the conversation between her mother and Will. Thankfully, no one else was paying attention to it.

Will held up a hand toward Anne, letting her know he was in control of the situation. He took a deep breath, willing himself to remain calm. "I'm sorry Catherine, but I'm leaving today, _with_ Elizabeth. Richard and Lauren know that we can't stay, and they've been very understanding. Honestly, I don't care much about what anyone else thinks, including you. No, _especially_ you."

Catherine's eyes widened. "You can't be serious! You're going to just _leave_-"

Will cut her off. "Goodbye, Catherine. As always, it was a pleasure." He turned away from her and murmured so only Elizabeth could hear. "One I don't care to repeat anytime soon." Taking Elizabeth's arm, he lead her toward Lauren's family so they could say their goodbyes.

They both sighed as they settled into the cab for the quick ride back to the hotel. Will made a brief call to Georgiana, interested in hearing about her first day of work. They talked for a few minutes, and made plans to see each other on Wednesday when she got home from work. After he hung up, it was quiet in the cab for a minute or two. Out of the blue, Elizabeth started to giggle. Will looked at her, both eyebrows raised, a puzzled expression on his face, until she finally stopped.

"What was that all about?" he asked, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her up against him.

"She is unbelievable."

Will knew without asking that she was talking about Catherine, not Georgie. "Yes, that's one word to describe her. I can think of many other, more colorful words as well."

Elizabeth giggled again. "There's something to be said for her tenacity, I guess. She's like a dog going after a bone. You being the bone, of course."

"Mmm, of course," he replied, rolling his eyes. "One of these days, Anne is going to blow a gasket and let her have it."

"I'm surprised she hasn't already." Elizabeth was quiet for a moment. "I'm sorry I have to go back to work. If I had tomorrow off, we could have stayed and gone to the dinner. I'm sorry you're missing it."

Will squeezed her shoulders. "Our celebration with Richard and Lauren was last night. We're not missing anything today, believe me. I think Richard is really just humoring Catherine, letting her have her way. I think the new Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam would be just as happy ditching that entire party and heading toward home."

"Are they going on a honeymoon? I didn't even ask."

"I believe Richard mentioned something about surprising Lauren with a trip to Kauai. He said it's a good time in the pregnancy for her to travel, especially since she's feeling better."

"Oooh, Hawaii. How nice for them."

"Mmhm. Have you ever been?"

"No, never."

"Me either. We'll add it to our bucket list."

Elizabeth smiled, then something dawned on her. "I didn't know we had a bucket list."

She felt Will shrug, and then he leaned down to press a quick kiss to her temple. "I guess we do now."

* * *

><p>Their flight left San Francisco on time, and when they arrived in Boston, the clock read eleven-thirty.<p>

"Hey, I didn't even think of this," Will said as he they walked off the plane. "Are we staying in Boston tonight or driving back to the Cape?"

Elizabeth shook her head, feeling incredibly tired. "I hadn't thought about that either." She shrugged. "What do you want to do?"

"Whatever is easiest for you."

She sighed, knowing that going back to the Cape now was probably the best idea. "Do you mind driving tonight? It's late already."

"No, of course not. It would probably be better to drive now, instead of rushing in the morning."

"That's what I think too. Will you stay with me?"

He smiled, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as they walked through the airport. "I think that can be arranged."

After a quick stop at his home to collect a few of Elizabeth's things, they were on the highway, flying along in Georgie's Audi. Elizabeth dozed lightly, listening to Will as he sang along to different songs on the radio. _I'll have to ask him to play for me soon_, she thought. It was something she missed sharing with him. _Maybe tomorrow._

By the time they arrived at Elizabeth's house, it was almost two in the morning. Elizabeth groaned, knowing she'd get less than five hours of sleep. They both got ready for bed quickly, sharing a soft kiss and a brief, whispered conversation about the trip. Both were struggling to keep their eyes open, and settled for cuddling together and letting themselves drift off.

* * *

><p>"Good morning, Lizzy!"<p>

Elizabeth smiled as she walked into work on Wednesday morning. "Hello Mary. How goes the battle?"

"Oh! It goes."

Elizabeth stopped at Mary's desk. "Hey, have you had a chance to try any of the seaweed salad? I'm dying to have a taste."

"I have! They were offering it up to people last week. I liked it, actually. I don't know that I could eat it every day, but I could see throwing some in a salad now and again."

"I'll have to get some today if I can."

"Oh, I know just who to call, I'll order some up for you."

"That would be great," Elizabeth replied, "thanks Mary."

Elizabeth headed down to her office, and when she flipped on the lights, she was surprised to see a large bouquet of flowers on her desk. At first she was puzzled, but then she figured that Will must have arranged for them to be there today, for her first day back. She noticed a card, and smiling, pulled it out of the arrangement.

_Dearest Elizabeth,  
><em>_I am so very sorry. Please forgive me.  
><em>_Yours,  
><em>_Bill _

The smile left her face, and she dropped the card on the desk. _Shit. _She walked back out of her office, toward Mary's desk.

"Um, Mary? Do you know when those flowers came for me?"

Mary smiled. "Oh, I forgot all about those. They came Friday. I signed for them, and watered them up good so they would be fresh when you came in today. Aren't they beautiful? I bet they're from that divine man of yours. You know, I forgot to tell you, he called while you were in South Carolina. He needed some information about where you were staying, so I helped him out. Far be it from me to keep two young lovers apart!" She winked at Elizabeth.

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. _Well, that answers the question about how he found me_, she thought. _Not that it matters now_.

She avoided Mary's question about who they were from. "They are beautiful, yes. I think I'll put them in the employee break room, though, so everyone can enjoy them. They'll brighten it up a bit."

"Oh, that's nice of you Lizzy. I'll take them in for you."

"Great, thanks Mary."

After the flowers were gone, Elizabeth sat at her desk for a long time, pondering what to do. She promised Will that she would tell him if Collins tried to contact her again, but she knew that if she told him about this, it would make him crazy with worry. Plus, Collins hadn't really _contacted_ her; he had only sent her an apology, one that she would completely ignore. If anything else happened, anything at all, she would tell Will. For now, though, she'd keep this to herself.

* * *

><p>Will returned to his home in New Seabury Wednesday morning, after seeing Elizabeth off to work. Not ten minutes after arriving there, his cell phone rang, and he was pleased to see it was a Vineyard number. Just as he suspected, it was Ed Gardner.<p>

"How was your trip to California?" he asked.

Will smiled. "Fantastic. We even got to attend a surprise wedding." He gave Ed an abbreviated version of the story. "We had a great time."

"Glad to hear it. So, I'll get right to the point of my call. It looks like you're in luck. There have been no bids on the house, not even anyone sniffing around it. The realtor was thrilled to receive my phone call, trust me."

"What are they asking for it?"

"It's listed at $850,000."

Will's eyes opened wide. "Really? I mean, don't get me wrong, it's a nice house, but it has no views, it's on a pretty small lot...what gives?"

"What _gives_ is that it's on Martha's Vineyard, my boy! Did you know that there's a parcel in West Tisbury that's currently on the market for $92 million? Granted, it's 266 acres, has its own pond, and borders the ocean. _That's_ a chunk of the Vineyard. This lot here, the old homestead...it isn't very wide, but it's long. And, don't forget, there's rental income sitting over the garage. Honestly, I think it's a fair price."

"Hmm. I guess you're right. Okay, so who do I call?"

Ed gave him the realtor's name and number. "I'd be happy to help in any way I can, William. I could be a go-between, if you will. I know you won't have a lot of time to get over to the island, and between Vee and I, we have the inn covered. Our season is slowing down a bit now anyway."

"I might have to take you up on that, if you're up to it. I'll be interested to see what the inspection turns up. I'm wondering if the original wiring and plumbing is still in place. I might have to get in there to replace all that." He paused for a moment. "What do you think of the idea of me making it green? Not completely, but as much as I can. I mean, I don't want to change the structure of the house in any way, or take away from its integrity, but if I can make it more sustainable, without taking anything away from it or changing it too drastically...I'd like to try."

"I think that's a fantastic idea. Lizzy would love it, I'm sure."

"I'll call the realtor now, talk to him. He's pretty reasonable?"

"Oh, Arthur's a nice guy. Old island blood. He was thrilled when I told him who you were, your connection to Lizzy, and what you were trying to do. He'll treat you well."

"Perfect. I'll call him now, and get back to you in the next day or so. Thanks for everything, Ed. I don't think I could pull this off without you."

Ed chuckled. "Somehow, I doubt that. I'm happy to help, though. We'll talk soon."

They said their goodbyes, and Will promptly dialed the number for the realtor. After making introductions and some small talk, Will got right down to business.

"I don't want to fool around with this, Mr. Ames," Will said firmly, "I want the house. I'm not going to bicker over the price. I want the seller to know I'm seriously interested."

"He already knows, I've told him. And, just so you know...he _will_ entertain offers."

Will raised his eyebrows, surprised that the realtor would offer that information. After all, he was working for the seller. "Oh. Okay, I'll take that into consideration."

"Don't get me wrong," Arthur said, "I'd love to make my full commission. But Ed and I go way back, and he told me what you were doing. I'd love to see that property revert back to the family. That's the kind of thing we like to see over here; people holding on to their property, passing it down through the generations if they're able, even if it's just to have a summer home, a place to vacation occasionally. It means something to us."

"Well, that's what I'd like to do. Elizabeth has a lot of fond memories of the house, so...I'd like it to be hers." _Ours._

"I think we'll be able to make it happen, Mr. Darcy. We'll do our best."

* * *

><p>After work, Elizabeth made a quick stop at Ortin's, the local camera shop, to see if they could do something special with one particular picture that she had taken while in California. She was going to frame it and give it to Will, as a little memento of their trip.<p>

The staff was able to produce the exact picture she wanted, and while they worked on it, Elizabeth browsed the store until she found the perfect frame. One of the girls behind the counter smiled as she handed her the finished product. "There has to be a story behind that," she said quietly to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth only smiled in return. _What happens in San Francisco stays in San Francisco_.

As she headed home from Ortin's, she decided that now was as good a time as any to call Lydia. She hadn't forgotten Caroline's comment about Lydia, and only hoped that Lydia hadn't done anything to embarrass herself, or Elizabeth and Will, for that matter.

Lydia picked up on the third ring. "Hi Lizzy," she said, sounding breathless.

"Hi Lydia...did I catch you at a bad time?"

"No, no...I'm just finishing up at the gym."

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose. _The gym? _"Oh. Well, you can call me back later if you want."

"No, it's fine. I'm done."

"When did you start going to the gym?"

Lydia laughed. "Today."

Elizabeth chuckled. "How was it?"

"I'll let you know tomorrow, when I find out if I'm able to move or not. So, um, what's up?"

"Well, I had a question for you, and I want an honest answer."

"Okay..."

"Did something happen between you and Caroline Bingley at Jane's wedding? Did you argue with her or anything?"

"Ugh," Lydia said. "Why? What did she say?"

"Well, she didn't really say anything, honestly. I had a little – well, a little run in with her at one point toward the end of the reception, and she mentioned your name."

"Hm. I bet she did. You're not friends with her, are you?"

"No, definitely not. She has a thing for Will, and doesn't like the fact that he's _lowered_ himself to be with someone like me," Elizabeth said, sarcasm dripping from her voice. "She's afraid I'm going to sully the Darcy name, apparently."

"I did talk to her...not for too long, but long enough that I could tell exactly the type of person she is. You and Willy were...well, you were kind of getting hot and heavy over at one of the tables, and she was just staring at you, making rude comments about your PDA. I overheard her, and of course she had no idea who I was, so I struck up a conversation with her."

"What did she say to you? Oh, never mind, I don't want to know. What did you say to her?"

"I told her to leave you and your man alone. I could tell she was a money-grubbing bitch, just from the way she was talking, and she had the nerve to call _you_ a gold-digger! I told her the two of you had been through enough, and she needed to back the fuck off."

Elizabeth couldn't help but smile at her sister's straightforward manner. "Did you really say that?"

"Yes, I did. And I meant it, Lizzy. Look, I've really been thinking a lot since we talked at The Knob, and you were right about so many things. I've been horrible, to you especially."

Elizabeth was surprised at her statement, but still a little unsure of the sincerity behind it. Before she could say anything, Lydia spoke again.

"I understand if you don't believe a word coming out of my mouth, I do. But I have tried to figure some things out, on my own. I know that I've been jealous of you, and of Jane, for a long time. So now, instead of just sitting back and being a bitch about it, and saying nasty things, I'm using it as motivation to get my act together. I'm all signed up for classes at 4C's*, so that's a start. And I'm swearing off of men for a while, at least until I feel better about myself and the direction my life is taking."

Elizabeth's eyebrows flew up. _Whoa_. "I'm glad you're doing some soul-searching, Lyddie."

"I'm trying." She sighed. "I might...I might move back in with mom and dad."

Elizabeth was surprised at this. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Actually, I'm sure I _don't_ want to do that...but I need to save money, and dad said that as long as I went to school full-time and kept my grades up, he wouldn't charge me rent. It's not the worst thing, I guess. I have to get out of the house I'm in, if I'm going to get anywhere. It's too...distracting, living there."

Elizabeth was slightly impressed. Still, that nagging feeling stayed with her. Is this for real? She had been through so much with Lydia, had seen that horrible side of her too often, to believe that this new Lydia would stick. Still, she wanted to give her some encouragement.

"Looking at it that way, it's probably a good decision. What are you going to study?"

"I got accepted into the Restaurant Management program. I'm thinking that if I like it, I may eventually try to transfer into Johnson and Wales. I'd like to get into their culinary program."

_This_ didn't surprise Elizabeth at all. Even growing up, Lydia was always in the kitchen, throwing some kind of fabulous meal together. She was a great cook.

"I think that's great, I really do. JW is a good school, and Providence is a nice little city."

"I know. It's even close enough that I could commute, if I needed to. It would be cheaper."

Elizabeth sighed. "It really sounds like you're making some good plans."

"I'm trying. I want to change, Lizzy. Not just my life, but myself. I'm tired of living like this, of _being_ like this."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Did you have any alcohol at Jane's wedding?"

"Um, no...well, yes, I did. I had a few sips for the champagne toast."

"Is that – alcohol – a problem for you? Do you think that's something you need to get some help with?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I didn't drink at the wedding because I was too worried I would do something, or say something, that would embarrass Jane and Charles, and I promised her I wouldn't. The last thing I wanted to do was make a scene on her wedding day. So, looking at it that way, I guess it's kind of a problem. I get a little out of control."

Elizabeth sighed, knowing that only too well. "How did it feel not to drink, with everyone around you drinking?"

"It was okay. I didn't feel a craving or anything, if that's what you mean. I felt fine."

"That's good."

"_You_ were feeling the champagne though, that's for sure!" Lydia said, laughing. "I could tell you were buzzing right along."

Elizabeth laughed with her. "Oh, I definitely was. That's not something I usually do, so...I kind of cut loose."

"Well, I'm glad you did. It looked like you and Willy were having a good time. Wooo, you two were generating some serious heat! Not that I was paying attention or anything."

Elizabeth smiled. "We had fun. But...could you _please_ stop calling him Willy?"

Lydia laughed. "Sorry. I'll try." There was a momentary lull in the conversation, until she spoke again. "Can we get together for dinner or something sometime this week? Or lunch?" She hesitated. "I want to try to fix things with us, I really do. I miss hanging out with you and Jane, having fun with the two of you."

Elizabeth sighed. "I miss it too." And she _did_ miss it. Years ago, when the three Bennet girls were best friends, they were inseparable, and always had a good time together. When Lydia started to change, the fun went away. Eventually it got to the point where Jane and Elizabeth started to exclude her from a lot of the things they did together, simply because they didn't want to deal with the destruction that Lydia left in her wake. "This week might be tough for me, but how about next week?"

"Next week is fine. I'm going to try to move this weekend, so I'll be at mum and dad's at that point."

"Okay, well, we'll figure something out." Elizabeth knew she couldn't avoid her parents forever, but wasn't quite ready to make that call yet.

"Alright," Lydia said. "Anyway, I'll let you go. Talk to you soon."

"Bye Lyddie."

Elizabeth hung up just as she pulled into her driveway. She still didn't know what to think. Part of her wanted to believe that Lydia was turning over a new leaf, but part of her wasn't willing to invest too much into it, not until she could really see that there were some changes being made. She was talking the talk, but Elizabeth needed to see her walk the walk.

* * *

><p>When Elizabeth arrived at Will's at five-thirty, he was outside on the deck, talking to Georgiana. He greeted Elizabeth with a warm kiss, and the two girls shared a hug. Elizabeth quickly asked about Georgie's first two days of work.<p>

"Oh, I was just telling Will how great it's been. A little nerve-wracking, but it's been so fun! I have a great class, only nineteen students, which isn't too bad. They have a fantastic volunteer program in Falmouth, so I have people stopping in to help out, which is nice. And the other teachers in the pod have been very helpful too."

"Pod?" Elizabeth asked

Georgie laughed. "It's just the area in the school where I'm located. All the classes are grouped together by grade, so all the teachers around me are teaching at the same level. It makes it easy to do multi-class activities and all that."

"Makes sense," Will said.

"Yes, it does. Um, if you guys don't mind, I'm going to head to my house, I want to get changed! It's so hot still, I need to throw on some shorts."

"Do you want to have dinner with us?" Will asked. "I'm not sure what we're doing yet, but we'll figure it out."

"Actually, I'd love that. I have some things to look over, but I can do that later."

"Great, come back around seven or so, we'll decide what to do."

After Georgie left, Elizabeth led Will back inside, so she could give him the gift she had for him.

He quickly pulled her toward him for a lengthy kiss. "And how was your day, Miss Bennet?"

Briefly, the thought of Bill Collins and the flowers he sent slipped into her mind, but she pushed it away. For now, she was firm in her decision to keep it to herself. "My day was just fine, Mr. Darcy. Yours?"

"Productive."

"Productive is good, I suppose." Elizabeth moved out of his embrace, backing away from him. "I have something for you," she said, smiling at him.

He grinned back. "I have something for you too."

Her eyes opened wide in surprise, until she realized what he was actually referring to. She sighed, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure you do. But I _really_ have something for you." She reached into her purse, and pulled out the wrapped picture. "It's just something to remind you of our trip to San Francisco."

Will leaned in to kiss her, reaching up under her loose hair to gently hold her head, before taking the package from her hands. "Thank you, very much. I love it."

"You haven't even opened it yet," she replied, laughing.

He shrugged, grinning. "I know I'll love it anyway." He tore the wrapping off and stared at the picture, looking at it for a long moment, before turning to look at Elizabeth again. "This is...it's beautiful. God, it's...it's sexy as hell, actually. Wow."

She smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

"Like it? I _love_ it."

Elizabeth had taken one of her red pumps and placed it on the window seat while Will was in the shower Tuesday morning. She took a picture of it, making sure to get some of the actual seat in the picture, as well as the San Francisco skyline in the background. When she took it to Ortin's, she had them use their photo editor to make the entire picture black and white. Then, they added a very subtle shade of red, only to the shoe. The end result was just what she'd hoped for.

Will stared at the picture again for a bit, before looking back to Elizabeth. His gaze traveled from her head to her toes, where it lingered on her plain black sandals, before traveling back to her eyes again.

"I don't have them on, and I don't have them with me," she said, feeling herself blush a little under the heat of his stare. It wasn't difficult to see where his thoughts had wandered to.

"Trust me, love," he replied, taking her by the hand and leading her toward the stairs, still carrying the picture, "you don't need them."

* * *

><p><em>What did you think of their trip to California? Does anyone have any concerns about anything? Reviews are appreciated! Thanks!<em>

_*4C's = Cape Cod Community College_


	52. Chapter 52

_Happy September 1st everyone! Time for the back-to-school grind to begin. Thanks to everyone still reading and reviewing, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 52<strong>

By the end of her first week of teaching, Georgiana was exhausted. She sat on her deck late in the afternoon on Friday, still in her work clothes, not even able to muster up the energy to change into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Matt was on his way to the Cape, and since they had already decided they'd be going out somewhere, she figured she'd just wait and change when she knew where they were going.

_Third graders have a lot of energy,_ she thought, smiling to herself. As much as she was exhausted, it had been a good week. Already she was getting to know her students, and was able to discern, albeit only slightly right now, which of them might require extra attention, as well as which may be able to complete tasks at an accelerated pace. She had work to do this weekend, planning ahead for the next few weeks, but she was in no rush to get to it. Right now, she just needed to sit for a few minutes.

The next thing she knew, Matt was gently shaking her, leaning his face close to hers.

"Hey, sleepy, wake up," he said softly, nuzzling her nose with his.

Without opening her eyes, she brought her hands to his face and pulled his lips to hers for a long, drawn-out kiss. When they slowly broke apart, she opened her eyes and smiled up at him. Sometimes, she was still caught off-guard by his handsome, boy-next-door looks. "Hi."

His vivid blue eyes stared down at her. "Well, hello Miss Darcy," he said quietly, leaning in for another kiss. "How's my favorite teacher? Rough day in the classroom?" He smiled at her as he plopped himself down in the chair next to hers.

"No, not at all. Just getting used to the routine of everything. I'm tired! It's a good tired, though. I've actually had a fantastic week." She reached toward him to hold his hand.

"Good. Do you still want to go out tonight? We could always cook in and watch a movie if you'd rather do that."

She shook her head. "I think I'd like to go out. There's a new Mexican place in Falmouth, maybe we could go there?"

"Sounds good to me."

"I'll go get changed and we can head out."

Georgiana left Matt on the deck and headed into the house, a bounce in her step. She was so happy to see him. Now that the school year had begun, she knew she wouldn't be seeing him as much, probably just on weekends or rare weekdays off. For the past month and a half, she had been spoiled; he had started out only visiting on weekends, but sometime during August, he had begun to show up during the week too, driving straight to the Cape when he left work, then leaving again early in the morning so he could get to work on time. Sometimes they planned it, sometimes he surprised her. She was never disappointed to see him, and loved when he showed up unannounced.

As she changed her clothes, she thought about the time that they'd spent together. They both considered the Arts Alive Benefit back in July to be their first date, even though they hadn't really been a 'couple' yet. _Eight weeks_, she thought. Tomorrow would be eight weeks since the benefit. Throughout those eight weeks, things had progressed at a steady rate. They were building their relationship slowly, but really, they knew each other so well already. His home was just like her second home when she was growing up, so they were always around each other.

Yes, there were things that she was learning as their relationship grew more intimate, but they were quirky, small things. She knew all about his family, knew all of his friends, knew his likes and dislikes, and knew what he dreamed about, what he hoped for when he thought about his future.

His family was the epitome of normalcy; his parents were still happily married, he had a great relationship with his sister, and his grandparents – all living – were still happily married as well. Yes, the Evans family was about as far from 'dysfunctional' as a family could be.

Georgiana felt secure in his feelings for her; it was obvious, in the way he looked at her, in the way he touched her, in the way he treated her, that he cared for her very much. She wondered if he was in love with her, and found that she asked herself the same question. Was she falling in love with him? Was she _already_ in love with him? It was still so early on in their relationship, and they were in no rush. Still, she missed him immensely when he wasn't with her, and knew that he missed her as well. They talked on the phone every night when they weren't together, sometimes for hours, talking about anything and everything under the sun. In that respect, in the emotional, getting-to-know-you part of it all, their relationship was moving along very well, and Georgiana adored him more and more each day.

There was another aspect of their relationship, however, that she found herself pondering quite a bit.

It was obvious he wanted her. At certain times, it was _very_ obvious. Some nights, when they were together, things would become heated between them, and he would let her take control, let her move things along at a pace she was comfortable with, until it reached a certain point…then he would slow everything down, eventually stopping them. He was holding back, she knew it, and she also knew – or rather, assumed – that he was doing so because of everything she had been through, and that fact alone made her care for him even more.

Now, she wasn't sure she _wanted_ him to stop anymore. The thought of being with him in a physical way made her nervous, but in a nervous-excited way, not in a nervous-scared way. Everything about Matt made her feel protected and secure and cherished, and she knew he would never, ever do anything to hurt her or make her uncomfortable. What would he think, though? Would he think she was doing it just to please him? Or worse, what if, mentally, he couldn't get past what she had been through, what if it was somehow preventing him from taking things further? She sighed. _There's only one way to find out_. They would talk this weekend, she would make sure of it.

When she walked back outside, Matt was standing at the railing, looking out toward the ocean. Georgiana came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, giving him a tight squeeze. He lifted his arm and brought her around to his front, reversing their positions, so he could hold her as they looked out at the ocean.

"I really love it here," he said quietly, hugging her close to him. A light breeze blew around them as the sun was beginning to settle lower in the sky.

"I know you do." She snuggled deeper into his embrace, laying her head back to rest on his shoulder.

He sighed. "No, I mean, I _really_ love it here. I'm unhappy when I have to leave, when I have to go back to Boston. I can't stand the crowds, the traffic, the noise, the crime, all of it." He leaned down to nuzzle her neck. "I can't stand not being closer to you."

She smiled as goose bumps skittered across her skin. "You're becoming a Cape boy."

He chuckled. "I guess I am. I'll always love Boston, I just don't know if I want to live there anymore."

Georgiana turned in his arms to face him, her brows furrowed. "What are you saying, Matt?"

He shrugged, thinking for a moment, then ran a hand through his long hair. "I don't know what I'm saying."

Georgiana looked at him, trying to puzzle him out. Was he thinking of moving? Moving here? Her heart skipped a beat, and she cleared her throat. "Um, after dinner…maybe we could sit and talk, about some things."

"Things?" he answered, eyebrows raised.

"Yes, things. I have some things I need to say to you, and you – you obviously have something on your mind too. I think we need to talk."

He nodded in agreement, but Georgiana noticed his expression suddenly looked grim, and he averted his gaze from hers.

"Hey," she said gently, drawing his eyes back to her, "what's the matter?"

He shook his head. "What's the matter is that you want to talk," he said quietly. "I mention that I'm tired of living in Boston, and all of a sudden you want to talk. I mean, what am I supposed to think?"

Georgiana smiled softly at the worried expression on his face. "I'm not breaking up with you, Matthew."

"Oh. Okay. Good."

She chuckled. "Did you think I'd try to get you for one last dinner before I cut you loose?"

He smiled. "I was hoping that wasn't the case."

Georgiana snuggled into his chest. "If it _was_ the case, we'd be going somewhere a lot more expensive, that's for sure." Matt laughed and pinched her bottom, making her jump. "I am definitely _not_ breaking up with you. I just feel like we need to talk about some things, that's all."

She looked up, only to see him frowning again, and apparently deep in thought.

"Why don't we just talk now?" he asked, looking at her seriously.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"Yes, but we can get something to eat after we talk. I know myself well enough to know that I'll never be able to sit and enjoy dinner, knowing there's some discussion with an unknown topic out there, waiting."

She giggled. "An unknown topic?"

He squeezed her again. "Yes."

She grinned against his chest. "Not for long."

"I'm serious," he said, and she could hear the slight exasperation in his voice. "Can we just talk now?"

Georgiana nodded, finally giving him a break. "Okay. You know, we can always go for Mexican tomorrow night. Maybe Will and Elizabeth will join us."

"That sounds fine." They moved to sit in the chairs again, getting comfortable. He cleared his throat. "So...what did you want to talk about?"

Now that the moment was here, Georgiana became a bit shy. She had imagined this conversation quite a few times, especially recently, and in her head, she never stammered – and never blushed. Taking the coward's way out, she decided to start by asking Matt what he was thinking when he mentioned being unsure of living in Boston anymore.

He sighed. "Like I said, I don't know. I want – I want to be closer to you, closer to the Cape. _On_ the Cape would be nice, but I'm not sure if I'd be able to deal with a commute to Cambridge every day for work."

Georgiana silently thrilled at the thought that he wanted to be closer to her, but part of her, a more rational part she supposed, needed to make sure it was what he really wanted. "Are you sure you would want to move from Boston? I mean, I understand what you're saying about living there, and dealing with city life day in and day out...but are you sure you want to uproot yourself right now?"

"I haven't thought about it a lot, really. It's just an idea that came into my head in the last couple of weeks. Leaving on Labor Day sucked. I wanted to stay, I didn't want to go back to the city. I wanted to stay here."

"Stay here...with me? Or stay here...on the Cape?" She needed to find out what was at the root of his motivation to move.

"Well, both, I guess. The more I'm on the Cape, the more I love it." He reached over from his chair to stroke her cheek, staring into her eyes, suddenly looking very serious. "But I'm not a fool, Georgie," he said quietly. "I'm falling in love with the Cape because it's where you are, and I'm falling in love with you."

Georgiana's eyes opened wide, and she felt her face flush. She was completely unable to respond, and thankfully, he wasn't done speaking.

Matt swallowed before continuing. "Actually, I think I'm _already_ in love with you. I think – I think I've been in love with you for a long time, and I just never admitted it to myself. You were – you _are_ – my little sister's best friend, and in my mind, it kind of made you off-limits. Unavailable." He paused, looking away from her. "Then, with everything that happened to you..." his voice trailed off, but he finally looked back at her again. "Moving would bring me closer to you. If you want me closer to you, that is. I have no idea how you feel, so...before I start packing, I guess I should probably find out."

Georgiana glanced up at him, and saw a glint of humor in his eyes. Still, she didn't know what to say. She felt the same way as him, about so many things; she hated him leaving, couldn't wait for his return, and when she knew he wasn't coming back for a few days, she missed him terribly, and eagerly anticipated their phone calls until she _could_ see him again. One thing she also knew, without a doubt, is that she was very attracted to him.

And there were other things, too. She could listen to him talk forever. It didn't much matter what he was talking about, just hearing the sound of his voice was enough. Seeing him first thing in the morning and hugging him tightly, when he had just woken up...even when he was grumpy because he hadn't had his coffee yet. Watching him when he wasn't aware she was watching. The warmth that she felt circulating through her body when he touched her, the way he made her heart pound. Then there was just _who_ he was. Intelligent, caring, loyal, funny, breathtakingly tender, incredibly handsome...the list could go on and on, really. She adored so much about him.

But all those things tied together, did they equate love? Or at least the beginnings of it? Looking into his eyes, bright with emotion, she answered her own question. _Yes._

"I don't know what to say," she finally replied. "I – I'm not really sure how I feel, but...I think I'm falling in love with you too. I feel so much for you, I'm just—"

Her words were cut off when he leaned toward her and gently kissed her, holding her as close as he could over the arms of the chairs. When the kiss grew in intensity, he reached to pull her out of her chair and into his lap. They kissed repeatedly, each kiss deeper and longer than the one before it. Finally, he pulled his lips from hers and held her as they both tried to calm their breathing.

After a few moments, he sat back and looked at her, his arms still wrapped tightly around her.

"Do you think you really feel that way?" Matt asked, looking happy but unsure of himself, all at the same time. "I mean, I – I don't want you to say that you feel that way, just because I feel that way. I want you to be sure...are you sure?"

Georgiana was sure. In that moment, she knew. She would never be able to give herself over to him completely if she didn't feel so strongly. Her physical desire for him was rooted in her feelings for him; the two went hand in hand. "Yes, I'm sure."

He kissed her again, sweetly, breaking away from her when he could no longer contain the smile on his lips. "As much as I'd like to continue doing this," he said as he kissed her one more time, "you said you had something to talk to me about too. What is it?"

She looked away from him, feeling her face flush. _Ugh, when will that stop? _

Matt obviously noticed the pink color infusing her lightly tanned skin. "Georgie, come on, what is it?"

Instead of coming right out and saying what she wanted to say, she posed a question to him. "I just want to know something. When – when we're _together_, sometimes, and we're kissing, and touching, and things are – are moving along...why do you pull back?"

Matt's eyebrows lifted. "Why do I pull back?"

"Yes. I want to know why you do that, why you stop the – the momentum."

"Because I don't want to rush you, I don't want to push it."

"Don't you think I would stop you if I thought you were pushing me?"

He nodded. "I hope you would."

"I would, of course I would. But I trust you, I know you wouldn't hurt me, and I know you would never expect things from me that I wasn't ready to give you."

"Of course I wouldn't."

"Do you want things to go – to go further? Do you want me?"

He groaned and laughed at her forthrightness. "How can you even ask me that? You know as well as I do that there have been times when it's been pretty blatant how much I want you, Georgie. You're a beautiful woman, you're warm, affectionate..." his voice trailed off, and she saw that he had become serious again. "You have been through an unbelievable trauma, and I'm not about to push you into doing something that you might not be ready for yet. Not even a little bit. I won't do that, I couldn't do that."

"But you're the one that always stops us, it's never me."

He nodded. "I know that. I just felt like it was important for us to talk about our feelings first. I knew that if I told you how I felt, and you didn't feel the same way...I wouldn't let anything more happen between us, I _couldn't_ let it happen. Not unless, or not _until_, you were sure about your feelings for me. It would make me feel like I was taking advantage of you."

She nodded quietly, looking out toward the ocean.

Matt tilted his head as he looked at her, knowing her mind was working at something. He reached up to tug on her chin so she would look at him again. "What is it?"

She faced him, but her eyes dropped. "I was worried that maybe you didn't want to, because of what happened to me. I thought that maybe you – you couldn't get past it, or something. It's hard to explain."

"Georgie, look at me," he said softly.

She looked up at him, and as soon as she saw the look on his face, she realized how foolish she'd been.

"It's pretty simple," he said, smiling. "I want you, more than you could imagine. I dream about you, I can't think straight at all when I'm around you, and when you touch me..." he moved his hand to stroke her cheek, letting it trail down her neck to her collarbone, "it makes me crazy. You drive me crazy."

Georgiana felt her cheeks heat up, and she was a little speechless. "Oh."

He laughed. "Oh?"

"Yes, oh. I thought – I thought that maybe I was the only one that felt like that."

"Believe me, you're not the only one," he said, a small grin tugging at his lips.

She leaned in to kiss him, and reached up to run her hand through his shaggy hair, lightly holding his head to keep him from moving away. After a long moment they slowly broke apart, and she snuggled into his chest, listening to the rhythm of his heart as it pounded in her ear.

"I'm jealous of my guest room," she whispered against him, giggling a little.

"What did you say?" he said, pulling back to look down at her face. "Did you just say you're jealous of your guest room?"

She nodded, laughing again. "I walk by there, and I see your clothes hanging in the closet, and some things of yours on the dresser, and I think, _that stuff should be in my room. _It's very aggravating."

He laughed and squeezed her tightly.

"It's not funny!" she said, though she was laughing too. "You're stuff belongs with my stuff, not in another room." Her voice softened as she turned serious again. "You – you belong with me. In my room, in my – in my bed. I want you to be _with_ _me_."

Matt gazed at her steadily, all traces of laughter gone. He reached up to cup her cheek. "You have to be sure, Georgie. If – if we're together, and you – you regret it, or second-guess yourself after-"

"I won't," she interrupted. "I know that I won't."

"It would kill me if you did."

She reached up to kiss him again, trying to show him how sure she was of herself, how sure she was of him. The last thing she wanted was for him to be worried about it, or to be wondering how well she knew her own feelings.

"Listen," she said, when she finally spoke again, "let's go inside and cook. Maybe we can take a walk on the beach or something later, or go to the pub for a drink. I don't want this to be the – the elephant in the room, I guess. When it happens, it happens. I don't want to think about it, I don't want to plan it, I just want it to happen on its own. Okay?"

He nodded, smiling a little. "Okay."

They finally left the deck and wandered out to the beach, electing to take a nice long walk before cooking. When they arrived in front of the Popponesset Inn, they decided to go in and sit at the bar to have a drink and an appetizer, forgoing cooking for themselves. They stayed for a while, enjoying the smaller crowd, as most of the summer visitors had left already. It was quiet and cozy inside, and they talked for a long time, about her first week of work, and also about some changes that were coming up at Virtual Media, the software company in Cambridge where Matt had worked for almost four years. Once again, they touched briefly on the subject of him moving, but agreed that until he decided for sure what he wanted to do, they wouldn't dwell on it.

The sun had just set when they left the inn. They strolled back down the beach toward her house, and Georgiana was feeling playful, so she dragged Matt down toward the water's edge and began kicking water up into the air, getting him wet. Of course he retaliated, and they worked their way down the beach, chasing each other, until Matt eventually caught her in front of the Darcy property and hauled her down on top of him.

They kissed for a long while, laying on their sides in the cool sand. It didn't take long before their hands began to seek the warm skin under each other's clothing. Georgiana sighed against Matt's lips, letting her hands wander up under his shirt, across the smooth skin of his chest, then around to stroke up and down his back. His hands had already slipped down inside her shorts, curving around her bottom, pulling her close. He kissed and nipped her neck, and she pushed even closer to him, eager for his touch. She could feel his arousal, the hardness of him pressed firmly against her.

"Matt?"

"Mmm," he whispered – or groaned – against her neck.

Still feeling playful, she thrust her hips lightly against his. "The elephant is in the room."

He laughed, and she felt the vibration of it against her skin, making her shiver. "Geez, Georgie." Matt raised his head, and she reached up to ruffle the sand from it.

"Sorry," she said, grinning at him, letting her hands run through his hair, loving the soft thickness. She kissed him, then looked into his bright blue eyes, barely visible in the fading light. All thoughts of spontaneity, of letting things happen when they happened, completely disappeared from her mind under his intense gaze. "Matt?"

He nodded, waiting.

"Take me home."

* * *

><p>Will woke slowly Sunday morning, and immediately reached for Elizabeth, only to find her side of the bed empty. He opened his eyes one at a time, afraid to look at the clock. She always seemed to wake before him. Glancing at it, he was relieved to see that it was almost eight-thirty. <em>Not ridiculously early<em>, he thought.

She had been here every night since they returned, with the exception of that first night, when they had driven in from Boston late. He looked around his room, happy to see her things mingling with his, scattered throughout his room. She had clothes in his closet, things in his bathroom, and had claimed two drawers in a dresser. Usually, if she needed clothes or things from her house, she stopped there after work, before heading on to New Seabury. He had offered to stay at her house, knowing it would be easier for her, but she had said she wanted to be here with him, so he let it go. She insisted that she didn't mind the ride to work in the morning, although he knew she probably missed riding her bike.

He heard movement from inside the bathroom. The door was open, so he sat up and moved so that his head was down at the foot of the bed, his feet toward the pillows, and peeked inside. She was standing at the sink, her back to him, and was trying to tame her hair into some type of ponytail or something. He rolled onto his side, propping his head up with his hand, and watched. She wore a silk camisole, and a cute little pair of lacy boy-shorts underwear. The curves of her bottom were just visible, peeking out from the bottom of the shorts, gracing the tops of those insanely gorgeous legs. _Well, it doesn't take much more than that,_ he thought as he looked at her, feeling his body's instantaneous response to the view.

Ever since they had been back together – in the fullest sense of the words – he had been absolutely insatiable with her. Amazingly, she had seemed to feel the same way. The physical part of their relationship had always been good...well, _a_ _lot_ more than just 'good', actually, but now, it seemed as though it was more intense. Maybe it was because he had finally begun to work through some of the shit in his head. Actually, there were no maybes there – he knew that's what it was. He wasn't going to examine it much further than that, he was just going to accept it and enjoy it. Rising from the bed silently, he padded up behind her in the bathroom.

Elizabeth saw his approach in the mirror, and smiled at his reflection. He always looked so appealing to her in the morning. His hair was a tangled mess, his brown eyes were barely open, and a layer of stubble covered his chin and cheeks.

"What are you doing up?" she asked, leaning back into him as his arms encircled her waist and he nuzzled into the curve of her neck. The feel of his whiskers against her skin made her shiver.

"I'm up because you're up," he whispered against her shoulder, inhaling deeply. He loved the smell of her skin, especially in the morning. "I was laying there, watching you, and decided that looking wasn't enough. I had to get up and touch."

Elizabeth chuckled as she felt his hands glide over her hips and around to rub over her bottom.

"These are very nice," he said, smoothing his hands over her tiny shorts. "Very, very sexy. How come I've never seen them before?"

"They're new," she said, letting herself settle against him further, realizing he was completely naked, and feeling the evidence of just how much he had been enjoying watching her. He pressed himself up against her, letting his hands travel back around to her stomach again. She sighed and closed her eyes as his lips traveled down her neck to her shoulder, then back up and across the back of her neck to her other shoulder. He lifted his head to look at their reflection in the mirror, and his eyes dropped to her breasts. Her nipples were clearly outlined against the silk, and just the way he gazed at them gave her that tugging sensation low in her belly.

Will never took his eyes off of the mirror, but reached up to undo the ponytail she had just labored over. Her hair came tumbling down around her shoulders, and he buried his face in it as he moved his hands up under her camisole, pushing it up so he could caress and fondle her breasts unfettered. His eyes went back to the mirror, and he watched her body as it became more aroused. Her breathing changed, and he felt her completely relax in his arms. His eyes moved to the reflection of her face, and he saw that her eyes were closed, her cheeks flushed pink. "Lizzy?"

Her eyes opened and locked on his, but she said nothing. She did move one hand, though, letting it snake behind her, between their bodies, to grasp his erection. Slowly, she stroked him up and down, caressing over his length, watching his reaction in the mirror. His eyes closed and he lowered his head to nip and lick at her shoulder. She felt the movement of his hips as his body answered the languid pumping motion of her hand.

"Lizzy?" he said again, his voice low and husky.

"Will..." she whispered, enthralled with watching him in the mirror, seeing the effect her touch was having on him.

"Come back to bed," he murmured against her neck, removing her hand from him so that he could press their bodies tightly together again. He began walking backwards, out of the bathroom, and once they reached the bed, he spun her and gently pushed her down onto her back, making her smile as she landed across the soft sheets.

"I was thinking about going for a run," she said, lifting one bare foot to place it against his chest as he loomed over her, still standing. "I need to work out."

He grinned at her tease. "Funny, I could use a good workout too," he said, letting his hand drift down over her calf to the back of her knee, then back to her ankle again.

"Hmm, I don't know," she said, biting her bottom lip coyly and letting her eyes wander down his toned, muscular body and back up again. She stared up at him, her green eyes sparkling. "You look like you don't need much of a workout at all." Her eyes dropped to his erection. "Well...maybe one part of you does."

She squealed and laughed when he quickly lowered her foot from his chest and grabbed her by both ankles, pulling her to the edge of the bed. He wasted no time peeling her panties off, making a show of twirling them around and tossing them to the other side of the room, encouraging her laughter again. Before giving him a chance to react, she sat up on the edge of the bed and grasped his hips, pulling him toward her. The head of his erection bobbed close to her mouth, and when she ran her tongue down, then back up the length of him, she felt his entire body tense under her hands, and heard his sharp intake of breath.

The unexpected touch of Elizabeth's tongue sent every bit of blood left in Will's body flooding into his groin. When he felt her mouth slide over him, completely enveloping him in wet warmth, he thought his legs would give out. He felt one of her hands leave his hip and wrap around him, relentlessly stroking up and down while her tongue and lips slowly molded to the shape of him, drawing him further into her mouth.

When she turned her eyes up to his, locking their gazes, he groaned out loud. His hands went to each side of her head, holding her tightly. The movement of her mouth encouraged him to move as well, but it was all he could do to restrain himself from thrusting into her fully. He wanted to do that, wanted to pump into her mouth with abandon, but knew things would come to an abrupt end if he did – and he most certainly didn't want this to end anytime soon. She took him into her mouth even deeper, and still, one hand stroked at his base, up and down, her other hand holding one hip, determined to keep him in place.

Elizabeth watched Will through her lashes, knowing that this little bit of delight she was taking with his body wasn't going to last much longer. He held her head tightly, but not painfully so, and she could see the amount of self-control he was exerting in order to keep himself from surging into her mouth the way he wanted to. She drew him further in, wrapping her lips tightly around him and squeezing with her hand at the same time. His head dropped back and he exhaled loudly, and the vision of him, so enraptured by her, _with_ her, was incredibly arousing. She moved her hand from his hip to take one of his hands, lifting it from her head and placing it on her breast, still covered by the silk camisole. The friction of the material between his hand and her skin was electrifying, and she pushed herself into his palm, craving his touch.

Will let his hand travel over first one breast, then the other, trying to focus on the feeling of her hardened nipples under the silk as his fingers toyed with them. He felt her body shift and squirm, felt her move closer to him, again pushing him further into her mouth...and that was it, he couldn't take anymore.

"Lizzy, stop," he gasped, his words coming out in nothing more than a loud whisper. He groaned as she released the suction with her mouth but let her tongue drag slowly up his length once again, swirling around him along the way. "Ohh, love, you've got to stop now," he groaned, pulling himself out of her mouth and backing away, out of her reach. He gazed down at her, and the sight of her flushed face and swollen lips spiked his lust.

Will leaned over her, forcing her back on the bed, pushing her across it with his body, until he was over her on all fours. He took her mouth in a bruising, passionate kiss, moving to lay next to her so that he could trail one hand over her camisole and down her body, not stopping until it came to rest between her thighs. There was no slow, seductive exploration, no thought now of prolonging their lovemaking. His fingers stroked her, feeling the evidence of her arousal as he let two of his fingers slide up inside of her, while his thumb circled around her swollen nub.

Elizabeth broke away from his lips, unable to catch her breath, feeling waves of pleasure begin to break through her body as his mouth slid down her neck to her breasts, tugging on her nipples through the silk of her top. She wanted him inside of her _now_, wanted to feel him in her, over her, around her when the pleasure peaked.

"Now, Will...ohh, now, inside me _now_," she moaned as he tugged on one nipple with his teeth, his hand relentless at her core, bringing her to the edge. She reached down and grasped his erection, urging him to come into her. In what seemed like a matter of moments, he had her legs wrapped around his hips and was pinning her hands to the mattress over her head as he drove into her. She let loose a low moan of pleasure before he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her deeply, his tongue stroking at hers, until they couldn't breathe anymore.

Will tore his mouth from hers and lowered his head, pulling air into his lungs. Dimly, he became aware of her voice around him, urging him on, asking him for _more, oh, more, yesss_...and at that moment, it was as if someone else took possession of his body. He was thrusting into her at a maddening pace, unable to make himself slow down, not with her making those sweet sounds in his ear, encouraging him to take her _harder_, completely giving herself over to him.

Pulling one of his hands from hers, he lowered it between them to stroke her again, knowing from the sounds she was making and the grip she had on his other hand that she was close to coming. He wanted to make her explode around him, wanted to feel her pulling him in deeper, needed to feel her body clenched around his as he spilled inside of her.

"You feel so good Lizzy," he half-growled against her neck, "ohh, so good, love." His lips lifted to hers again, and as they kissed, he felt her breath catch, felt her teeth grab at his bottom lip as her body tightened and surged around his, causing him to push into her as far as he possibly could. He pulled out and thrust deeply again, one more time, before releasing into her, feeling tremors rocket through his body just as he felt her shudder underneath him. Her legs tightened around his hips, and they stayed locked together as the sensations moved through them simultaneously.

After a few long moments, with only the sounds of their breathing in the room, Elizabeth turned her lips to his neck, kissing him and biting at him, her heart pounding furiously in her chest. Will was unmoving, his body draped over hers like a blanket, completely covering her. Their bodies were glued together, held fast by a light film of sweat. She gingerly lowered her legs, stretching them as much as she was able, and hooked them over his, running her feet up and down his calves. Still, he remained motionless. Only the sound of his heavy breathing and the occasional light thrust from him as her body twitched around him were any indication that he was conscious. She nuzzled his neck and cheek, feeling the night's growth of whiskers there, urging him to lift his head.

"Earth to Will," she whispered in his ear, biting his lobe lightly. She felt more than heard the low rumble of his laugh, buried somewhere between her shoulder and the bed. "Earth to Will, come in Will," she whispered again, smiling against his neck.

He slowly lifted his head so it hovered over hers, bracing himself on his forearms. "I already came in."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Mmm, you're right, I believe you did." She moved her hips and tightened her muscles on him, making him jump and hiss out a breath. "Yup, there you are."

"You are wicked," he said softly, smiling down at her before kissing her.

"I have to say, Mr. Darcy...that was a much better way to get my endorphins flowing," she said, grinning up at him.

He chuckled as he lowered his head to pull at the tip of one breast with his lips before suckling it lightly. The material of her camisole became wet from his attentions, and when he lifted his head, he blew on it softly. Her body shivered in response and her muscles clenched around him again, making his hips jerk slightly. Turning his attention to her other breast, he repeated his actions, and smiled when he heard her soft groan.

Will rested his forehead against her chest for a moment, and when he finally lifted his head to look at her, he turned serious.

Elizabeth noticed his expression right away. "No frowning please," she said, reaching up to cup his face in her hands. "Not allowed, not after that."

A small grin tugged at his lips, but quickly vanished. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Her eyebrows rose. "No, of course not. Why would you think that?"

"I just wanted to make sure." He turned to plant a kiss on one of her palms. "God, I couldn't slow down. You make me crazy." She smiled up at him, her eyes twinkling, and he laughed. "Oh, if you could only see the smug look on your face right now."

She giggled and lifted her head to kiss him. "I wanted you to go a little crazy." She raised her eyebrows. "I kind of demanded it, didn't I? I love knowing that I can do to you exactly what you do to me."

Will rolled to his side, conscious of his weight on her, and pulled her with him so they could stay joined a little bit longer. He was in no rush to get on with the day. Reaching up, he moved her hair away from her face, then let his hand rest on her cheek, stroking over it with his thumb. He moved toward her to kiss her again, letting his hand finally drift away from her cheek to the nape of her neck, holding her there gently. When he slowly pulled his lips from hers, he kept his hand there, massaging her lightly.

"Are you ready for today?" he asked, knowing what her plans for the day included.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she said, shrugging. "I mean, it's my parents, right? Nothing they could say or do at this point would surprise me."

He stared at her intently. "Are you sure you don't want me to go with you?"

She closed her eyes briefly. "I told you, it's not that I don't _want_ you to go, it's just that...I think they'll be more open, speak more freely, if I'm alone. Please don't think I'm shutting you out, because I'm not. If I'm going to have an honest conversation with them, it has to be just me and them. If you're there, my mother will feel the need to put on a show, and we'll get nowhere. Do you – do you understand?"

He nodded. "I do. I'm just worried, that's all. I hate the thought that they might be hurtful, or accusing, and I won't be there to protect you."

"I can take care of myself when it comes to Dave and Franny, believe me," she said, trying to inject some levity into the conversation. She didn't want him to be concerned. "I've learned how to hold my own against them. Jane was my protector for so long, and now you...I have to do some of it myself, don't you think?"

He shrugged, grinning a little, and she laughed at the expression on his face before kissing him again and pressing up close to him. "I can handle this. I appreciate that you want to go with me, and I know you would in a heartbeat if I asked, but I have to do this on my own. Okay?"

Will nodded. "Okay. Just – promise me you'll walk out of there if your mother starts in on you again."

"I will, I already told you I would." After another long kiss, she nestled into him as much as she could, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For wanting to take care of me, for wanting to protect me."

"Lizzy, I _love_ you...of course I want to take care of you and protect you."

"I love you too," she sighed against his lips before kissing him again.

The unwanted image of Bill Collins flashed briefly into Elizabeth's mind before she forced it out. He was an entirely different sort of problem to deal with, and she knew she'd have to do it sooner, rather than later. She needed to tell Will about what was going on, and she would have to do it today.

* * *

><p>As Elizabeth drove to her parents condo, her mind was racing. There were two things on her mind, the least concerning of which was her parents and the upcoming conversation with them. Her father had called her yesterday, asking her to come by if she had a moment today, '<em>to talk<em>', he had said.

Her immediate instinct was to make up an excuse and tell him she couldn't make it, but in the end, she realized she couldn't avoid them forever. She learned from her father that Lydia was just about moved in, but wouldn't be home today, as she would be at work.

No, as much as she wasn't looking forward to the looming discussion with her parents, it wasn't foremost in her mind. Unfortunately, Bill Collins was.

She thought the flowers she had received from him upon her return from California would be his final disruption in her life, but she was mistaken. On Thursday, another arrangement had arrived, this time at her house. What made her nervous was the fact that the flowers had been left there, on her back deck. They looked haphazardly thrown in a vase that had a small note taped to it. As soon as she saw them, saw the note, she knew they weren't delivered by a florist. No, he had been there, on her deck – again. This time, his note seemed to have more of an urgency to it, although she didn't know if it was her overactive imagination or his actual words that gave her this impression.

_Elizabeth,  
><em>_Please give me a chance, let me explain everything to you.  
><em>_I know you will understand once you hear me out,  
><em>_and I know you have it in your heart to forgive me.  
><em>_Yours,  
><em>_Bill_

From the sound of it, he was not only wanting to apologize now, but he was actually anticipating being able to explain his actions to her, which only meant one thing; contact with her. Whether by phone or in person, she couldn't let it happen. She had headed to Will's that night, determined to avoid being home as much as possible. Granted, she wanted to be with Will anyway, but normally, they would have stayed at her house during the week, not his. He noticed, and said as much, but was easily accepting of her saying that she wanted to stay with him.

She dreaded the conversation she would have with him later, knowing he would be upset, and rightly so, that she didn't tell him about the first bouquet. Maybe he would understand that she was only trying to save him from worrying about something else. Hopefully he wouldn't be too angry; it was the last thing she wanted, especially when things were going so well.

Thinking back on the morning, she allowed herself a small smile. Her plan really _had _been to go for a run, but in the end, Will's work-out was _much_ more exhilarating. Although she missed the clarity that a good run gave her, she wouldn't trade it for the passion-induced fog that she had been in for the better part of the day.

She parked in the lot at her parent's condo complex and walked slowly to the door, feeling inexplicably anxious. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and let herself in.

Her parents were seated comfortably in the living room, watching a football game. Amazingly, that was one thing her parents had in common; they both loved football. Elizabeth remembered then that she and Will had made tentative plans to watch the Patriots season opener with Georgie and Matt at Georgie's house. The game started at four, which gave her plenty of time to spend here, although she was hoping she wouldn't need it.

"Hello Lizzy," her father said, rising from his spot. Her mother rose too, and they both gave her a hug and a kiss.

"Hi mum, hi dad."

Her father shut off the television. "How was your trip to California?"

"It was great. Will's cousin got married, so we were there for that, which was nice."

"When did they get married?" Mrs. Bennet asked.

"Um, Tuesday. It was just a quick ceremony at the courthouse. It was beautiful, though."

Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes. "These couples with their quickie weddings nowadays. Eloping, running off to Las Vegas...I just don't understand it. A bride should have her day, don't you think?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "A couple should have whatever wedding they want. Lauren and Richard wanted something simple with no fuss, so that's what they did."

"How's work?" her father asked, knowing that a change of topic was needed.

"Oh, it's fine. I feel like everything is still in a bit of upheaval, what with the change of management, but it's okay." She sat in her father's big, overstuffed chair, and her parents sat back down on the couch.

"Any students this fall?"

"I think so, I may have someone from B.U., actually, which will be nice," Elizabeth said, smiling. She was excited about having a student from her alma mater. "It will only be for a month or so, but whoever it is will probably be back next spring to stay for the summer."

The conversation dwindled, and after a moment Elizabeth cleared her throat. She knew her parents had invited her here to talk to her about – well, about _everything_, but before they talked about _anything_, she wanted to know what her mother had said to Caroline. Or rather, what Caroline had said to her mother.

"So, mum, Jane had told me that you had a nice conversation with Caroline Bingley at the wedding?" Elizabeth prodded, hoping her mother would say that their conversation was short, polite, and sweet.

Mrs. Bennet raised her eyebrows. "We spoke, yes. Do you really want to discuss her?"

Elizabeth frowned slightly. "Well, no, I don't want to _discuss_ her, I was just...making conversation, I guess." She heard her father sigh, which wasn't a good sign.

"Oh, she went on and on, that one did. How she loved Jane so dearly, how Jane and Charles were just made for each other, blah blah blah."

Elizabeth bit her lip to stop from laughing. "Well, it's nice that she and Jane get along, I suppose."

"Oh, she didn't stop there. She started going on and on about your William too. How she had been so close to him until you came along. _Oh, he broke my heart_, she said. Left her high and dry."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "What? She really said that to you?"

Mr. Bennet stood up from the couch, interrupting. "When the two of you are done talking about Charles' sister, let me know. I'll be in my study." He obviously had no interest in the conversation. Elizabeth barely heard him, she was too concerned with what her mother had to say.

"Oh, yes. She talked to me as if I was her best friend! Whatever you did to lure that man away from her, Lizzy, it was brilliant."

Elizabeth's eyes opened wide. "Whatever I did-"

Her mother interrupted. "I always knew it would take more effort with you, but you managed quite well for yourself. Clearly she has _some_ money, old family money I imagine, and she was quite pretty, though her style leaves much to be desired. She's obviously comfortable in that upper-crust world of his, and seemed quite ready to take on the role of society wife."

Elizabeth closed her eyes. "Oh my God, she's delusional. Truly delusional."

"I don't know how you did it Lizzy, but you managed to get him to come back."

"What do you mean, _I managed to get him to come back? _I didn't _get_ him to do anything! What are you talking about? You _know_ what happened. Some of it, anyway."

"Oh, I know, but really...he could have anyone, couldn't he? He had Caroline, was ready to put a ring on her finger, and then you come along and snatch him right up! It just goes to show that the bees will come if the honey is sweet."

Elizabeth cringed. "I'm going to pretend you didn't say that." She stared at her mother in disbelief. "Do you really think I lured Will away from someone?"

"Well, according to Caroline Bingley-"

"Caroline Bingley is a crazy bitch, mum. Everything she told you is crap. She's never been in a relationship with Will, ever." She shook her head, sighing. "I have a question for you, and I want you to answer honestly. Why do you think Will is with me? What do you think he sees in me?"

Her mother looked puzzled by the question at first, then just appeared blank. Finally, she spoke haltingly. "Well, you're pretty enough, I suppose. You're figure is lovely, although you're a little too muscular, I think. Men like women to be soft, not so...well, not so much like _them_."

Elizabeth nodded seriously, biting her bottom lip. "I'll try to remember that. What else?"

"You're a nice girl, though a little too independent. Trust me, Lizzy, that type of man will want to have his needs put first, and by all means, they should be."

"What type of man?"

"_His_ type, Lizzy. Wealthy, powerful, handsome...the type of man who can give you everything you could ever want and need. Women will always be throwing themselves at him, don't you see? You have to anticipate those things, make him stay interested."

"And I do that by...how again?"

"Oh, Lizzy, don't be ridiculous. You came along and snatched him away from Caroline Bingley, don't you think someone could snatch him away from you? All it takes is the right temptation, at the right moment, and he'll stray. Mark my words."

In that moment, Elizabeth almost felt as if she'd had an epiphany. _He'll stray. Mark my words._ She rose from the chair. "Um, I have to go."

"What? Where are you going? Your father wants to talk to you about...well, about all these things between us."

"I think we've talked enough, mum. You still – you still don't get it. You don't get me, you don't _know_ me. Whatever your issues are, whatever your hangups are, they have nothing to do with me and my relationship with Will."

"What do you mean my _hangups?_"

Elizabeth ignored her. "Tell dad I'll talk to him soon. Bye mum." She went to the door and let herself out, walking quickly to her Jeep and driving away before her father had a chance to stop her.

* * *

><p>Will stared at her silently, but she noticed that his hands were gripped tightly together, his knuckles turning white, as they sat folded on the dining room table in front of him. Elizabeth sat across from him, waiting for him to say something. <em>Anything<em>.

They had chatted a bit about Georgie and Matt. Will thought that things seemed a little different with them when they all went out to dinner last night. Elizabeth had a feeling that she knew exactly what the _difference_ was, but she was not going to clue Will in on her speculations at all. She knew she'd be having a chat with Georgiana soon, though.

Elizabeth had also filled Will in on her conversation with her mother, which dampened his mood quickly and considerably. She knew that she had more to discuss with her parents, as her mother's comment about 'men straying' had piqued her curiosity. The comment did a lot more than pique Will's curiosity; it rendered him speechless. Elizabeth assured him that her mother's beliefs were definitely not her own. She had no worries about Will ever straying, and told him so.

Finally, after putting it off for long enough, she had talked about Bill Collins and the flowers he had sent. She almost chickened out and put it off again, but in the end, decided to tell him everything.

Hence, his hard, unflinching gaze and clenched hands.

"Are you going to say something?" she asked quietly.

Will shook his head repeatedly and looked away from her. He looked up at the ceiling, at the walls, at the table, anywhere but back at her. Every muscle in his body felt like it was vibrating, and his heart was hammering away in his chest. He was in absolute disbelief, _could not believe_ what she had just told him.

"I know you're angry, and you have every right to be. Just say it."

He took a deep breath before speaking, trying to keep his voice even. "I'm beyond angry," he said flatly, now staring directly into her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I should have told you," Elizabeth replied quietly. The look in his eyes was unnerving, but she refused to look away. His entire body was rigid with tension.

Neither spoke for several long moments.

When Will finally did talk, he made a concerted effort to keep his voice steady and quiet."You _promised_ me that you would tell me if he contacted you." He took another deep breath, trying to control the anger that was pulsing through his body, begging to be let loose. He was determined to keep it at bay and remain calm and rational. "How could you keep something like that from me? After everything we've gone through, after everything he's done...why would you keep that from me?"

"I didn't want you to worry."

"You didn't want me to _worry?_" He repeated, his voice rising. "Jesus, Elizabeth, I wouldn't have been _worried_ because I would have taken care of it right away. Instead, that fucking nut job was at your house, leaving flowers on your deck. What if you were there when he came? What if he pushed his way in and attacked you?" He was almost yelling now, and he forced himself to lower his voice. "That's why you've been here every night, isn't it? _You_ were worried too, weren't you?"

It was more of a statement than a question, but she nodded and answered him. "I was, a little, yes."

Will had to move, had to get away, just for a moment. He stood from the table, feeling the urge to walk, needing some air. He left the dining room without another word, striding across the living room and out the sliding doors to the deck. From there, he headed down to the back lawn and walked as far as the adirondack chairs. He paced back and forth behind them before stopping to stare out at the ocean. At that moment, he realized that it wasn't just anger that he was feeling; it was fear, too, that was making his heart pound. Not that he was afraid of Bill Collins _himself_, because he surely wasn't. No, he was terrified of the fact that _Elizabeth_ was vulnerable to Collins. She was vulnerable, and he had absolutely _no control_ over that. _I have no control whatsoever_.

Elizabeth watched him from the deck, debating on whether she should go to him. After a long while, she went with her gut and walked across the grass, coming up behind him silently, encircling his waist with her arms.

"I don't want you to be angry," she said quietly. "This is my fault, I should have told you. I gave you my word, and I broke it." She laid her head against his back, giving him time, waiting for him to say something.

Will remained motionless, letting the feel of her arms wrapped around him soothe away some of his tension. After some long moments of silence, he finally cleared his throat and spoke. "I'm – I'm not angry. Not at the moment." He paused then and shook his head, knowing he had to be honest and not sugar-coat his feelings. "No, I _am _angry, actually, I'm upset that you didn't tell me." He sighed. "Did you really not want to worry me? Or was it more that you were worried about what I would do once I found out?"

Elizabeth lifted her head from his back. "What you would do?"

"Yes. Did you think I would fly off the handle, and go after Collins?"

She was quiet for a moment. "I guess it was a little of both."

Will nodded, pursing his lips. "Fair enough."

He swallowed thickly, trying to find the right words. "You – you have to let me protect you, Elizabeth. I need to do that. If anything happened to you, because of him, because you couldn't trust what my reaction might be if you told me...it would be my fault." He felt her shake her head in disagreement against his back. "Yes, it would be. I know I get a little crazy when things spiral out of my control, I know I can – I can snap. I've learned that about myself, and I don't like it, so I'm trying to work on it. But I need you to trust me, love, more than anything. I can't have you wondering if I'm going to go ballistic over something like this, because then you won't tell me, and that puts you at risk. I – I can't have that. If something happened to you..." his voice trailed off as the last of his anger finally seeped out of him.

"I do trust you, Will, please don't think that I don't. I'm so sorry."

Elizabeth felt his arms cover hers, and sensed the moment his body relaxed more into her embrace. She planted a kiss between his shoulder blades. "Will you go with me to the police station tomorrow? I need to see if there's anything I can do to keep him away."

Will nodded. "Of course I will. I'll make _sure_ that something gets done. He won't get anywhere near you, I won't let him." He turned in her arms, pulling her into his embrace, holding her tightly. "In the meantime, you're staying with me. I know it would probably be easier for you if we stayed at your place, but...I'd feel better if we were here, if you were here with me. Okay?"

She reached up to kiss him softly, then snuggled back against his chest. "Okay." He needed this from her, needed her to be with him, to have the security of her presence here, at his home. She needed it too, though, _wanted_ it, and there was no way she would deny him, or deny herself, that comfort.

* * *

><p><em>Reviews are appreciated! Thank you!<em>


	53. Chapter 53

_Thanks to everyone still reading and commenting...we're getting a little bit closer to the end, but still have several chapters to go. Thanks for sticking with me, and for sending me your reviews, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 53<strong>

Will sat at his desk, drumming his fingers impatiently while he waited on hold for Maggie Harper to take his call. Instead of going to the police station, Will had thought to try Maggie first, to see if she could offer any advice. Elizabeth thought it was a good idea. If anyone would know what to do about Collins, it would be Maggie.

It was difficult for him to watch Elizabeth leave for work, and he had tried, without success, to talk her into taking the day off. Actually, 'without success' was putting it mildly. He had failed miserably, upsetting her in the process.

"Will, I can't take more time off. I missed a day last week already, and I can't keep doing that. I have a responsibility to my job." She had just gotten out of the shower, and he sat on the edge of the bed in his boxers, watching her as she got dressed.

"I know you do, but I have a responsibility too, and that's to look out for you. You told me last night that you'd let me protect you, and having you gallivant off to work isn't helping me to do that."

He knew, right when he'd said it, that he'd put his foot in it big time. Her hands went to her hips, and her eyes flashed.

"I am not _gallivanting_ off to work," she said, her tone of voice matching the icy look in her eyes as she yanked on her shirt hurriedly. "I have a job, a _career_, that I happen to love, one that's important to me. I'm not going to hide myself away in _your house_ because of Bill Collins. Please don't make this into something that we argue about."

He sighed. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that, I didn't mean it, I really didn't. I don't want to argue either." Anxiety welled in his chest. "But what if he shows up in Woods Hole?"

"He won't," she stated emphatically.

Will shook his head, feeling that anxiety, now coupled with frustration, build at an alarming rate. "You don't _know_ that, Lizzy!" His voice was rising. "He might. If he gets too impatient to talk to you, he might just decide to take his chances and go to your office."

Elizabeth's voice rose in response. "I can't stay home from work because of something Bill Collins _might_ do!" Her hands rose to cover her face, and her voice was softer when she spoke again. "I can't believe we are having this – this conversation." She dropped her hands, letting them rest on her hips again. "I will talk to the security guards at the Reserve. If I ask them not to let him in, they won't."

Will sat there, feeling the anxiety and frustration morph into to a near-panic. _What if, what if_...that's all he kept thinking. _What if Collins went to her building? What if the guards let him through? What if he approaches Elizabeth? What if he's angry that she hasn't responded to him? What if he's armed?_

Elizabeth had walked over to him and stood between his legs, embracing his shoulders, stroking his hair. He wrapped his arms around her hips and held her tightly. "I'm going to be fine," she said softly. "I don't think Bill Collins has the nerve to show himself at the Reserve. I'll go to work, and it will just be another normal day."

Will exhaled loudly, closing his eyes as he pressed his face into her stomach. She sounded so sure of it, but he was afraid just the same. "You'll call me if anything happens, right?"

"Yes, I will. If anything odd happens, or if there are more flowers – anything – I will call you right away, I promise." She leaned to place a kiss on the crown of his head. "I have to finish getting ready, I'm already running behind."

He turned his face upward, silently asking for and receiving a kiss. She walked into the bathroom and he finally rose to get dressed, still stewing. When it came time to walk her out to her Jeep, he briefly entertained the idea of grabbing her, throwing her over his shoulder, and running back into the house, holding her hostage for the day.

She must have seen it in his eyes, because she again reassured him that she would be fine.

"Text me every hour," he requested firmly, and she had acquiesced without complaint.

"Every hour," she said, giving him a soft smile. "I'll call you when I'm on my lunch break too."

His eyes widened. "Don't go – you're not going out for lunch, are you?"

"No, I won't. I'll eat in, the deli down the street will deliver to us."

Will felt slightly embarrassed when he saw the look in her eyes. She was appeasing him, and he knew he was probably overreacting, but he couldn't help it. "I'm sorry, Lizzy, I'm sorry you have to put up with this – with me. I'm being overbearing."

She leaned up to kiss him, cupping his face in her hands. "You are being a loving, protective man. Don't apologize for that. But please don't ask me to stop going to work or doing the things I want to do, alright? That won't be good for either one of us."

He nodded. "You're still going to stay here, right? Until we get this restraining order, or whatever – you'll stay with me, however long it takes?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and sighed loudly. "Yes, if I have to, I suppose I can manage that. That's a tough one, you're asking an awful lot-"

He interrupted her with a growl, pulling her into his body, wrapping his arms around her and squeezing her tight. "Why do you always need to tease me?" he asked, swatting her on the bottom lightly while they stood almost nose to nose.

"I've told you before, you're an easy target," she said, smiling even more.

Staring into his eyes, she could read his emotions clearly. Despite the banter, she knew this was excruciating for him, letting her go off for the day. And he'd have to do it over and over again. She became serious. "I would love nothing more than to stay here with you, every night. It's where I want to be. Wherever you are is where I want to be."

Now, as he sat waiting for Maggie Harper, his thoughts were zipping in a million different directions. _What if Collins was waiting at her Jeep when she left work? What if he was at her house, waiting to see __if she'd come home?_ She'd only been gone for three hours, and he was a wreck. As soon as she arrived at work, she'd sent a text, just as she promised, but still, he was nervous as hell.

He heard a click, and then Maggie's voice was booming over the line. "Good morning, Mr. Darcy."

"Good morning, Maggie."

"This is a pleasant surprise. I hope everything is well?"

"Actually, that's why I was calling. I think I may need your help with something."

* * *

><p>"Unfortunately, Miss Bennet, under the circumstances, you won't be able to get a restraining order against Mr. Collins. You aren't even eligible for a harassment prevention order."<p>

Will and Elizabeth sat in the office of Daniel Caldwell, a lawyer that Maggie had recommended who had an office on Main Street in Falmouth. He'd agreed to make time to meet with them as a favor to Maggie. Elizabeth had gone straight to his office after work, meeting Will there. His relief at seeing her when she pulled into the parking lot was clearly written on his face.

"I don't understand," Elizabeth said. "He's harassing me."

"The court doesn't see it that way. A man sending a woman flowers isn't considered harassment."

Will bristled. "It _is_ harassment, when you consider the connection this asshole has to me and my family." Elizabeth placed her hand on his knee, silently telling him to relax. He sighed. "I'm sorry. Did Maggie explain to you our – our history with this guy?"

Daniel nodded. "She did. Unfortunately, as I said, in the courts eyes, he's done nothing at all to Miss Bennet. He hasn't followed her, contacted her directly, or threatened her in any way." He shrugged helplessly. "He's sent her flowers. Granted, his attentions aren't welcomed, but he hasn't done anything that would deem him guilty of harassment in the eyes of the law."

"Okay, fine," Elizabeth said, closing her eyes briefly. "What can I do, then? There must be something else."

"Well, despite what the courts say, I think it would be worth it for you to notify the police of what's happening. Go in, talk to someone, let them know what's going on, what your history with him is. He has a record now, he can't escape that. You can certainly file a 'no trespass' order. That way, if he ever comes on your property again, he can be arrested."

Will huffed. "You see how ridiculous that is, right? If he comes onto her property, and she's there, won't the damage already be done?"

"I hear what you're saying, Mr. Darcy, but sadly, the same is true for a restraining order. They're issued more times than you can imagine, and are just as frequently ignored."

"So how do I stop this from happening?" Elizabeth asked, feeling slightly confounded.

The lawyer shrugged again. "Call him and tell him to knock it off."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "Call him?"

The lawyer held up one hand. "I'm not encouraging contact, believe me. But sometimes, a well-placed phone call will do the trick. Tell him you've spoken to the police and a lawyer, and you won't hesitate to take action if he does anything else. Sometimes, that's all it takes."

Will was shaking his head as he rose from his chair, clearly agitated. "Thank you very much for your time, Mr. Caldwell, we appreciate it."

The lawyer stood as well. He could see that Will and Elizabeth were frustrated. "I'm sorry I don't have a better option for you, and I wish I could do more. This whole area of the law is pretty much like shutting the barn door after the horse has escaped, if you know what I mean. It's as close to imperfect as you can get."

They said their goodbyes and headed out of the office, into the late afternoon sun. Will took Elizabeth's hand and began walking her toward her Jeep, but she stopped and tugged him in a different direction.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"For a walk. We haven't walked Main Street in a while." She tugged again when he didn't move. "Come on, Will, walk with me."

He began walking, his lack of enthusiasm obvious. "We should be driving to the police station right now, not walking." His tone was flat and sullen.

"We can go to the police station after we walk. From what I understand, they're open twenty-four hours a day."

He looked at her, obviously unimpressed with her attempt at humor. "Do you need to get anything at your house?"

Elizabeth thought for a moment. "Well...I should probably get a lot of things, I guess. That way I won't have to stop again this week. Is that okay?"

This made him brighten a bit. "Of course it's okay. That's a great idea."

They walked along Main Street, both noticing how much the crowds had thinned since the summer had officially ended. Elizabeth pulled Will into a t-shirt shop, where she purchased an Old Silver Beach sweatshirt for each of them, hers light gray with navy lettering, his navy blue with white lettering.

"Now we'll really look like tourists," he said, allowing himself a small grin as he tucked the bag under his arm.

"Oh, who cares. I've always wanted one, and never took the time to stop and buy one."

As they walked further along, they came to the small park where they had danced together during the summer.

"Oh, remember when we came here?" Elizabeth asked.

"Of course I do," he replied, still sounding unhappy.

"You danced with me," she said, moving to walk backwards in front of him, "mmm, and you sang to me...it was very romantic."

Will smiled at her, he couldn't help it. He knew what she was doing, she was completely transparent, and he finally gave in to it. "It _was_ pretty romantic, wasn't it? I'm a romantic guy," he said, poking fun at himself.

She smiled fully now as she lead him onto the grass. "You are, you're very romantic. I bet I'm the only one that knows that about you."

He shrugged, and felt himself blush slightly.

She winked at him flirtatiously. "Lucky me."

Will laughed at her, watching as she turned and walked ahead of him, over to the little area next to the stage where the bands would set up for the Friday night concerts. His eyes lingered on the sway of her hips as she moved.

She turned to face him again. "I think we should dance."

His eyebrows rose. "Dance? Now?" He looked around at all the people moving about on Main Street. Granted, there weren't as many as there would be in the middle of July, but there were still a lot. He sighed and looked at her face, at her shining eyes and the set of her mouth, and knew that it was pointless to try to worm his way out of it. "People are going to stare at us."

"So, let them stare."

"Lizzy, you've made your point," he said softly, letting her know that he knew exactly what she was up to.

"I didn't realize I had a point to make. If I did, it's certainly not made yet." She grinned at him expectantly.

Sighing again, he put the bag down, and held out his hand. "Would you like to dance, Miss Bennet?"

"Ohhh, I'd _love_ to dance!" she answered, holding her hands to her chest. "I thought you'd never ask."

Will chuckled and pulled her close, and they started moving in a slow circle. He looked around, and was surprised that no one really seemed to notice them. A few people looked, but most just smiled or shook their heads and kept moving.

"We have no music," he said against her ear. He was beginning to relax, just a little, as he always did when he held her.

A crease formed between her brows. "Hm, no music. Hmmm."

He laughed lightly. "You are unbelievable. What would you like to hear?" He pulled her just a bit closer, letting his arms wrap loosely around her waist, and inhaled the scent of her hair.

"Whatever you feel like singing. Something _romantic_."

He rolled his eyes. "Talk about being put on the spot." After only a moment or two, a song came to mind that he thought she would like. He sang softly, moving them slowly to the rhythm in his head.

_For you I want to sing a happier song  
><em>_For you I want to try to right all my wrongs  
><em>_For you I'm gonna break my bad habits  
><em>_There's a golden ring and I want you to have it  
><em>_There's a golden ring and I want you._

_For you I'm gonna sit and patiently wait  
><em>_It's great if you're early but it's fine if you're late  
><em>_For you I feel love and I just want to show it  
><em>_You're a beautiful girl and I want you to know it  
><em>_You're a beautiful girl and I want you to know it  
><em>_You're a beautiful girl and I want you to know it  
><em>_It's an infinite world and I want you.*_

When he finished, they swayed together for a bit longer, and finally stopped when she lifted her head and pressed a sweet, loving kiss to his lips. "That was beautiful, thank you," she said softly. His voice always made her feel warm and fuzzy.

Will smiled down at her. "You're beautiful," he said, reaching up to stroke her cheek. When she looked at him like that, her eyes filled with love and happiness, he knew there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for her.

His smile faded as once again, thoughts of Bill Collins came crowding into his head, mentally pushing him away from the spontaneous, quiet interlude with Elizabeth, and back to reality.

Elizabeth noticed the change in his demeanor as it shifted again. "Do you feel a little better?" she asked.

He nodded, looking serious. "I do, I feel a lot better." A loud sigh escaped him. "I'm sorry I'm being so – so selfish. You're the one that has to deal with all this, with Collins...I should be the one taking _your_ mind off of everything, not the other way around."

"This was for me too, you know, it wasn't just for you. You feel more relaxed, I feel more relaxed...so now we can finish what we need to do. Let's go to the police station, then we'll stop at my house, and then we can just go home and have a nice, quiet night."

_Home_. The way she said that brought a smile to his face again. He liked the way it sounded, and she hadn't even really realized she'd said it, it just rolled off of her tongue as if she'd been saying it forever.

"That sounds good," he said smiling down at her and kissing her one last time. "A quiet night at home."

* * *

><p>They met with one of the sergeants at the police department, and he took a detailed report of everything they told him. He did reiterate what the lawyer had already said, and advised Elizabeth to purchase some pepper spray, something that worked fairly well as a deterrent when an unwanted person got too close.<p>

They left the station with copies of the reports and got into their separate vehicles to head to Elizabeth's house. Elizabeth drove ahead of Will, and as they neared her house not even ten minutes after leaving the police station, her Jeep suddenly slowed and came to a stop, just shy of her short driveway. He looked beyond her car, and could just see the tail end of a blue car parked there.

He gunned the engine of the Porsche and pulled up alongside Elizabeth's Jeep. "Is that his car?" he asked her through the passenger window. The look on her face said it all. Without waiting for an answer, he gunned the engine again and pulled up behind the car, blocking it from leaving. Elizabeth was right behind him.

Elizabeth watched Will as he got out of his car. He turned to look at her, anger flashing in his eyes. "Stay there," he said, and his tone of voice brooked no argument. Moving quickly, he went around the front of the blue car and up her stairs, out of her sight. Her heart pounded nervously in her chest, and for all of five seconds, she did stay right where she was. She couldn't sit, though, she had to know what was going on.

As soon as she reached the bottom of the stairs, she could hear them; Will's voice, angry and forceful, and Bill's, fearful and stuttering. She flew up the stairs and was horrified to see that Will had pinned Bill to the top railing, and was just a solid push away from pitching him over the side, which was a good fifteen foot drop onto the packed sand below. There were loose flowers all over the deck, and a glass vase lay on it's side, spilling water.

"I told you to stay the fuck away from her," Will was growling, his face flushed, a look of pure anger in his eyes. "Can you understand plain English? Maybe I need to break your fucking legs so you can't come near her" _shove _"or break your fucking arms so you can't send her flowers" _shove _"or crack your fucking skull open so you can't even think about her anymore." _shove_ "Is that what I need to do, you fucking piece of shit?"

Elizabeth was shocked by the tone of Will's voice, but more than that, she was terrified that he really _would_ end up throwing Collins off the deck. "Will, stop," she said firmly, but he didn't even hear her.

Collins did, and fought against Will even more frantically. "Listen – listen to Elizabeth," he yelled, his arms and legs pushing uselessly against Will's body, desperately trying to break loose of him. "Stop, please stop. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'll never – I'll never bother her again. Please."

Elizabeth saw that Collins was scared out of his mind, and she really couldn't blame him. Will's fury was obvious, and was directed at one target; him.

"Will, please put him down," she asked him again. Suddenly he turned to look at her, as if he had just now realized she was there. "Let him go."

Will turned his gaze back to the man before him, and though he could hear Elizabeth's voice, the hum of anger in his head was much louder. He wanted to just push him over, toss him off the deck like the piece of trash that he was. He wanted to hear the satisfying thud of his body hitting the ground below.

"William, listen to me and put him down, right now."

He turned to look at her again, and could see that she was scared. It dawned on him then that she wasn't scared of Collins, but was more afraid of what was going to happen next. After one more good shove_, _nearly toppling him over the railing, Will let him go. Collins tried to gain footing on the deck, but his legs couldn't hold him up, and he slumped slightly against the railing, clinging to it.

"What the hell is wrong with you!" Collins yelled, "I was just bringing her flowers, for Christ's sake! I only wanted to talk to her, apologize to her, beg her forgiveness!" His voice grew louder, his courage growing as Will moved slightly further away from him. "She doesn't need protection from _me_, she needs protection from the likes of _you_, you goddamned brute!"

Will ignored him and turned to look at Elizabeth, hating the look of fear on her face. An apology to her was on the tip of his tongue, when Collins made two very big mistakes. The first mistake was his final statement, spewed out in anger, obviously intended as retaliation toward Will.

"You know what? My cousin was _right_, your sister was asking for it."

The second mistake, following directly behind the first, sealed his fate. He swung a meaty fist at Will, barely connecting with the side of his jaw. It was a poorly thrown, weak sucker-punch at best, and only resulted in causing Will to lose his footing slightly.

As Will heard the words that came out of Collins' mouth, and felt the knuckles of his fist graze his jaw, he simultaneously saw the look of shock on Elizabeth's face; she heard and watched the whole thing, and didn't have a second to warn him of what was about to happen. His mind went completely blank as he spun on Collins and lunged at him, throwing all of his weight into a very solid body slam, sending them both into, and then splintering through the railing, disappearing over the side of the deck, down to the sand below.

Elizabeth's breath caught as she watched the inevitable happen; they hit the railing with such force, she knew it wouldn't hold them. She heard the resounding _oomph_ of bodies hitting the sand, and heard Bill cry out in pain. As she ran down the stairs, she heard the sickening, repeated _thwack_ of a fist on flesh, and knew exactly what was happening before she laid eyes on them.

When she rounded the corner, she saw that Will was on top of Collins, straddling his midsection, fist frozen in midair, ready to strike again. He had already hit him two or three times, and Bill had the bloody nose and widely-split lip to prove it. Suddenly and without warning, Will sprung up off of him and backed several feet away, stumbling slightly, then bending over to grab at his left knee. He was breathing heavily, and there were droplets of blood splattered on his shirt. Holding his leg, he sat down hard in the sand, never once taking his eyes off of Collins.

Elizabeth hurried over to him, dropping down next to him. "Are you alright? Is it your leg? Your knee?" She didn't even realize she had tears in her eyes until he looked up at her, and his face was blurry and distorted.

"Shhh, I'm fine, I'm fine," he said, amazed that he sounded relatively calm. He reached up to clumsily stroke her face, still trying to catch his breath. An attempt to bend his injured leg made him wince in pain. "Call the police," he said, in between breaths.

Elizabeth looked at Collins, who was still sprawled in the sand, groaning and clutching his lower back. "My – it's in the Jeep, my phone is in the Jeep. I don't want to leave you here."

Will shook his head. "I'm fine, and he's not going anywhere. Go."

Elizabeth ran around the front of the house to her Jeep, double-checking to make sure it and Will's car were pulled off of the road enough. She grabbed her phone with shaking hands and dialed 911 as she made her way back to Will.

By the time she was off the phone and had reached the back of the house again, Collins was sitting up, eying Will nervously. "You're a lunatic!" he shouted, blood dribbling from his nose and flying from his mouth as he yelled. "I'm going to have you arrested."

Elizabeth felt an immediate flash of anger. She stood over Collins, glaring at him. "Shut the hell up, Bill. The police are already on the way. If anyone is getting arrested, it's you."

She walked over to Will, dropping down in the sand next to him again. He looked at her warily, almost as if he was afraid of what she was going to say or do. Without uttering a word, she wrapped her arms around him, noticing how he winced when she did. She drew back away from him. "You need to go to the hospital."

He shook his head. "No, I don't. I'm fine. Just – I just got jostled a bit. I landed on him, he got the worst of it." His gazed at her intently, and swallowed. "I'm – I'm sorry, Lizzy. I'm so sorry." His voice was barely a whisper.

Elizabeth looked at him, and for the first time, noticed that he looked worried. "What are you sorry for?"

"I didn't want that to happen, I really didn't, but – but he said that shit about – about Georgie, and I just – I couldn't stop myself. I couldn't stop..." his voice trailed off and he lowered his head, breaking eye contact with her.

She wrapped her arms around him again, gently this time, and pulled his head to her shoulder. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"No, I do, I do. I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have...attacked him like I did. I should have kept my head, controlled myself. What the fuck is wrong with me?" He let out a long, agonizing breath.

Elizabeth forced his eyes up to meet hers, her voice firm and unwavering when she spoke. "You did nothing wrong, and I will defend you to anyone who says any differently."

At that moment, they noticed that Bill had risen and was attempting, not quite successfully, to walk away. Will jumped to his feet, wincing in pain, and reached the limping man before he got too far, giving him a good shove, sending him sprawling back into the sand. Once again, Bill groaned in pain.

"Stay right there, shithead," Will said angrily. "You're not going anywhere until the police haul you off and lock your ass up."

He hobbled back over to where Elizabeth was now standing and looked at her for a long time, eventually deciding that he believed her when she said she wasn't upset. She wasn't angry, she really wasn't. In fact, if anything, she looked relieved. He leaned in to kiss her, holding her face in his hands. They both heard the approaching police car, and with their arms looped around each others waists, slowly walked out front to greet it.

* * *

><p>"Oh my God, I can't believe it," Georgiana said, looking at Will and Elizabeth with disbelief in her eyes. It was early Tuesday evening, and they were sitting in the living room at Will's house. They had just finished telling her everything that had happened, from the time Elizabeth got the first bouquet of flowers, right up until today, when they left the courthouse. The only thing they left out of the story was the horrible comment Collins had made about Georgiana on Elizabeth's deck.<p>

Georgiana's eyes turned to Will. "You're okay? You didn't – you didn't break anything? You didn't get hurt?"

He smiled at her softly. "I'm fine. I bruised my knee and my thigh pretty badly, but that's about it. The doctor said to just take it easy for a while, 'til it starts to feel better, keep it iced when I can. He recommends that I find a new sport, deck diving is off limits for now." The attempt at humor didn't go over well.

Georgiana swallowed. "This isn't funny, Fitzwilliam. Is Collins in jail? Where is he?"

"He's in jail for the moment," Elizabeth said, squeezing Will's hand, "but probably not for much longer. We went to the courthouse today and the judge put a harassment prevention order through for us. We had a good lawyer, thankfully." They had retained Daniel Caldwell, and he more than earned his pay.

"You didn't get in any trouble?" Georgie asked, looking at Will again.

Will shook his head. "None. Self-defense. He swung first and was stupid enough to admit it. He got a little mouthy with the officers that showed up, and that didn't sit well with them either."

"I'm glad you're alright." She was quiet for a moment. "When is this all going to stop?" she asked, almost to herself. "I thought – I thought the charges, Collins being charged, would be the end of it. But it isn't, he's still here, in our lives. Why can't he just go away, leave you alone?"

Elizabeth didn't have an answer. "I don't know, Georgie, but maybe he will now."

Will watched the exchange between the two women, and thought that maybe they needed a moment. He rose from the couch gingerly. "I'm going to head upstairs to take a shower, then maybe you girls will let me treat you to some takeout. Ladies choice."

Elizabeth stood with him. "Do you need some help on the stairs?"

Will shook his head and smiled. "No, love, I'm fine." He gave her quick kiss and was on his way, slowly but surely.

Elizabeth watched him on the first few steps, and when she was satisfied that he was indeed okay, she sat back down. "Are you alright?"

Georgiana nodded. "I guess I am. I'm just shocked. I had no idea Collins was bothering you. He seems a bit...obsessed with you."

"I told you he'd asked me out before, but once he met Will, he backed off. I don't know why he felt the need to pursue me now. And actually, it's not even that he was pursuing me...for some reason, he needed me to say that what happened wasn't his fault, and that his role in it was excusable. His efforts were futile, because those words never would have left my mouth."

"I'm so sorry, Elizabeth. I feel like this is my fault, once again."

"It's not. His _obsession_ with me, or whatever you want to call it, has nothing to do with you. It's all an awful coincidence that he was partly responsible for what happened to you. It's not your fault, none of this is, and none of it ever was."

Georgiana sighed. "You're probably right."

"I _am_ right. Now, can we move on to a happier topic?"

Georgiana's eyebrows lifted. "Such as?"

Elizabeth smiled broadly. "Such as...Matt?"

"Oh. Matt. Sure." Her face pinked, and she knew it was a dead giveaway.

"Your brother asked me on Sunday if I thought that something was different between you two. He could sense something."

Georgiana's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. "He did not say that! You're making it up!"

Elizabeth giggled. "I swear, he said those very words." She paused. "Anything you want to tell me?"

Her face flushed even deeper, and she glanced toward the stairs.

"Oh, you'll hear Mr. Gimpy coming, don't worry," Elizabeth said, grinning. She became serious for a moment. "Look, I'm not prying, but if you want to talk about anything-"

"I do," Georgiana blurted out. "I _do_ want to talk. God, I want to talk and talk and talk-" She stopped suddenly and looked at Elizabeth, and the two women burst out laughing. It took a moment before Georgiana could speak again. "I mean, I don't want to talk too much, you know, but...this past weekend was wonderful." She paused. "You – you know he stays with me when he comes to visit, but this weekend, he stayed _with_ _me_."

Elizabeth found it funny that Georgiana had a hard time saying the words, so she did it for her. "You had sex."

"Yes, we did. We had sex." She sighed loudly, then started giggling. "God, it sounds horrible. We didn't just _have sex_. It was more than that. He told me he loves me, and...I think I love him."

Elizabeth beamed. "Oh, that's wonderful. I'm so happy for you. Matt is a great guy."

"He is," Georgiana said, a completely dreamy expression on her face. "He's amazing." She paused again, and the expression on her face grew serious. "I was worried, you know? He always seemed to want to stop when we got carried away, and I thought that maybe he didn't want me that way, that maybe he was thinking too much about what happened to me."

Elizabeth frowned. "I'm sure that's not it."

Georgiana shook her head. "No, that wasn't it at all. He just wanted to be certain that I returned his feelings. He was just being...Matt. A gentleman."

"A keeper."

Georgiana smiled widely. "Yes, a keeper. I'm keeping him."

Elizabeth bit her lip. "So...was it okay? I'm _not_ prying for details, mind you."

"Oh, I know." She giggled. "The first time was...um...well, let's just say we ended up laughing a little bit, after. But...we didn't leave the house much over the weekend, except to go out with you and Will for dinner. So..." she cleared her throat, "things definitely...improved. I'm so comfortable with him, I didn't feel self-conscious at all. He's tender and sweet...he was perfect."

Elizabeth smiled. "Are you practicing safe sex?"

Georgiana nodded. "Yes, of course we are."

"Okay, good. That's the last time I'll ever inquire about _that_ part of your relationship with Matt, but you know you can always talk to me about anything, right?"

"I know, Lizzy, thanks."

They began discussing where to get takeout, and had pulled out some menus when they heard Will making his way down the stairs. He walked into the living room and plopped down on the couch next to Elizabeth. She immediately leaned into him and buried her face in his neck, inhaling deeply.

Will chuckled. "Missed me that much already?"

Elizabeth was still snuggled against him, kissing his neck. "You smell soooo good." His hair was damp, and she ran her fingers through it. "Maybe I'll have you for dinner," she whispered so only he could hear.

He pulled away from her and looked down into her eyes, twinkling up at his. "You can have me for dessert, but only if I get fed first. I'm starving." He laughed when she pouted, and planted a quick kiss on her mouth. "What did you two decide?"

* * *

><p>The flickering light from a few candles bathed Will's bedroom in a soft glow. The drowsy, sated couple lay together, Elizabeth's body still partially covering Will's. He toyed with her hair, fanning it out around her head, over his torso, sifting it slowly through his fingers, while she played with the hair on his chest, softly stroking it. This had become a routine for them, one that Will looked forward to every day. Whether they made love or not (though honestly, they usually did), they would always end the night talking quietly about whatever came to mind, before drifting off to sleep wrapped up in each other. <em>This<em> was what he loved, this connection with her. Yes, it was there when they were being physically intimate as well, that connection was powerful and intense in its own right; but there was just something about being with her, like this, that made him feel complete.

Her voice came quietly to him. "Mr. and Mrs. Bingley are due back tomorrow."

He raised his eyebrows. "Mm, that's right, I forgot about that."

"They both have the rest of the week off, so I'm sure they'll come to the Cape. I hope they had a nice honeymoon."

Will smiled, leaning forward to kiss her head. "I'm sure they did."

It was quiet again for a few moments, and Elizabeth watched the play of light from the candles as it reflected off the glass of the French doors. "Will?"

"Hmm?"

"The guy you called to fix the railing said it will be done tomorrow. After that...I guess I should plan on staying at my place. Or _we_ could stay at my place. There isn't really a reason for me to keep staying here and driving so far to work." Inexplicably, her heart sunk a little when she said the words. He didn't answer her, and she raised up on his chest, turning to look at him. "Did you hear me?"

He nodded. "I heard you."

"Oh. So, is that okay? Will you stay with me?"

He smiled, but Elizabeth thought that it wasn't a typical Will smile; it didn't reach his eyes, and almost seemed a little sad.

"Of course I'll stay with you," he said.

She rested her head back on his chest again. "Good. I'd like that."

Will's heart was thumping, and he knew the words were on the tip of his tongue. _Stay here, with me. Live with me, make my home your home. Make this __our__ home._

Elizabeth raised her head again to look at him. "What's wrong?"

His eyebrows raised. "Nothing. Why do you think something is wrong?"

"I can feel your heart racing. Are you nervous about me being at my house again?"

He took a deep breath, trying to force his heart to calm. "No, not really. I don't want you there alone yet, but I don't think Collins will be a problem. More importantly, are _you_ worried?"

"I won't be if you're there."

"What about when I have to stay in Boston?"

She was quiet for a moment, thinking. "Maybe I could stay here?"

He smiled again, that same little half-smile. "Of course you can."

They were quiet again for a few moments, and went back to contentedly caressing each other.

"Will?"

"Hmm?"

"You're heart is going a mile a minute. What's wrong?"

He sighed in exasperation. "Nothing is wrong." _I want you to live here, with me, and I'm too fucking chicken to ask you._

Before he could react, he felt her hands creeping up on either side of his ribcage, and she thoroughly attacked him, tickling him until he was squirming under her. He wouldn't flip her and pin her, couldn't do either, because of his leg. Finally, he held both of her wrists in his hands, holding her arms out to each side so she was stretched over his body and they were laying nose to nose. Both were breathing heavily and grinning like fools. Of course, all that friction and rubbing had Will's body in an uproar, and he let her know it.

"If that was meant to soothe my racing heart, it backfired epically."

She bit her bottom lip, then wet her lips. "Sorry." His eyes never left her mouth.

"You're trying to tempt me into talking," he said, his voice becoming rough.

Elizabeth shook her head, arching a brow. "Not true. Something is on your mind, though."

He looked into her eyes, their brilliant emerald green color reflected in the candlelight, and decided that this was it. He wanted her here, to _stay_, and there was only one way that was going to happen.

_Ask her._

"Okay, you're right. I do have something on my mind."

"Will you tell me?"

He swallowed and looked into her eyes. "I don't want you to leave. I want you to stay here."

Elizabeth's eyes widened, almost imperceptibly. "For – for how long?"

He shrugged. _Forty or fifty years. _"For as long as you want to be here. I want you to live here, with me. Stay _with me_. We discussed what we want for the future already, and we both want the same things, right? Someday?" He swallowed loudly, suddenly nervous as hell. "I just...I like having you here. No, I _love_ having you here. I love _you_, I love _this_," he said, gesturing over the bed with his arms, "and I don't just mean the sex. I mean, I love that too, I love that _a lot_, but it's this...being with you like this, holding you every night, falling asleep with you in my arms. Waking up with you in the morning, watching you walk in the door after work, the two of us talking, sharing things with each other...honestly, Lizzy...there's nothing better."

Elizabeth stared at him, at the love in his eyes, trying to absorb everything he was saying. _Move in with him? Leave her little house?_ She thought about it, and as much as she loved her house, it didn't feel the same anymore. It would always be there, would always be in her family, so it's not like she had to say goodbye to it. But did she want to live here with Will? It was a huge decision, wasn't it?

_Isn't it?_

_No,_ she realized, _it's not a huge decision. It's Will, and it's me, and I want to be with him. _All those things he had just said to her, about being together at night, and in the morning, sharing moments, big and not-so-big, with each other; she felt the same way. That's why her heart had given a little tug before, when she was talking about going back to her house; she had known, somewhere deep inside of herself, that she didn't really _want_ to go back. She wanted to be here, in his house, in his home.

Will waited patiently while she searched for something to say. His patience rapidly ran out, and he thought that he had blundered, that maybe this impulsive decision wasn't a good one after all. He should have approached her at a different time, in a different way. "If it's too soon, if you need time-"

Her lips suddenly covered his in a long, slow kiss. When she finally broke away, she smiled down at him. "Okay."

His eyebrows rose. "Okay?"

"Yes, okay. I want to live here with you. I want to be with you as much as I can be. So, yes, I'll move in. I'll shack up with you. Live in sin with you."

His eyes never left hers, and it was quiet for a moment before he spoke again, his voice soft. "Are you teasing me?"

Elizabeth giggled at his cautious expression. "No, of course not, I would never tease you about this. I'm completely serious."

She watched as a wide smile transformed his face, revealing those heart-stopping dimples. A burst of pure happiness shot through her, making her eyes fill with tears. She lowered her mouth to his and they kissed for a long while, a small celebration of the next step in their relationship that they were about to take together.

After a while, Elizabeth raised up to smile down at him again. "You know, for someone who claims they never know the right things to say...you certainly have a way with words."

* * *

><p>The first thing Will heard was a squealing noise, followed immediately by another squealing noise. He smiled to himself as he sat in his office, finishing up some paperwork, and rose from his desk to head downstairs. It was Friday night, and by the sound of the squeals, the Bingleys had just shown up. When he walked into the living room, he found Jane and Elizabeth hugging and smiling. He made his way over to Charles, who was standing back, watching the women with a smile on his face.<p>

"There's the old married man," Will said, grasping Charles' hand firmly. They shook, then gave each other a brief hug. "How was the honeymoon?"

Charles was grinning from ear to ear. "Unbelievable. What a gorgeous place. It was fantastic."

"You look pretty damn relaxed."

Charles laughed. "I am, even after being home for two days. My brain is still in the Maldives." He glanced down at Will's legs. "You're moving a little slowly. What's up?"

"Oh, it's a long story, one I won't tell you right now. We'll talk."

Jane made her way over to Will and gave him a hug.

"Welcome home, Mrs. Bingley," Will said, smiling at her. He still felt a little bit like Jane was keeping an eye on him, so he wasn't completely comfortable with her yet. That was alright, though; he knew Jane's reasons, and he understood them. Plus, he knew things would change between them, and eventually they would grow to be good friends.

Will disappeared to grab a bottle of wine, and when he came back, he poured everyone a glass and they all sat down to talk. Jane and Elizabeth had already talked on the phone the night before, and they had mostly filled the conversation with talk of the honeymoon. Elizabeth hadn't yet said anything to Jane about what happened with Bill, or about her conversation with Lydia. She also hadn't told Jane that she was moving in with Will.

"How was California?" Jane asked.

"Oh, it was great," Elizabeth replied. She and Will talked briefly about their trip, telling them all about Richard and Lauren's wedding, and about the opening of FRD Designs.

"The trip was short, but very sweet," Elizabeth said, smiling at Will. She knew exactly what had popped into his mind as he smiled back at her.

"Have you talked to mum or dad?" Jane asked.

Elizabeth nodded. "I talked to mum...it's not really worth going into at the moment, I'll tell you about it later." She heard Will grunt quietly, and knew exactly what he was thinking then, too. "I also talked to Lydia, but that was right after you left. She's making some changes in her life. Trying to, anyway. I was supposed to call her this week, but some things popped up..."

Will's eyebrows rose as Elizabeth looked at him.

"What's that look for?" Charles asked.

"There was a little excitement while you were gone," Will said, "just some stuff involving Bill Collins."

Jane's eyes opened wide. "Bill Collins? What happened?"

For the next thirty minutes or so, Will and Elizabeth took turns telling the details of what had happened with Collins, about the flowers, the visit to the lawyer, and finally, the fight.

"You _fell_ off the _deck?_" Jane said, obviously shocked, her mouth agape. "I can't believe it."

"He needed to get his ass kicked," Charles said, "speaking strictly from a non-lawyer point of view, of course."

Will nodded. "Yeah, I wasn't thinking much about the law at that point myself. When he made that comment about Georgie, and then swung at me...I just nailed him. I didn't expect to send us over the side, believe me."

Will and Elizabeth had talked more the previous day about what had happened. He needed to make sure that his actions didn't result in any negative effects on their relationship, or on her feelings toward him. She had reassured him of the opposite. "You were protecting me, protecting my home, and defending your sister," she had said. "Bill got what he deserved, and there isn't a soul on this earth who would disagree." When he had expressed some lingering doubt at her words, she had reassured him once again. "I'm not upset at you, at what you did. In my eyes, your actions were justified."

They hadn't spoken of it again, until now.

"Is that why you're sort of limping around?" Charles asked.

"I bruised my leg a little. Not too badly. I landed on Collins, I'm sure he's a lot more banged up than me."

"What an asshole," Jane chimed in, "a sick, perverted, slimy asshole." Elizabeth couldn't help it, she chuckled. Jane was never one to mince words. "This is not a laughing matter, Lizzy! I hope you're going to do something about the house. Can you get an alarm system? Or a dog? Or at least a baseball bat to put by your door?"

"Jane!"

"Okay – okay, maybe not the dog. But you have to be safe! There's hardly anyone around you out there on the beach, most of the people that live nearby will be gone for the winter, and if Collins isn't in jail, I'll be worried about you all the time." Her head swiveled in Will's direction. "Right? Don't you agree?"

Will's eyebrows rose. "Umm...yes?"

Jane looked at him as if he had sprouted a second head. "_Umm...yes? _What the heck kind of answer is that?"

"Jane," Elizabeth interrupted quietly, "it won't be a problem. I won't be living there." She glanced at Will quickly out of the corner of her eye, and saw him grin slightly.

Jane looked at her sister in confusion. "What do you mean you won't be-" Suddenly, it seemed to click. She looked at Will again, then back to Elizabeth. "And you'll be living...where?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Here. I'm moving in this weekend." She reached out to lay a hand on Will's thigh, and they both waited for Jane's reaction.

"With Will?"

Elizabeth laughed. "Um, yes, with Will. He's kind of the main attraction."

Jane sighed in relief. "Oh, that makes me feel so much better." She turned to look at Charles. "Lizzy's moving in with Will."

Charles grinned at his wife, reaching up to stroke her hair. "I heard."

"Well," Jane said, smiling, "I think we need to have another drink and make a toast to the new...um, roomies."

"Sounds good to me," Charles said. He held up a hand as Will started to stand up. "You sit, I'll get it."

After another hour or so of conversation, the two couples made plans to have dinner together the next night, possibly with Georgiana and Matt as well, and then the Bingleys went on their way.

As they prepared to go up to bed, Will noticed that Elizabeth looked pensive, and he had no idea what she was thinking about. Coming up behind her as she rinsed the wine glasses in the kitchen sink, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the side of her neck. "What's up?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. Just thinking."

"About..."

Elizabeth sighed. "About...about moving in. Are you sure it's what you want?" She set the last glass down and dried her hands on a towel before turning in his arms. "It came up so suddenly, and I know you're worried about everything with Collins...I just need to make sure you didn't ask me out of some warped sense of needing to protect me."

"Lizzy-"

"Just – you have to understand, I've been thinking about it, thinking about the circumstances, and we were in bed, we'd just made love, we were discussing the deck getting fixed...I'm just worried that you asking me was a reaction to everything, that's all. I need to make sure it isn't."

Will watched her as she spoke, saw the uncertainty in her eyes, and knew he had to banish it. He pulled her close and hugged her tightly. "Oh, Lizzy, you have no idea...of course I want to protect you, keep you safe, but that's not the only reason why I asked you to live with me." He paused, looking for the right words. "Having you here...your clothes in the closet, your girly stuff in the bathroom, your laptop on the dining room table, your disgusting French Vanilla coffee in the kitchen," he heard her chuckle against his chest. "It's your entire presence, that's what this is about. I love you, and having you here makes me feel complete. It's – it's like all the pieces of some big puzzle are finally locked into place. You belong _here_. You make this house a home. Our home."

He heard her deep, shaky sigh against his chest, felt the answering squeeze of her arms around his waist. She lifted her face and they kissed deeply, and when he reached up to cup her cheek, he felt her tears there. He knew, then, that for once in his life, he'd finally said the right words.

* * *

><p><em>Anyone happy about the pummeling that Collins took? Happy Will and Elizabeth are finally taking a step forward? I'd love to hear from you, so please leave a review!<em>

_*"For You" by Duncan Sheik_


	54. Chapter 54

_A bit of an early post, but it will be the last one for about two weeks...sorry, but real life has me running crazy right now, and I haven't had much time to devote to writing. A new chapter will be posted on or about 9/29. Thanks for hanging in there with me, I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 54<strong>

The move to Will's house on Saturday went smoothly and was done rather quickly. Of course, since Jane and Charles were in town they offered to help, and although Elizabeth insisted that they spend the last two days of their honeymoon relaxing, they would hear nothing of it. Georgiana and Matt also pitched in, so between the six adults, short work was made of it.

The women focused on packing the boxes, getting everything organized, while the men moved the boxes once they were loaded, and moved some of the furniture that Elizabeth wanted to take. There wasn't much, honestly; she didn't want her bed, nor did she want to take her new living room set. There was nowhere to put it at Will's, and she didn't want to bother with putting it in storage. She did take her antique full-length mirror, and as she moved it from the bedroom into the living room, Will lifted it from her hands.

"I'll take that," he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her suggestively. "I know just the spot for it."

Elizabeth reached up for a kiss. "I bet you do," she murmured against his lips, blushing slightly. The stories that mirror could tell if it could talk.

She felt as though she was floating on a cloud, she was so happy. Everything about this move, about this step in her life, about Will and her feelings for him – it all felt so right. And although she loved this little spot on the beach, it didn't feel the same anymore.

The three men had left ahead of the women. Thankfully, Matt had an SUV; it was loaded with most of the boxes, as Will's Porsche couldn't hold much. Georgiana had brought her car as well, and had left with the assigned task of picking up lunch for everyone before heading to Will's. Elizabeth's Jeep was also filled with boxes, waiting to be driven to New Seabury. She and Jane had stayed behind to straighten up and grab any forgotten items.

After looking the place over thoroughly, the sisters sat down on the couch for a few minutes before heading out the door.

"This all feels sort of surreal to me," Elizabeth said, looking around at the bare walls. "It's all happened so quickly. I'll miss this little place, but to be honest with you, so much has happened here, it's changed the way I feel about it. First all the stuff with Wickham and Lydia, then everything with Bill...and I hate to include this, but...even the day that Will came here to talk to me after staying away for all that time...that was such a horrible day. Right now, those are the things that stand out to me."

She sighed deeply. "It sounds so terrible, because I _know_ good things have happened here too, a lot of them. The first time Will told me he loved me was on my birthday, right out there on the beach, and I told him I felt the same...the first time we made love..." Her voice trailed off as she became lost in those good memories for a moment. "We did share a lot of happiness here, I know that we did, but...I'm ready to leave."

Jane nodded. "I can understand that. It's time to make new memories with him, right?"

Elizabeth smiled. "It's time."

"Do you want to tell me what happened with mum and dad? Oh, actually, tell me what's going on with Lydia first. You said she was trying to make some changes. I'm curious about that."

Elizabeth sighed. "Well, basically, she said she regrets what happened, and she wants to change the way she's living her life. She moved back in with mum and dad last weekend."

Jane's eyes opened wide, and her mouth dropped open. "She moved back in with mum and dad? Holy shit."

"My thoughts exactly. She's starting school in January, though, and she knew she couldn't keep living in that house with her girlfriends if she wanted to get halfway decent grades. Too many distractions."

"Yes, I suppose it wouldn't be too easy to study at party central. Still…I can't believe she chose to go back home."

Elizabeth shrugged. "It's free, and it'll save her some driving time to 4C's."

"Did she apologize to you?"

"She did," Elizabeth said, with a note of skepticism in her voice. "It's one of those wait and see things for me, though…I have to see proof of a change in her. It's sad to say, but it's just the way I feel. She said she misses us, all the fun we used to have…I miss that too, but at the same time, I've taken so much crap from her over the past few years, I can't invest too much into what she's saying. Not yet, anyway."

"Me either. I hope it's the real deal, but like you say, it's a wait and see thing."

"Apparently she spoke to Caroline at the wedding."

Jane scrunched her nose. "Really? What the hell did those two have to talk about? The only thing they have in common is that they both have a vagina. At least, I'm assuming Caroline does."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Well, Caroline was muttering something about Will and me, and Lydia overheard. She told Caroline off."

"Oh, I would have loved to hear that! Lydia managed to tell someone off without creating a scene in the process? I'm sorry I missed it."

"Well, she wasn't drinking, I'm sure that had something to do with it."

"Did you talk to her about that?"

"The drinking? A little. She said she didn't miss not having it that day, but she knows she gets a little wild when she overdoes it. I think with her, it might be learning to say enough is enough."

"Charles calls it the potato chip syndrome. You can't just reach into the bag and have one chip. You have to have a handful. That's Lydia with booze. The word 'moderation' is not in her vocabulary."

"I think she's learning it. Anyway, we were supposed to get together this week, but it didn't work out."

"Well, maybe we can get together tomorrow? I'll call her later, I haven't talked to her since the wedding anyway. Maybe the three of us can go for lunch or something before Charles and I head back to Boston. If I can pry you away from your new roommate, that is."

Elizabeth grinned. "I think I can spare an hour or two."

"So what happened with mum and dad?"

"Well, not a lot, actually…I went over there last weekend to sort of clear the air, I guess. Dad called and asked me to come. I never even really talked to him at all…I asked mum about Caroline, and of course dad completely tuned out. He went to his study."

"Ohh, what did mum say about Caroline? They talked at the wedding."

Elizabeth raised her brows. "Oh, they talked alright. Your bitch of a sister-in-law told mum that I stole Will out from under her nose! She said they were on the verge of getting engaged when I came along and lured him away."

Jane sat up straight on the couch, eyes wide. "Get _out_ of here! She did _not_ say that!"

"Oh, she said that and more. Mom was very proud of me, though, for using my arts and allurements to tempt Will. Apparently, he must see _something_ in me…though what that something is, she couldn't quite say. Despite that, she's _very_ proud of me, and the fact that her daughter's honey is sweeter than Caroline's."

"Eww, eww, eww, stop, stop, stop." Both women began to laugh. "Isn't there a song about that?" Jane started to sing, '_she got the honey, and I got some money…'*_

"Shut up," Elizabeth protested, still laughing. After a moment, they both quieted, and Elizabeth became somber. "After she said that, she said some other things that started to make me think a bit."

"About what?"

Elizabeth looked at her older sister seriously. "Do you think it's possible that dad had an affair?"

Jane looked shocked. "What? Dad? No, I don't think so." She looked at Elizabeth, the question in her eyes obvious. "You must think it's a possibility, though, or you wouldn't have said anything. What did mum say?"

"Oh, at first she was just going on and on about Will, how _men like him_ have to have their needs met, how women will be _throwing_ themselves at him, and how someone could _easily_ snatch him away from me, just like I snatched him from Caroline-"

Jane interrupted. "Oh my God, she said all that to you?"

"Mmhm. You're not really surprised, are you? She said that the right temptation at the right moment was all it took."

Elizabeth watched the comprehension dawn on Jane's face. "You think she's speaking from experience?"

"Why would anyone – even mum – say something like that otherwise?"

Jane was quiet for a long moment. "It would explain a lot."

"It would. She's changed so much over the past few years, I really noticed it a lot after the whole thing with Jason, when he took off. If something happened, it must have been around then."

"Are you going to ask her? Or ask dad?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I don't know. Part of me wants to know, only because I want to know if that's why her behavior changed. I mean, it doesn't excuse her behavior, but like you said, it would explain a lot. Then, another part of me doesn't want to know at all. It's their marriage, their business. I don't want to go there. If it happened, they obviously don't want us to know."

Jane was quiet, thinking about what Elizabeth said. "I guess you're right."

Elizabeth stared at her sister. "You want to know, don't you?"

Jane nodded slowly. "I do, yeah. I don't know why, but I do."

"If you ever find out, don't tell me."

"But don't you want to know if that's what made mum how she is now? Maybe that's why, in the last few years, she's been pushing us to find some rich guys to marry. Maybe she wishes she did that."

Elizabeth shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you." Suddenly, she giggled a little, lightening the moment. "The funny thing is, my guy _is_ rich."

"Lizzy!"

"Well he is! And you're not exactly in the poorhouse either, Mrs. Bingley," Elizabeth said, laughing harder. "Not that I care one bit about Will's money, believe me." She stopped laughing, but her smile remained in place. "I'd love him if he didn't have a penny to his name."

* * *

><p>Charles rode with Will back to New Seabury, while Matt drove ahead of them in his SUV. During the drive, Will talked to Charles about the house on the Vineyard.<p>

"Wow, this is huge," Charles said, obviously surprised at Will's plan. "Lizzy has no idea?"

"No. I wanted to keep it a surprise, but now I'm not so sure I should. I won't say anything yet, at least not until it's one-hundred percent mine, but then I might have to tell her. I'd like to do some work on it, maybe make it a little more energy efficient...but I think I'd want her input on that. And who knows, maybe she won't want to make big changes like that, maybe she'll want it just the way it used to be. I mean, some things will have to be updated, I'm sure, but as for the rest...I think I want her to make all of those decisions. I want it to be the way _she_ wants."

"So when will you know for sure if your offer is accepted?"

"Monday. I offered what the seller was asking, flat out."

Charles' eyes widened as he turned to look at Will. "You didn't even try to talk him down?"

Will shook his head and shrugged simultaneously. "No, I didn't. The agent told me the seller would entertain lower offers, but really, I just want the house. Honestly, Charles, it's a drop in the bucket for me. Even with all the money I'll put into it, it's not going to make a dent."

Charles sighed. "True. Rich bastard."

Will chuckled. "Anyway, I'll want you to look over the paperwork when it comes time, if you don't mind. Maybe you and I can take a day trip to the Vineyard."

"Sounds good."

"One thing – you absolutely _cannot_ tell your wife."

Charles laughed. "Do you think you actually have to tell me that?"

Will laughed with him. "No, I suppose I don't."

Charles cleared his throat. "Can I ask about all that stuff with Collins? I have a feeling you made it sound less messy than it really was."

Will sighed. "No, I didn't. You and Jane got all the gory details." He paused. "The worst part was seeing how scared Elizabeth was, and realizing I was partly to blame. When I saw her face, saw how scared she was, I let him go, I tried to walk away. Then he said that shit about Georgie, and I freaked out."

"I would have reacted the same way."

"Maybe you would have, who knows? Anyway, I landed a few good punches, and all of a sudden I thought, _'what the hell are you doing?' _ I couldn't believe I put Elizabeth through that, that she was seeing that. I just jumped off of him. I don't want to be that person, the one who resorts to that type of behavior. I don't want her to see me that way."

"Like I said, I would have reacted the same way." Charles said, before sighing in exasperation. "Look, Will, you have to put it in basic terms. You're a man, and you were protecting your woman. No, your _women_. If any man ever came near Jane, or insinuated himself into her life like that, making her anxious or scared...if I was put in the situation that you were in with Collins at that moment, I would have done the same thing, damn the consequences. Especially since he swung at you. Like you said, you tried to walk away...he made the choice not to _let_ you walk away."

"I know, that's pretty much what Lizzy said."

"Then believe her. Don't keep second-guessing your actions, you'll drive yourself crazy. Just let it be."

Will nodded, knowing Charles was right. He couldn't go back and change anything about what happened, so there was no point dwelling on it. Elizabeth had encouraged him to put it behind them, and that's what he needed to do.

Will pulled into the driveway behind Matt. As they were in the middle of unpacking the boxes, Georgiana pulled up, and the heavenly smell of pizza from Wicked wafted from her open car door.

Will watched as Matt immediately stopped what he was doing, placing the box that he was carrying smack dab in the middle of the driveway, so that he could help Georgiana with the pizza boxes. When he took them from her, they kissed for a long moment, and Will had to turn away.

Charles looked at Will, glanced quickly at Georgiana and Matt, and then looked back at Will again, this time quietly laughing. "Those two are still hot and heavy, huh?"

Will looked at him, his brows furrowed. "They're dating, Charles. Dating. Boyfriend and girlfriend. _Not _hot and heavy."

Will grumbled that last part, and Charles had to chew on his bottom lip to stop himself from laughing at the discomfort clearly showing in Will's expression. "Well, they're a cute couple, aren't they?" he said, slapping Will on the back.

"Yeah, they're just adorable," Will grumbled again. "Pick up a box and quit yapping."

Jane and Elizabeth showed up about forty-five minutes later, and all six sat down to pizza on the deck. After lunch, the rest of the afternoon was spent unpacking boxes. Elizabeth had a lot of photographs that were framed that needed to be hung, so after deciding where everything would go, the men took charge of hanging everything up, under Georgiana's supervision. Will requested that a lot of the pictures be hung in his office, and he took it upon himself to put all of Elizabeth's books in there as well, mixing them in with his. It didn't take long before the shelves were full.

Jane helped Elizabeth unpack the few things she brought from her kitchen, and then went to help her hang up and put away clothing, which didn't take too long.

Jane whistled when she walked into the closet of the master bedroom. "Ohhhh. I have closet envy. For Pete's sake, Lizzy, you could house a small family in here."

Elizabeth smiled. "It is pretty big, isn't it? At least we won't be battling over space."

"Yeah, that's not gonna happen."

"You know, almost everything is done here. Why don't you and Charles go ahead back to your place? You've helped enough today."

"Are you trying to get rid of us?"

"No," Elizabeth chuckled, "but don't you have some, I don't know, honeymooning to do?"

Jane raised her eyebrows. "We did a _lot_ of honeymooning on our honeymoon. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. We wanted to help you today, really."

"Well, I appreciate it."

Elizabeth gave Jane a hug, and after all of her clothes and toiletries were neatly put away, they headed back downstairs, only to find the living room, kitchen, and deck empty. They finally heard muffled voices, and eventually realized that everyone was in the basement. Jane and Elizabeth went down to join them.

Will was talking to Charles, pointing to one corner, discussing something about walls and studs and drywall and other things that Elizabeth didn't understand, while Georgiana and Matt whispered with each other, not even really aware of anyone else. Will turned to look at the women as they came down.

"What are you doing down here?" Elizabeth asked, looking around the basement. She had never ventured down there before. It was finished, and was very nicely done. Will had a full range of gym equipment, including a treadmill and an elliptical machine. _Those will do nicely on cold winter days_, she thought. She also noticed the well-used heavy bag hanging in the corner.

"Planning your darkroom," Will answered, smiling slightly.

"Planning my – my darkroom?" She was sure that the surprise she felt was very evident in her expression.

Charles excused himself and walked over to where Jane was now talking to Matt and Georgiana.

"Yes, your darkroom," he said, speaking quietly and now feeling uncertain. He moved to stand in front of her and lowered his voice even further. "You do want one, don't you? I just assumed that you would, and though I'd rather have it upstairs, the basement makes the most sense, since this part of it is windowless anyway."

"No, no, the basement is fine, it's – it's fine." She smiled up at him, and reached up to encircle his shoulders with her arms. "You really surprise me sometimes."

"Why? You didn't think I would think of this?" He looped his arms loosely around her waist.

"_I_ hadn't even thought of it, so no, I guess I didn't." She stared up into his eyes, and felt a swell of emotion surge through her, making her eyes tear up. "Thank you."

"We're going up," Jane interrupted them as she, Charles, Georgiana and Matt moved to the stairs.

"Okay, we'll be up in a minute," Elizabeth replied. "Help yourselves to something cold to drink if you want, there's plenty of stuff in the refrigerator."

"I thought we'd build something in this corner here," Will continued after everyone went up. "It would be easy enough to wall it off and put in a doorway, we would just need to figure out how big you'd want it to be. We could have it plumbed, so you could have running water if you needed it. It's a dry basement, it's all temperature controlled, so there's no excess moisture or anything." He paused for a moment, and she could see the wheels turning. A grin lit his face. "Once it's painted, we could put up cork on the walls, framed in, so that you'd be able to put all your pictures up. You could have your collage back."

She couldn't mask the surprise on her face. "How long have you been thinking about this, exactly?"

He shrugged. "All day. I've been thinking of _you_ all day, and what I could do to make this place more of a home for you. I thought that giving you a darkroom would be a good place to start."

She didn't know what to say, so she kept it simple. "You are the sweetest, most thoughtful man, and I love you very much. Thank you."

Will smiled down at her, then lowered his head to kiss her softly, letting his lips glide over and play with hers, teasing them open. She looked adorable, in cut-off jean shorts that made her legs look impossibly long, and one of his old t-shirts, which she had knotted at the hip so it wouldn't hang to her thighs. Her hair was up in what was now a loose and messy ponytail, and she was currently barefoot. Add to that the sparkle in her eyes, and she was totally irresistible to him. He had been quietly lusting after her all day, and though it was partly because he seemed to _always_ be lusting after her, he also knew it was due to the excitement of her moving in.

Elizabeth moved her arms from his shoulders to wind tightly around his neck, and she pressed her body against his, deepening the kiss. His hands held her tightly to him, gripping her hips, and he kissed her with abandon, drinking in the taste of her mouth. Eventually, they slowly broke apart, but he couldn't resist going back to toy with her lips a little more, nibbling them and teasing them with his tongue before finally kissing her again.

"I wish we were alone," he whispered against her neck before trailing kisses up the smooth skin, back to her mouth. He moved his hands under the t-shirt to lightly stroke the skin of her stomach.

"Mmmm," Elizabeth murmured against his lips, shivering at the feel of his hands on her skin. She tugged at his lip gently with her teeth, and he groaned quietly in response, pushing both hands up further under her shirt, then under her bra. His hands molded to the shape of her breasts, thumbs skimming the tight peaks over and over again, causing her breath to catch.

Will lifted his head to watch her, loving the way she responded to his touch. Her cheeks were flushed, and her lips were plump and red from being kissed. She pressed her hips to his, and he moved one hand out from under her shirt to reach around and cup her bottom, pressing her up closer to him, grinding against her a little, just enough so that she could feel how she was affecting him.

Elizabeth slowly opened her eyes, knowing that when she did, he would be staring down at her, watching her. She was right, and when she looked up at him and saw the love and the heat in his beautiful brown eyes, all for her, she felt desire coil tighter in her stomach.

Will saw everything she was feeling, and had to restrain himself from touching her more. He was tempted, though...one flick of the wrist, and her shorts would be unbuttoned, and he could slide his hand down between her thighs to stroke her flesh, flesh that he knew would be warm and welcoming, waiting for his touch. Just the thought of it made more blood rush to his groin, and he felt himself grow harder. It was amazing, he thought, that she hadn't even really touched him, and yet she had him raring to go.

Elizabeth knew they needed to calm a bit before they faced their guests again, so she slowly took a step back, wobbling a bit when she did. He moved his other hand out from under her shirt, and without thinking about what he was doing, he lifted her shirt completely, raising it up over her breasts, and bent to place one long kiss on each nipple, before lowering her bra and then tugging the t-shirt back down.

Elizabeth let out a long exhalation of breath, and pulled at the sides of her bra, trying to adjust it. She squirmed slightly, physically fighting the desire to push him up against the wall and have her way with him.

He looked at her bemusedly. "You okay?"

She raised one brow before dropping her eyes to the bulge in the front of his shorts. "I'm about as okay as you are right now."

His eyes dropped to her chest, and he smirked a little. "I can see that."

"_I_ can use the excuse of the basement being chilly," she teased. "What's your excuse?"

"A hot girlfriend," he muttered before pulling her close again to kiss her. "And I hate to break it to you, love, but this basement is pretty damn warm."

"I know, right now it feels about a hundred degrees."

He chuckled against the side of her head, still holding her close. "Give me a minute, I'll be fit to be seen in public again."

She snuggled into his shoulder as they hugged. "How's the leg?"

"It's fine," he shrugged. "A little sore, but alright."

She reached down to trail a hand up his injured thigh, rubbing it lightly, encouraging another soft groan, which made her smile. "Don't overdo it."

"I won't." He pulled back and winked at her before giving her another kiss. "Not until tonight."

* * *

><p>Instead of going out for dinner, they decided to have an impromptu cookout. Elizabeth didn't want Will on his feet much more, so she decided to cook. She, Jane, and Georgiana made a quick trip to the grocery store for some essentials, including wine, and were back within a short time.<p>

Something about that small act, cooking for Will and the others, made everything become very real. It was such a little thing, really, but it struck her, then, that this was really her home now; this was the home she would make with Will. _Forever_. She loved everything about it; not just the house itself, though it was beautiful, inside and out. It was so much more than that; it was warmth, and love, and joy, and comfort, all rolled up in one. Simply put, it was Will.

As much as she loved the summer, she couldn't wait for the fall and winter, couldn't wait to snuggle up on the couch with him, in front of the fire, or under the blankets on his – _their_ – big bed, watching the snow fall outside the French doors, watching the passing of winter into spring. Standing at the grill, she became lost in her thoughts until Georgiana came up behind her.

"You're staring at the swordfish as if you expect it to get up and walk away."

Elizabeth shook her head slightly, then grinned and felt herself blush. "Sorry, just daydreaming." She took a sip of her wine, and gazed out toward the water.

"You seem a little preoccupied, are you okay?"

She nodded her head, then turned each piece of fish carefully. "I'm fine, I'm just – I'm just trying to soak all this in." She turned to look at Georgiana. "You're brother makes me so happy, Georgie. I just feel very lucky, very fortunate.

"He's lucky too, you know."

"Oh, I know, we're both lucky. I love him, and I love who I am _with_ him. We've been through a lot, but we came out on the other side. If I could go back and change anything...I don't think I would, not if it changed the end result. Not if it changed this."

Georgiana smiled at Elizabeth. "I'm glad you're so happy."

"Oh, it's so much more than that. Happiness doesn't seem to be a big enough word." She looked slightly embarrassed when she looked at Georgiana. "Sorry, I'm actually gushing I think."

"Don't be sorry! I love it. I love that you're both so – well, _happy_. If it wasn't for that bum leg of his, I think he would probably be twirling you around the deck."

Elizabeth looked at Will, watching him as he was engrossed in a conversation about who knows what with Jane. They were laughing, and she felt a warmth inside, knowing that he and Jane were finally getting back to being friends. He glanced up at her then, giving her a soft smile before turning back to Jane to carry on with their conversation. Every once in a while, though, his eyes would wander back in her direction.

"It's happiness, true happiness, but it's so much more than that," Elizabeth said. "I feel as if my life is starting now, like everything else has been a prelude to this. I don't know how else to explain it."

Georgiana smiled at her. "I think you explained it very well. And I think I know a little bit of how you're feeling."

"I'm sure you do." Elizabeth glanced over to Matt, who was standing with Charles at the other end of the deck. She noticed that he looked over at Georgie quite a bit. "He can't quite keep his eyes off of you. He's trying to be polite and listen to Charles, but it's killing him."

Georgiana laughed self-consciously as she gazed at Matt. "Lord, he's handsome, isn't he?" She blushed a little. "Sorry. Sometimes it's hard for me to keep my eyes off of him too! And my hands." The color of her skin turned an even brighter pink.

"You know, if you want to excuse yourselves before dinner..." Elizabeth said with mock seriousness, eyebrows raised, letting her voice trail off.

Georgiana playfully slapped her shoulder. "I think we can control ourselves a bit longer."

They all sat out on the deck to eat a late dinner, enjoying the sunset and the meal that Elizabeth had prepared. Everything was delicious, and when everyone was done eating, the men cleared the dishes and made short work of cleaning up. Soon enough, a chill came into the air, and everyone headed inside. Not too long after, Georgiana and Matt said goodnight and headed to her house.

Jane and Elizabeth made plans for the next day, as Jane had called Lydia already to set up a time for them to get together. They decided to meet for lunch at the pub in the Commons at 1pm, which allowed for Jane and Charles to still get a fairly early start back to Boston.

"I can't believe I have to go back to work in two days," Jane moaned, frowning comically.

Charles and Jane lingered a bit longer, but by nine o'clock, they were heading home too. The minute they were out the door, Will turned to Elizabeth and wrapped her up in his arms.

"I thought those people would never leave."

Elizabeth laughed into his shoulder. "_Those_ _people_? You mean, the ones that just gave up their Saturday to help me move?"

"Yup, those people." He chuckled at the look on Elizabeth's face. "Hey, we fed them, didn't we? Plied them with wine? _Good_ wine too, not that cheap shit. I was ready to toss them all two hours ago. Hell, I was ready to toss them the minute all of your boxes were in the house."

Elizabeth leaned in toward his throat and traced a path up to his ear with her lips and tongue, catching him by surprise and making him groan. His hands caressed up and down her back lightly, occasionally reaching lower to stroke across her bottom.

"And what would you have done with all of your free time today if they weren't around?" she asked softly, a flirtatious lilt to her voice. "I can't imagine what you could have done to keep yourself – and me – occupied."

He smiled down at her with _that_ _look, _and she grinned back as he took her hand to lead her upstairs. "I'm sure I would have thought of something."

The hallway from the top of the stairs to the door of the master bedroom wasn't a tremendously long one, but it took quite a while for Will and Elizabeth to go from one end to the other. Their lips stayed locked together as they moved, Elizabeth slowly walking backwards, until Will finally lifted her and wrapped her legs around his waist so he could move at a quicker pace. When they entered the bedroom he stopped just inside the door, and let her slide slowly down his body until her feet were on the floor.

Elizabeth was about to turn and lead him toward the bed, but he stopped her, gently bringing her back up against his body to kiss her again, slowly and sensuously, letting the kiss go on and on until both of them were breathless. Eventually, he propelled her backwards to the bed, stopping when they were next to it.

He smiled down at her once again. "I've been waiting for this, looking forward to this, all day," he said quietly, his voice hoarse. He reached up to cup her cheek, and ran his thumb across her bottom lip before leaning in to kiss her again, bringing his other hand up to hold her face as well.

Waves of pleasure and contentment washed over Elizabeth as they kissed. She had the fleeting thought that she was happier than she'd ever been, before the feel of Will's lips and tongue completely pushed all lucid thoughts from her mind.

She felt his hands leave her face and move to the bottom of her t-shirt, slowly lifting it up and over her head, and then he turned her around to unhook her bra, letting it drop down her arms to the floor. She was vaguely aware that he had removed his shirt then as well, adding it to the growing pile of clothes at their feet. Her eyes drooped shut as she felt his hands lightly trace up the length of her spine, then back down to the curve of her bottom. He was standing so close to her, she could feel the heat emanating off of his chest, against her back. His hands skirted back up to her shoulders, then down her arms, to her hands, and he slowly entwined his fingers with hers and gently pulled her back against him. His breath was hot on her ear as he spoke.

"I have an idea," he whispered, nibbling on her ear lobe before trailing kisses down her neck to her shoulder. "How about a nice, hot shower? How does that sound?"

Elizabeth smiled, her eyes still closed. "Mmm, that sounds wonderful," she said on a sigh. He released her hands, then brought his around to her front, unbuttoning her shorts and letting them drop to the floor. She turned in his arms, pressing her breasts up against his chest before reaching down to unfasten his shorts, sliding them down over his growing erection. They dropped to the floor and he stepped out of them, kicking them off to the side.

She stepped back for a moment to blatantly gaze at his body. His muscles were defined, but he wasn't overly cut and lean, and _damn_ if he didn't look unbelievable in those boxer briefs, especially as turned on as he was. Her eyes finally traveled up to his face, albeit quite slowly, and she grinned at the smug look she saw there.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked, pulling her back to him again.

"Mmhmm. I love looking at you," she said, reaching down to stroke him over the material of his briefs. Her hand slid under the waistband, lightly grasping him, caressing him up and down, reveling in the heat coming off of his skin. "I love touching you. You're so warm..." her voice trailed off as he leaned to kiss her again, his body responding to the touch of her hands.

He moaned softly into her mouth as he grasped her hips and gently pushed her away, forcing her to relinquish her hold on his body. "Shower. Now."

Elizabeth grabbed the two candles and the book of matches that were still perched on the nightstands, and walked into the bathroom ahead of Will. She lit the candles and placed them on the vanity while Will started the shower. It was a large marble space, surrounded by frosted glass, with jets shooting from several different angles on the walls. Elizabeth _loved_ this shower. She peeled off her panties and stood behind him, hooking her thumbs into the elastic of his briefs to tug them down. "Can I confess something to you?" she asked, as she worked his briefs lower.

He turned to look over his shoulder at her while he adjusted the sprays and the temperature, an amused look on his face. "Uh oh, this sounds dangerous. Confessions already?"

Elizabeth stood straight again and wrapped her arms around him from behind, once again grasping the length of him in her hands, making him exhale a shaky breath. She planted a quick kiss on his back. "I moved in for your shower."

Before she could react, Will tugged her in with him, holding her under the jets, letting her get soaked as she squealed and laughed. Finally he let her go, and she reached up to pull the tie out of her hair that was holding her ponytail up, and wiped the water from her eyes. "Okay, that isn't the _only_ reason I moved in."

"Mmm, I didn't think so," Will replied. He reached up to run his hands through her hair under the spray, getting it thoroughly wet, before turning to the dispenser attached to the wall to fill his hand with shampoo. He began to slowly wash her hair, and he smiled as her eyes drifted shut. His fingers worked through her long tresses, from her head all the way to where they ended, laying almost to the middle of her back. It was quiet, with only the sound of the running water and Will's movements breaking the silence.

"We should do this all the time," he said hoarsely. "We could conserve water."

"That only works if the showers are short," she replied. "Ours never are."

"Why do you suppose that is?" he asked, slowly leaning her back under the spray to rinse the shampoo. He was transfixed by the sight of the suds sliding out of her hair and down over her shoulders, twin trails of soap that came to a stop at the tip of each of her breasts. His hands moved from her hair to lightly trace over each hardened peak with his fingers, playing with the slick moisture of the soap, molding and teasing until he heard her breathing change. He looked up at her face again, and without stopping his hands, leaned in to kiss her, plying her with long, wet, deep kisses.

Elizabeth attempted to speak when he finally raised his lips from hers. "I think it's – it's because we get – we get distracted in here. We have-" she gasped as she felt his lips close over one sensitized nipple. "We have the best intentions, but-" His lips slowly rose from her chest, up her neck and over her jaw, until they were hovering over her lips.

"Lizzy," he whispered, moving them both so they were under the warm spray a little more.

"Hmm?"

"Stop talking."

His mouth descended on hers again, and he kissed her thoroughly before grabbing the soap and lathering up his hands, letting them wash over her body in long, languid strokes, spending extra time at her breasts and between her legs. The steam from the hot water was like a fog, wrapping them up in warmth, making the air feel sultry and thick.

Elizabeth took some shampoo and washed his hair as well, laughing when she had to stand on her tip toes to make sure it was rinsed out completely. She took the bar of soap when she was done with his hair and lathered her hands as well, letting them trace over the firm lines of his chest, playing with the soft hair there, before going up and over his shoulders and down his arms, then back up again, retracing her path. They coasted around to his back and down to the slight dip that was just above the curve of his bottom, before coming around to the front to grip his arousal again. Her hand, slippery with soap, moved in a slow up and down motion, and she sighed as she felt his lips travel down her neck again, then across her collarbone to her shoulder, before traveling further down to her breast.

Very gently, Will eased Elizabeth's hand from his body, feeling that if she touched him that way much longer, he wouldn't be able to maintain control. She moved her hands to his shoulders, then reached to run them through his wet hair, combing through it, dragging her nails lightly across his scalp, before tugging his head up to hers. They kissed again, over and over, long wet kisses, and as they did, he slowly slid one hand back between her thighs, stroking over her slick, warm flesh.

Elizabeth felt as if she was in a trance as she breathed in the humid air, her body now nothing but a mass of whirling sensation. Will's fingers probed lightly, almost playfully, slowly working at intensifying her arousal. His kisses were enough to consume her, but adding to that the pleasing torture of his hand, and she found that she couldn't catch her breath, could only gasp against his lips as two of his long fingers slid deep inside of her. She broke from his mouth and pressed her face to his chest, closing her lips around one small, flat nipple, gently pulling on it, and felt his chest vibrate when he groaned quietly.

She felt one leg being lifted, until he set her foot to rest on the low ledge that ran around the inner wall of the shower. Will's body pressed completely against hers, her breasts against his chest, their thighs touching, as his fingers stroked her continuously. In one long, sure thrust he entered her, sliding deep. His hands traveled around to grasp her bottom, and he stood there motionless, completely filling her.

Will stared down at Elizabeth, waiting for her to look up at him as he knew she would, especially since he was holding himself completely still inside of her. It was taking every bit of strength he had to remain that way, but he was determined. Finally, she turned those deep green jewels up to him, blinking slowly, and once he caught her gaze, he wouldn't let it go. The current of desire flowing back and forth between them was palpable, but it wasn't just desire, it was so much more than that, and he could see it there, in her eyes, as she looked at him.

He didn't want to rush this, wanted to make it last, and he began a slow, steady rhythm, rocking into her, making them both shiver, despite the heat of the water. Every time he moved into her, he pulled her closer, lowering his mouth to the curve of her neck to lick the droplets of water there. They were both breathing heavily now, and Will prayed that his legs, and hers for that matter, wouldn't give out and send them crashing to the shower floor.

Will felt her nails digging into his shoulders, his back, his arms, as her hands moved over him, never settling in one place for long. As he pushed deeper into her body, he heard the soft words coming from her lips, begging him to touch her again. Leaning to kiss her, he let one hand travel from her bottom around to the front of her body, down to just above where they were joined. He watched himself thrust into her slowly, and then his fingers began seeking the swollen flesh there, stroking her lightly at first, and then increasing the pressure as he felt her breathing grow more rapid.

Elizabeth felt all the sensations moving together now in one big delicious torrent, she couldn't discern one from another, and she gripped Will's shoulders, pulling his face down to hers, holding him there as she felt her climax build forcefully and then erupt, making her feel as though her bones were disintegrating. Her muscles clenched around him, making him moan into her mouth as he kissed her again. She felt him thrust into her a few more times before he held himself buried deep, shuddering as he pulsed inside of her.

They stood that way for a long while, the water cascading over them, until Elizabeth noticed that the temperature was turning noticeably cooler. She snuggled closer into his chest, unwilling to let him slide from her body yet, even though her legs felt like jello and her skin was surely pruning at this point. His lips slid over her wet hair, and she felt his arms wrap around her tighter. When he began to release her, she held him tighter. "Not yet."

His chuckle vibrated against her cheek. "The water's getting cold, love. Wouldn't you rather dry off and get into bed?"

"Can we do that without separating?"

He laughed again. "I don't think so."

He reached around her to shut off the shower, then gathered her close again. She felt his body slowly slide from hers, making her shiver. He opened the door, stepping out first, grabbing a large, fluffy towel to wrap her in. As she stepped out, he pulled it around her body before pulling her close again, holding her tightly against him for a moment before grabbing a towel of his own, fastening it around his waist.

They both finished their preparations for bed, then walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. Will slowly pulled Elizabeth's towel away, using it to dry off her body before sitting her down on the edge of the bed and gently toweling her hair, getting it as dry as possible. As soon as he was finished, he pushed her back on the pillows and pulled the sheets up over her, then dried himself off as well, before walking back into the bathroom to deposit the damp towels and blow out the candles. When he came back into the bedroom, he climbed into bed next to her and immediately pulled her close, laying over her so he could look down into her eyes.

Will thought she would be sleepy, but her eyes were wide open and she was smiling up at him. Her hands reached around to his back, resting there, stroking him lightly. He couldn't pull his eyes away from hers, they were so bright and full of love and happiness, all he could do was smile back at her silently, until the words of a song popped unbidden into his head. Before he knew what he was doing, he found himself softly singing the first few lines to her.

_The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful  
><em>_Stop me and steal my breath  
><em>_Emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky  
><em>_Never revealing their depths...**_

He was going to continue, but saw her eyes fill with tears, so he leaned to place a kiss on each eyelid. "Shh, no tears."

Elizabeth shook her head slightly and reached up to wipe them away, then smiled again at him. "Happy tears." She lifted her head to kiss him, then sighed. "Thank you."

Will sat up suddenly. "Oh, I almost forgot." He leaned over to his nightstand, reaching to open the drawer, and pulled out a small, flat white box, with a tiny green bow on top. Closing the drawer, he settled himself over her again, propping himself up on his elbows. "This is for you."

She smiled at him softly. "Will, I don't need presents."

"You need this one. It's nothing big, I promise. Open it up."

Elizabeth took the box from his hand and lifted the lid, smiling widely when she saw what was inside. "It's a key." She looked back up at him. "Is this my house key?"

"Yes. You need one, right?"

She nodded and lifted it from the box, just then noticing the small key chain it was on, shaped like a heart. "You are such a sap."

He shrugged. "You bring it out of me, what can I say."

She raised her lips once again to his, kissing him softly, reaching up to press her hand to his cheek. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

She placed the box with the key on her nightstand, and turned back to him, still smiling. After a moment, she began to nibble her bottom lip, and he knew she was pondering something, so he waited patiently. When she spoke, her voice was soft. "Did that feel...I don't know, different? In the shower, I mean."

Will smiled at her, knowing what she meant. "Yes."

"Why?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, but it did."

"It was intense."

"Extraordinary."

Elizabeth's smile grew. "Intensely extraordinary. Or extraordinarily intense."

"How about mind-altering? It's easier to say."

She chuckled up at him, but then grew slightly serious. "Life altering."

He nodded. "Life altering."

They stayed up late, talking about the house, mainly because Will kept prodding her, asking her to think about things she wanted to change. He had already given her free rein to do whatever she wanted, but she had insisted, repeatedly, that she loved the house the way it was.

"I just want you to make it yours, too," he'd said. "I want you to put your stamp on this place. I want anyone who walks in to know that this is no longer just my home, but that I share it with someone. That I share it with you."

That deserved a kiss, of course, and after a little time spent indulging, he had started asking her question after question. It seemed he had a million of them stored in his head, and sometimes one question would lead to several others, but then he would surprise her and ask her something totally unrelated to what they had just been talking about. His mind was jumping everywhere.

He looked down at her with mock seriousness. "Should we hire a cleaning service, or should we just clean together?"

She rolled her eyes. "We should do all the cleaning...but I reserve the right to change my answer at any given point in the future."

He laughed. "What day of the week should we do grocery shopping?"

"Does it really have to be the same day every week?"

He shrugged. "Cotton sheets or flannel sheets?"

"Flannel in winter, cotton in summer."

"Can we sleep naked every night?"

"For about twenty-six nights out of each month, yes."

He cleared his throat. "Fair enough. Should we get you a desk so we can share the office?"

She beamed. "Ohhh, yes, I would love that."

"Do you want to get a dog?"

"I like cats."

His eyes widened. "You like _cats?_"

"Yes, I like _cats_. Cats rule, dogs drool."

He smirked and shook his head. "Do you have enough room in the closet?"

"Are you serious?"

The bantering went on for a long while, until finally the silence between questions grew longer. By now, Will had curled onto his side, spooning around Elizabeth, holding her close. He could hear her breathing starting to slow, and knew she was falling asleep. Moving his lips to her ear, he whispered quietly.

"I can't believe you like cats."

Her body shook with quiet laughter, and he joined in, holding her tightly as they both laughed for a moment. He kissed the top of her head. "I love you."

She lifted up and turned her head back toward him, silently asking for and receiving a kiss. "I love you too."

It was quiet again for a few moments.

"Lizzy?" Will whispered.

"Hmm?" she answered, her voice sleepy.

"Welcome home."

* * *

><p>Lunch with Lydia on Sunday turned out to be a pleasant affair, and Elizabeth was pleased to see glimpses of the sister she used to know, the one she loved hanging around with, going to concerts with, and just having fun with. Jane noticed the difference to.<p>

Lydia seemed to be excited about returning to school, and 'having a purpose', as she put it. Now that she had a plan, had some dreams that she wanted to fulfill, she seemed ready to take on the world.

"One major drawback, definitely, is living at home," she stated. "I don't know what I was thinking. Mum is driving me nuts, and dad is never around. Then when he is, they either argue, or they don't talk at all."

Elizabeth and Jane glanced at each other, and Elizabeth wondered if they were thinking the same thing. _Suspicions breed more suspicions_, she thought. Thankfully, Lydia didn't notice.

"All she keeps going on and on about is me trying to find someone while I'm in school. That's the last thing I want to do right now. I mean, if it happens, it happens, but I'm not looking for it. I don't want anything to get in my way."

Elizabeth hadn't yet told Lydia that she'd moved in with Will, and as Lydia went on a little longer about their mother, her thoughts drifted to the beach house. As much as part of her detested the thought of Lydia living there, simply because of everything that happened, the truth of the matter is, it wasn't her house; it belonged to the Bennet family, Lydia included.

"Lyddie?" Elizabeth asked, turning to look at her sister.

"What."

"How would you feel about living at the beach?"

Lydia's eyes opened wide. "At the beach? You mean, with you? At the beach house?" She shook her head. "No, no. I don't think-"

Elizabeth interrupted her. "Not with me, by yourself. I moved out yesterday."

"You moved out?" Lydia repeated, eyes open even wider. Then she smiled. "You moved in with Willy, didn't you? I mean Will. You moved in with him?"

Elizabeth smiled. "I did."

"She's shacking up with him," Jane said. "We helped her move yesterday."

Lydia grinned at Elizabeth. "That's great, Lizzy, I'm happy for you."

"Thanks. Anyway, the house is empty...it's up to mom and dad, really, they have the say on who lives there, but I don't see why they wouldn't let you."

Lydia rolled her eyes. "You don't see? I do. My track record hasn't been great lately..." She paused, and her voice became low as she looked at Elizabeth. "God, Lizzy, I'm so sorry about all that. I can't believe – I can't believe I did that, in your house. I know you probably don't want to talk about it again, I know we talked that day at the Knob, but the more I think about it, the worse I feel."

"Lydia-"

"No, Lizzy, let me finish. I knew that staying at your house was wrong, I _knew_ that, just like I knew that agreeing to let George take those pictures was wrong, but I thought he cared about me, I did, he was so charming and sweet, he was handsome, and he always made me feel like I was special..." she stopped as her voice trailed off. "He was using me. And then when Jane told me what he did, what kind of person he was, I didn't want it to be true. I didn't want to believe her, because it made me feel horrible, I felt dirty...I couldn't deal with it, so I dealt with it the best way I knew how. I denied it."

It was quiet at their table, as Elizabeth and Jane didn't really know what to say. Lydia spoke again, her voice barely a whisper. "I just wanted to tell you again, that's all. I know I really messed things up, not just between us, but between you and Will. I'm so glad you worked things out with him, you seem so happy. You deserve to be happy, Lizzy." She turned to Jane. "And I'm happy for you too, Jane. You and Charles are great together, and I can tell he loves you tons."

"Thanks Lyddie," Jane replied, a small smile on her face.

Lydia sighed. "Thanks for letting me say all that." She turned to Elizabeth. "I meant it, Lizzy. I'm sorry. Can you forgive me?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Of course I can. I want things to go back to the way they were too. I want the three of us to be as close as we used to be." She meant what she said, but despite her words, a part of her was still holding back. She believed that Lydia was sorry, but needed to see her words reflected in her actions as well.

"Me too." Lydia smiled at her two sisters, her relief evident in the expression on her face. "So, do you think mum and dad will really let me move into the beach house?"

"I don't see why not."

Lydia scrunched her nose. "I don't know if I can afford it. What did they charge you?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "Just utilities; cable, electric, that kind of stuff. They didn't make me pay rent. Honestly, Lydia, if you're careful with your money, you should be fine."

Lydia nodded. "You're right. I'm going to ask them as soon as I get home."

Elizabeth smiled. "Great, that means you get to let them know that I moved in with Will. That takes the heat off me! I was just going to call dad to let him know, since I won't be going to visit them anytime soon."

"You know what Lizzy?" Lydia grinned before patting Elizabeth on the hand. "I'll be happy to take the heat for you. It's about time I did."

* * *

><p><em>Well, at least I left you with a little mush to get you through the next two weeks. Please leave a review! Thanks!<em>

_Songs: * "She Got the Honey" by Mat Kearney, ** "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain_


	55. Chapter 55

_You've all been so patient, waiting for a chapter! I thank you for that. Time will start to elapse a bit quicker in the story now...the end is near. Sigh. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it. This is a long chapter, so settle in and get comfy!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 55<strong>

Will stared at Elizabeth, seated across the office from him at her own desk, momentarily engrossed in something she was working on at her laptop. In the eight weeks that they had been living together, this had become their Saturday morning routine; after lounging in bed for as long as possible, they meandered to the kitchen to make coffee, and sometimes a light breakfast, before heading into the office. There, they would both take care of any work that needed to be done, usually within an hour or two, so that the rest of the weekend was left free for spending time together, without distractions.

_Eight weeks._ He couldn't believe it. Looking back on the start of it, he had to smile. For the first week or so, they were inseparable. Wherever he was in the house, that's where she was, and vice versa. It didn't take long, though, before they realized that wouldn't work. They were used to being solitary, after all, at least with their living habits, so after a period of adjustment, they began to settle into a routine, spending time together, but also doing things independently. It seemed to be a good balance for them. Even if they weren't doing something together, Will thought, it was still nice to know that she was somewhere in the house.

That being said, it was the little changes in his life that Will was enjoying the most. He liked the fact that there was now a little clutter on the bathroom counter, and that their robes hung side by side behind the bathroom door; he liked seeing her tiny thongs mixed with his boxers in the laundry. Waking up with her every morning and having a cup of coffee together before Elizabeth scooted out the door to work, greeting her when she came home, having a lazy weekend, cooking – and yes, cleaning – together...even something as mundane as watching television together. It was all so _normal_, that was the thing. Normal, but...not. For the first time in his life, he felt completely at peace with who he was and where his life was going...and there was no doubt who would be walking beside him.

They had managed to get away a couple of times, too, over those eight weeks. The first weekend after Elizabeth moved in was spent in Boston, celebrating Jane's birthday. Charles wanted to take her to Top of the Hub on Saturday night, and had invited Elizabeth and Will to join them. They had made a weekend of it, spending much of that Saturday at the Museum of Fine Arts, then taking in a Red Sox game on Sunday. They had also spent some time with Mrs. Reynolds, paying her a long-overdue visit.

Over the Columbus Day holiday weekend, they had traveled north a bit to New Hampshire, staying in a suite at the beautiful Mt. Washington Hotel, nestled in the White Mountains, for three nights. Will had never been up that way, but Elizabeth knew the area pretty well; her father used to take the three girls camping up in the mountains every summer, until Elizabeth was fifteen or so.

It was the perfect weekend to go, as the leaves were changing from green to the beautiful reds, oranges, and yellows of fall. Crisp mornings were spent lolling in bed, or indulging in the en suite hot tub, and days were spent sight-seeing. Elizabeth had insisted that they take her Jeep on the trip, so that they could spend a day driving up the Auto Road to the summit of Mt. Washington. They also rode the flume at Attitash, took a ride on the Conway Scenic Railroad, and did a bit of hiking. At night, they'd pick a place to have dinner, and after eating they'd usually head to a little hole-in-the-wall bar called Horsefeathers to watch the local musical talent. After that, it was back to the hotel, where they made love until they fell asleep, exhausted and happy.

Will still made his weekly overnight trips to Boston, and even though he didn't really like going, he was always warmed by the thought that she'd be there, waiting at home for him when he got back. He grinned to himself when he remembered his arrival at home after his first trip since she'd moved in. Elizabeth had been, well, _indisposed_ for a few days before he left, and when he arrived home that night, she practically launched herself at him as soon as he was in the door. They'd left a trail of clothing going up the stairs, and never did make it down the hallway to their bedroom...but the guest room at the top of the stairs had served their purpose.

The darkroom was finished, it had really taken no time at all once the carpenter was hired, so Elizabeth spent a lot of time down there. She seemed to be taking more pictures than ever, and always had her camera with her, wherever they went. The inlaid cork walls proved to be a very good idea; already they were covered in pictures. Among the newer ones were pictures of Matt and Georgiana, intermingled with older ones of family and friends.

His mind came back to the present as he stared at Elizabeth. Yes, this was their Saturday morning routine. On this particular Saturday, though, Elizabeth looked up from her laptop and stared back at him, a challenge in her eyes. Slowly, she folded her arms across her chest. Will shook his head. _We've been living together for exactly eight weeks, and this is the third time we've had this argument. _He decided to break the silence.

"I don't know what you want me to do," he said quietly, shrugging. "Do you want me to ask my accountant to start sending the electric bill to the house so you can start paying it? Or the cable bill? Would that make you feel better?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes slightly. "Don't be condescending."

"I'm not being condescending, I swear, I'm just – I'm at a loss." He sighed. "You do contribute, in a lot of ways."

"How?"

"You do a lot around here, you know that you do. Do you want an itemized list or something?" He paused for a second. "You contribute to the overall quality of my life, how's that?"

Her eyes sparked. "Fitzwilliam-"

"Okay, okay, that sounded flip, the way I said it, but it's true, I mean it. You contribute in so many other ways, why can't you let the money thing go? Why should you have to pay anything? You're not a tenant, you're my girlfriend, my partner."

Her eyes and voice softened. "I know that. But the word _partner_ in and of itself implies equality. We're not equals in this."

"Of course we're not equals in this, but _only_ _in this. _My income far surpasses yours, you knew that before you moved in. It would take you a decade or more to make what I make in six months." Will saw her face drop, and immediately felt horrible for what he said. He stood and walked over to her, pulling her out of her chair and leading her to the small leather couch that ran along the bank of windows between their desks. He sat down and pulled her onto his lap.

"I'm not saying that to make you feel bad, or to make light of your job or what you earn, you know that. I know you've worked hard to get where you are, and I'm proud of you for that. I also know that you're paid well for what you do, and that's not an easy thing to accomplish in the scientific community."

She remained silent, so he went on. "We've talked about this, love. There's no mortgage on this property. I never see a bill, they don't come to me. They all go to my accountant, he pays them out of a household account, and he and I talk about once a month to go over my financial picture. I just talked to him last week, and believe me, we're very comfortable.

"_We're_ very comfortable."

"Yes, _we're_ very comfortable. You and me. We."

Elizabeth remained quiet again.

Will sighed. "You still have payments on your Jeep, right?"

She looked up at him, eyes wide. "Yes, but only for a few more months, and then it will be paid off. You are _not_ paying it off for me."

He smiled down at her. "I wouldn't dream of even offering." He leaned in to kiss her lips. "You also pay for all the groceries, since you banned me from going shopping."

That made her grin a little. "We're not having that conversation again. You're unbearable in a grocery store."

"I liked shopping with you. It was like a little adventure."

"Pfft. No, no," she said, shaking her head, "it's not open for debate." She watched the smile on his face broaden, and she smiled back at him. After shopping together one or two times, she outright told him they would not be shopping together again. She worked from a list, an organized list, one that she added to during the week as she realized they needed something, one that followed the different sections of the store.

Not Will. He wandered aimlessly, with no rhyme or reason, and could not understand why they needed a list to begin with. It was amazing, really; he was so organized in his daily life, with business, with _everything_. Yet when he walked into a grocery store, it was like he had walked into an amusement park. What normally would take her thirty minutes to do ended up taking over an hour, thanks to Mr. Impulsive and his _'Let's get this, doesn't this look good? How about these? Ooooh, look at that'_ method of shopping. He liked to browse, and she was all business.

"Okay, that's fine, I'm not encroaching, believe me. But _because_ you do all the shopping, you've been paying for all the food. I offered, you said no, and I accepted that. You've gone out shopping with Georgie and brought home things for me, you've bought a bunch of things for the house, _and_ for the brownstone..." His voice trailed off and he became serious again. "I'm not keeping any kind of scorecard, I'm not keeping track, and neither should you."

Elizabeth looked into his eyes and knew that he was right, she couldn't keep obsessing about it. She was so used to doing everything on her own, though. Paying her own way. It was strange, not to have to do that anymore, to have someone who just did it all for her. She reached up to caress his lips lightly with her fingertips, while she tried to explain.

"It's almost like that little bit of my independence is gone. I did things on my own, didn't need help from anyone, for anything – at least financially – and now, you're just paying my way."

He held her hand and kissed her fingertips. "I would never dream of taking away your independence, that's not what this is. And I'm not paying because you _need_ me to, I'm paying because I can, and it makes more sense for those things to just carry on as they always have. Seriously, do you really think I'm going to have you kick in for the electric bill or something? Think about it, Lizzy." He gazed at her, eyebrows raised.

She rolled her eyes. "Alright, it is kind of silly, but...I don't know, I guess I just have to get used to it."

He wrapped his arms tightly around her and leaned forward to nibble her neck, unable to resist a tease. "You could always pay me with sexual favors. I wouldn't be opposed to that."

She leaned away from him, mouth wide open and eyes twinkling, before reaching to give his nipple a twist through his t-shirt.

"Ouch! I'm kidding, I'm kidding," he laughed, moving his hands to protect his chest. A movement at the opposite end of the couch caught his eye. "Oh, see? Here's another perfect example of one of your _contributions_ to this household. How could we forget about this demonic little fur-ball?"

Elizabeth giggled as the little kitten she had adopted a week ago woke up and came tottering over to them, stretching his body and mewling as he came closer. He climbed up onto Will, then onto Elizabeth, stretching to touch his tiny little nose to hers.

"Fenway* is _not_ a demonic little fur-ball, don't call him that. He's sweet and lovable." Elizabeth stroked over the kitten's fur, scratching him behind the ears and over the scruff of his neck. He settled down across Elizabeth's chest, purring away, pushing his tiny face into her hand. "Listen to how happy he is."

Will smiled. "I'll purr for you too, if you rub me like that."

Elizabeth laughed and turned to plant a kiss on his lips. "Oh, I know how to make you purr," Elizabeth said, kissing him again, "you're easy."

His eyebrows flew up. "I'm _easy_?"

She grinned and nodded. "Totally. And Fenway is growing on you, admit it."

Will grunted, even though she was right. The little monster _was_ pretty cute. He had found himself laughing, more than once, while he watched Fenway chase his tail, or as he tore through the house at top speed, as if some phantom dog was chasing him. Sometimes the bizarre little thing would just flip into the air, as if something had poked him from behind. He was definitely acrobatic. Will even enjoyed taking a break during the day while Elizabeth was at work to play with him, encouraging him to chase a string or even one of his fingers. Sometimes Will just laid on the floor so Fenway could climb on him; the kitten definitely had a thing for Will's hair. Yeah, Elizabeth was right, he was growing on him. He wasn't about to admit it though.

"He's okay," Will said, reaching to scratch the little kitten's head, "for a cat."

Elizabeth gave him a knowing glance. "Mmmhmm."

* * *

><p>Two days later, Will was once again seated at his desk. He smiled as he looked at the calendar. It was November 15th. Not only had they been living together for eight weeks, but also, as of today, he had owned the house on the Vineyard for eight weeks. <em>They<em> owned the house on the Vineyard. Things had progressed rather well, and the sale had gone through without a hitch, which was a huge relief.

The first time Will had actually walked inside of it was the day the purchase and sales was signed; up until then, Ed had been his eyes, and had assured Will that the house was in remarkable condition, considering how many times it had been bought and sold over the course of the past few years. Ed had called a friend who was a contractor, and the man had come to look the place over. The foundation and chimney were both solid, and the basement was dry. As far as he could see, there was no rot or insect infestation anywhere (except for the large, abandoned wasps nest in a vent of the attic). The original woodworking was all intact, including the large built-in china cabinets in the corners of the dining room. The crown molding, the cabinetry and shelving, the wood flooring – everything was sound, just in need of some major TLC.

Once again, Ed had been instrumental in helping to begin the restoration. He knew the people on the island to call who would do _exactly_ what Will wanted, and Ed knew just what that was; he wanted the house from Elizabeth's memories. Will did have the wiring and the plumbing updated, and had originally thought the roof would need to be replaced as well, but was relieved to find out it had been done only two years before. Other than that, it was a matter of getting everything back to the way it used to look. Walls were repaired and repainted, the cabinets and floors were refinished, landscapers were hired to work on the grounds...it was pretty much done. Granted, it was completely devoid of furniture, but Will wanted Elizabeth to pick out what she wanted.

Most of his other ideas revolved around making the place more energy efficient, without making any drastic changes. He had called Stephanie Hanscom, out in California, and she had provided him with a wealth of information, almost too much information. He explained to her that it was a very old home, and he wasn't looking to go completely green, but did want to make it as green as possible without changing its integrity. She understood, and gave him some information on easy, basic changes that could be made without altering the house too severely. Will wanted to tackle these things, he _really_ wanted to get a jump on them, but once again, not without Elizabeth's say, so he'd have to wait. Patiently.

While he was at the house on the day that he passed papers, he had gone out to the room that was attached to the garage, the one that he knew Elizabeth's grandfather used as his carpentry shop. There were still some old tools there, laying on the workbench, coated in dust, and he thought about cleaning them up and displaying them on the beams that stretched overhead, or hanging them somehow on the walls. They were antiques, really, and were in very good shape. Amazingly, the small room still smelled of sawdust. _Another darkroom here, possibly?_ he thought. It would take a lot of work, as the room was lit by a long row of windows, but if she wanted it, he'd do it. Once again, a decision for Elizabeth to make.

The small apartment over the narrow one-car garage was in decent shape, but that was really the last of his concerns. He didn't want to rent it out to anyone, and doubted Elizabeth would want to either. If anything, they would remodel it and use it as extra guest quarters, if needed. The main house had three bedrooms, and if there was ever any reason to, they could use the two in the apartment as well.

Charles had traveled over to the Vineyard with Will on the day that Will signed all the paperwork, and had finally confessed to him on the telephone just this morning that Jane knew about everything.

Will's mouth dropped. "What? Are you kidding? You said you wouldn't tell her."

"I _didn't_ tell her. She found the stub from the boat ticket in my pocket when she was doing laundry. You should have seen me trying to come up with a story for why I was on Martha's Vineyard, of all places."

"If she tells Lizzy-"

"She's not going to tell her, alright? She's thrilled that you've done this, that you've bought the house, she knows how much that place means to Lizzy. She was practically in tears when I finished telling her the whole story of how it all came about. I know she won't tell her anything, don't worry."

"You better be sure, because if she finds out from Jane, and not me-"

"Jane won't say anything, trust me. Trust _her_. She's knows how much of a big deal this is, okay?"

Will sighed. "Okay."

"When are you going to tell her, anyway? You've done most of the work, haven't you? What the hell are you waiting for?"

"Everything is done. Well, everything that I can do without her, anyway." He paused. "I'm actually a little concerned about how she'll react."

"What do you mean?"

"Well...we've been having this ongoing, um, _discussion_ about the household bills, and the fact that she's not having to pay anything toward them. Can you imagine how she'll feel when she finds out I bought her a house?"

Charles laughed. "Ahhh, the independent Bennet sisters. I had that conversation with Jane."

"You did?"

"Yes. I may not make as much as you, but I make enough. Her income doesn't really factor in. Everything we make goes into one account now, so it's all one big happy pile anyway."

Will laughed. "Yeah, well, we're obviously not at the 'joint account' stage yet."

"Not yet, but soon?"

Will paused for a moment, then spoke quietly. "I'd marry her tomorrow, Charles, if she'd have me."

"I think she would."

"I don't know if she would, not this soon. I'm still amazed that she agreed to live with me. When the time is right, I'll know. We'll know."

"You're right, you will. But it's not like you just bought her any old house, you know...I can't possibly see that she'd be unhappy about it. Jane told me how upset Lizzy was when the house was sold out of the family, and how she's always dreamed of somehow getting it back. Why on earth would she be upset?"

Will sighed. "I'm hoping she won't be. I don't think she will be, honestly, but...there's always that little chance."

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure it will be fine. So, back to my original question...when are you going to tell her?"

"Well...I kind of have a plan. I just have to call the Gardners."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth pulled into the driveway of the little beach house, once her place, now Lydia's. She pulled off to the side so she wouldn't block Lydia in, and locked up her Jeep. Her bike was there, where it always was, tucked under the deck, chained up to the house's stilts. She missed riding her bike to work; it was really the only drawback of living so far from Woods Hole. So, when time allowed, she drove here in the morning, left her Jeep, and rode in. At the end of the day she rode back here, locked up her bike, and drove home. She only did it a couple of days a week, but loved having the option. Soon, though, it would be a bit too cold. Today, the sun was shining brightly, so while it wasn't exactly warm, it wasn't freezing either.<p>

Initially, Will had been nervous about her riding, as he was worried that Bill Collins might still be lurking around, but Elizabeth hadn't heard from him again. It seemed he may have left Falmouth for good; Charlotte had seen a picture of his house in the paper, advertised by a local real estate company. She had been sneaky and called the realtor, feigning interest in the property, and when she asked why the owner was selling, she was told that he had 'relocated to another part of the country for work purposes.' When Elizabeth heard that, she felt like jumping up and down and cheering at the top of her lungs. She hadn't been worried about him, not really, but was still relieved to hear that he was really gone for good. When she had told Will, his relief was evident as well, but he tried not to make a big deal out of it.

Elizabeth reflected back on the past couple of months as she rode her bike in to work, happy for the peace and quiet. It gave her time to think. Living with Will was better than she had thought it could be, honestly. They had reached a level of being in tune with each other, and it was amazing. It wasn't always perfect, they'd had their moments. He got grumpy, she got PMS, and they were both fairly stubborn, so they'd had little spats...but not many, and nothing that ever amounted to much or wasn't resolved with an apology and a kiss or two.

She really felt at home there, now; she'd done as he said, and really made it her place as well as his. It definitely showed a feminine touch. She'd softened up the colors in the living room and the bedroom, and had hung some new artwork on the walls. The kitchen looked and felt warmer, since they actually used it now! And there were more pictures on the mantle, though she still kept the ones of his parents there, of course, and the ones of him and Georgie from when they were young. She added current pictures, too, of the two of them, but also of Jane and Charles, and Georgie and Matt.

Everything about their lives had meshed together, and she had absolutely no regrets, no qualms about taking the steps that she did with him. Bringing him back into her life, then moving in with him...she thought about what her life would have been like if she _hadn't_ taken that chance with him, and it made her anxious to even think of it. Her heart was too entwined with his now; there was no going back, ever.

She smiled as she rode, and her mind moved on to other things. Work, Lydia, Jane, her parents; each got a little bit of her thought process as she cruised along at a steady pace.

Work was fine, if not a little dull at the moment. She'd had an intern from Boston University for the month of October, and the same girl would be back again in the spring, which Elizabeth was happy for. She was a bright student, eager to learn, and thrilled to be on the Cape. Elizabeth was looking forward to working with a team from WHOI, on a side project that intersected with the grant, starting around the first of December.

Because of that project, she'd be seeing Megan again on a regular basis, and was happy about that. They'd been in touch by email regularly, and had gone to lunch a few times over the past couple of months. Elizabeth was surprised to learn that Megan still kept in touch with Elliot, the singer from South Carolina, and was even more surprised to hear that he had traveled to the Cape a couple of times to see Megan. After learning that, it didn't surprise her when Megan revealed that she was looking for work down at the Basin; whatever was going on with Elliot, it appeared to be serious.

Things with Lydia had improved steadily. She was happy to move into the beach house, and had wanted to pay Elizabeth for the furniture that was left behind. Elizabeth wouldn't hear of it, though; she was happy it was getting used. The two sisters had eased back into a relationship, and as the days passed, Elizabeth finally began to believe that Lydia's transformation was the real deal. Jane joined them on weekends occasionally, when she and Charles were able to come to the Cape, and the three women went out, usually to dinner, or sometimes shopping or to see a movie. It felt good, rebuilding their bond; it felt as though most of the pieces of Elizabeth's life were lining up, falling into place.

_Most_ of them.

She had begun to realize that as far as her parents were concerned, things just wouldn't ever be perfect. Not even close, actually. She had spoken to her father finally, at length. They had met on a Sunday afternoon at the library, taking a nice long walk around the grounds while they talked. He had given another perfunctory apology to her for his indifference to the treatment she had received from her mother, and she had accepted his apology in the same manner. They had briefly discussed her decision to move in with Will, and when he asked if she was happy, her answer was both short and honest: _'I've never been happier in my life than I am now.' _His face had softened, and for a moment she thought he was going to cry, but then as quickly as the emotion was there, it was gone.

It was as if the conversation at Charles' and Jane's house before their wedding hadn't even taken place. She had already decided that her parents had said what they needed to say in order to ensure their invitation to the wedding, and then it was all just forgotten. One thing that kept going through her mind as she walked with him was the same question, repeating itself over and over: _Did you have an affair? Are you having one now?_ Part of her wanted to know, in the worst way, but another part of her shied away from that knowledge. _Not my marriage, not my business._

In the end, she decided that a relationship with her parents was possible only if they maintained some distance. Despite her father's words, he never stayed around much when she went to visit them, which was rarely (only once since she had moved in with Will), and which proved to her that he wasn't really too concerned about what transpired between his wife and his daughter after all.

It went to follow that her mother wasn't going to change either; she was who she was, and that was that. Elizabeth had come to the conclusion that her mother was probably genuinely sorry for hurting her, but at the same time, didn't really see exactly what it was that had caused the hurt; she couldn't see her own actions for what they were, and the damage they had caused.

Accepting these things about her parents made her relationship with them much easier; her expectations were nonexistent, so there was no possibility of disappointment.

* * *

><p>A few nights later, Will and Elizabeth lay in bed, talking as they always did about whatever came to mind before they drifted off to sleep.<p>

"Thanksgiving is next week," Elizabeth said softly, gazing up at Will from her vantage point on his chest. She smiled as she watched Fenway sneak across the top of the pillows toward Will. He slowly lowered his body, focusing all of his attention on his unwitting target, then _whoomph!_ He pounced on Will's head.

"Ow! Fenway!" The kitten scampered off the bed and ran full tilt into the sitting room off of the bedroom. "Will you please warn me when he's about to do that?"

Elizabeth laughed. "No way. It's too much fun to watch him attack you. He really has something against your hair."

Will shook his head. "No kidding. Demented beast."

Elizabeth laughed again and reached up to kiss his lips, before raising herself even higher to place a kiss on his head. "Is that better?"

Will quickly grabbed her waist and pulled her over his body, laying her completely on top of him. "_Now_ it's better." They kissed for a long moment, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly to him. "Now what were you saying?"

She slid down a little on his body so she could comfortably rest her head on his shoulder. "I was saying that Thanksgiving is next week. Can you believe it?"

"It came up fast." Will swallowed nervously, and waited to see if she would say anything else about the holiday. He didn't have to wait long.

"Aunt Vee called today, she wants us to come over on Wednesday for the long weekend. Jane and Charles too, if they want. They want us all to stay at the inn and have Thanksgiving dinner with them. They don't have any other guests booked, and it's the last weekend they're officially open anyway. My aunt wants to cook right there, since the kitchen is huge, and they have that big dining room table."

"That sounds great," he answered, trying to sound surprised. He'd known all along, of course, that the invitation was coming; it was part of the plan.

She lifted her head to look at him. "I'd love to go, but I wasn't sure about Georgie. I know my aunt and uncle would love to have her; should we ask if she and Matt want to go?"

Will shook his head. "She already told me that she's been invited to have dinner with Matt's family. She'll be up in Boston for the day."

"Oh. Oh, that's good then. So are you okay with going to the Vineyard?"

"Of course I am, why wouldn't I be? You know I enjoy spending time with your aunt and uncle."

"They mentioned inviting Lydia, but I know she won't go. She meets up with all of her old high school friends the night before Thanksgiving, and then the night after they all go to Grumpy's Pub for a reunion of sorts. It's the only time she gets to see a lot of them all year. I think she'll be eating dinner with my mum and dad."

"Well, I think it will be fine if it's just the six of us, don't you?"

Elizabeth nodded against his chest and smiled at him. "I do, I think it will be nice. It's too bad my cousins don't make more of an effort to come home, I can't remember the last time they were here for a holiday."

"Yeah, it's too bad...I'm sure Vee and Ed miss them."

"Do you think Georgie would come over to take care of Fenway?"

"I think so." He grinned against her hair. "I don't think she'd mind at all. As a matter of fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up with a cat in the near future."

She smiled. "She could name it Gillette."* This made them both chuckle.

Elizabeth lifted her head and raised herself up, so that she was looking down directly into his eyes. "This is our first major holiday together."

He chuckled as he looked up at her. "_Major_ holiday? The other ones don't count?"

"They do, but they don't. Maybe July 4th, but Labor Day? Halloween? Columbus Day? Well, we can count Columbus Day, because we had a nice weekend away. No, this is the first _big_ one."

"How should we celebrate? Other than gorging on turkey and falling into a post-meal coma, that is."

"I just want us to enjoy the day, enjoy the weekend, that's all. It's not really a gift holiday. It's a holiday where you count your blessings, and think about what you're thankful for."

"So I can't get you a gift?" _How about a house?_

"No, I don't need a gift. I have you, that's all I need."

Will smiled lightly, staring up into her bright green eyes, barely visible in the dim light of the room. "You're all I need too, love. Always."

* * *

><p>The day before Thanksgiving found Jane, Charles, Elizabeth, and Will headed over to Martha's Vineyard, this time via a ferry from the Steamship Authority, as the Island Queen only ran in the summer. They took a late afternoon boat, as no one could get the entire day off. Elizabeth had been the only one stuck working a full day, while Jane and Charles were lucky enough to only work half the day.<p>

Will had left Jane and Charles at the Steamship ticket office, and had walked to Elizabeth's building to meet her at four. Elizabeth heard him talking to Mary, and she peeked around the corner to observe them. Will knew that Mary adored him, so he went out of his way to be sweet to her. He was standing in front of her desk, flashing that megawatt smile, dimples and all, and Elizabeth giggled when she saw how flushed Mary was. Of course, she couldn't blame her. Elizabeth loved the way Will looked in shorts and a t-shirt, but the man could wear a pair of faded blue jeans like nobody's business. And today, he had worn the nice black v-neck sweater that she loved, with a pristine white t-shirt underneath. She suddenly felt _herself_ flushing, and shook her head before clearing her throat to announce her appearance in the doorway. Will turned that smile on her, his eyes twinkling, and she just about melted.

"Oh, there you are Lizzy. Your escort to the boat is here," Mary said, grinning as she glanced back to Will. "Have a lovely holiday you two. Lizzy, I'll see you back here on Monday. Enjoy your weekend."

"You too Mary, happy Thanksgiving. See you Monday."

Will smiled at Mary and winked. "Happy Thanksgiving, Mary."

"Ohhh, you too Mr. Darcy. Bye now."

When they finally made it outside, Elizabeth latched onto Will's hand and squeezed it. "You're a flirt."

Will shrugged, grinning. "She's sweet. Almost motherly. She blushes at the drop of a hat."

"She blushes at the drop of _your_ hat," Elizabeth said, chuckling. "She has a little crush on you, I think."

"Well, the next time you need a day off, let me know, and I'll work on her."

Elizabeth laughed again. "Gee, thanks."

They made the short walk back to the Steamship dock, purchased their tickets, and the four of them boarded the ship and grabbed a table in the snack bar area. Will had brought along the bag that Elizabeth had packed, and she noticed he had brought a guitar as well, which surprised her, but made her smile.

"I'm having a beer," Will said nonchalantly. "They serve Offshore Ale, which is actually pretty good. Anyone want to join me?"

Everyone agreed, and the two men rose to get the beers. Before drinking, the four of them toasted to a smooth sail and a relaxing weekend. The forty minute trip flew by, and before they knew it, they were docking in Vineyard Haven. There were plenty of taxis waiting at the slip, and Will grabbed one, a van that would have plenty of room for all of them and their baggage. Within minutes, they were headed to Edgartown, straight to the Gardner's inn.

"I'm so excited, I haven't been over here in so long," Jane said, peering out the window into the waning sunlight. "We'll have to take a ride over the weekend, do some sight-seeing. Maybe we should rent a car."

"Aunt Vee will lend us hers, I'm sure," Elizabeth said. "We'll figure it out."

They arrived at the inn and were greeted with warm hugs from Ed and Vee. They had a light dinner, and spent the rest of the evening talking about different things, and reminiscing about times spent on the Vineyard. Will noticed Elizabeth sink into a bit of melancholy, and knew she was more than likely thinking about the house and her grandparents. He felt an excited but nervous flutter in the pit of his stomach, and forced himself to squelch it. _Tomorrow. One more day._

* * *

><p>Thanksgiving morning dawned crisp and sunny, a beautiful fall day in New England, especially here on the Vineyard. Elizabeth woke early and climbed from bed to don a pair of flannel pajamas that she had packed. As she was getting dressed, Will woke as well.<p>

"Why are you getting up?" He blinked his eyes a few times. "And what the hell are those?"

Elizabeth laughed as she crawled over the bed to lay on top of him. "I'm getting up to help my aunt, because knowing her, she's up cooking already. And _these_ are my favorite warm pajamas. I never wear them at home because sleeping with you is like sleeping with a furnace."

Will brought his hands out from under the blankets and began to unbutton her top. "I don't smell anything cooking, so I think you should come back to bed."

Elizabeth laughed again and slapped at his hands. "Uh uh."

He frowned. "Can I at least have a Thanksgiving kiss?"

She jumped up. "Oh, hold on." She padded over to the dresser where they had stored their clothes, and came back with a card. Holding it out to him, she smiled and leaned in to kiss him sweetly, cupping his cheek with one hand. "Happy Thanksgiving."

Will smiled as he took the envelope, but before he opened it, he rose out of bed and walked to the dresser himself. Elizabeth turned to watch him, openly admiring his naked form as he strode across the room. He grabbed an envelope and trotted quickly back to the bed and dove under the covers again. "Shit, it's cold." He tugged on her hand. "Come back to bed and help me get warm."

She shook her head, smiling. "I can't. Jane's probably up already, we both want to help Aunt Vee."

"Alright, alright, I know. I'll get up too."

Before he did, they opened their cards, each smiling as they read the verses inside. They laughed at how corny they were, and wished each other a Happy Thanksgiving, spending a few moments kissing and whispering words of love to each other.

The day seemed to fly by, and as it did, Will was feeling more and more anxious. They ate an early afternoon dinner, which Will knew Vee had arranged in order to help him carry out his plans for later in the day. Everything was delicious, and everyone helped to prepare something. At one point, Will managed to pull Vee aside to ask about some details.

"Everything is all set," she said, rubbing her hands together excitedly. "I think you'll have everything you need for the night. You just need to get your things out to the car. I already put a bag out there with some goodies in it for the two of you, and Ed has an old neighborhood friend of ours going in to get the fire started in a little while."

"Are you sure you don't mind me stealing off with Elizabeth for the night?"

Vee looked at him incredulously. "Of course not, William! Ed and I are just as excited about this as you are. Well, maybe not _just_ as excited, but we're so happy. Lizzy's going to be thrilled. You enjoy your night there, and don't feel like you have to rush back in the morning. We have all weekend to see each other."

Will gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, Vee. You and Ed have been such a huge help with everything, I couldn't have done it without you."

She reached out to pat his arm. "It's been our pleasure. We're very happy for both of you."

"Thank you."

He managed to sneak everything out to the car while Vee kept Elizabeth and Jane busy in the kitchen with clean-up, and was officially ready to go. They lingered a bit longer, enjoying a last glass of wine. Will stole a few moments with Elizabeth.

"Want to go for a ride?"

Her eyebrows rose. "Now?"

He shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

She looked behind him at everyone seated comfortably in the main sitting area of the inn. "Everyone is relaxing, why do you want to go somewhere now? Where did you want to go?"

He felt a flash of panic, as he hadn't anticipated having to convince her to leave with him. "Just...for a ride. It's quiet today, everyone's indoors enjoying their meals, so I thought it would be a nice time to go for a drive. The sun will be setting in a little while, there must be somewhere we can go to watch it."

This made her smile, and inwardly, he breathed a huge sigh of relief. "I know just the place," she said. "Should we ask Jane and Charles to come with us?"

"No, no," Will said, almost too adamantly. "I'd like to be alone with you for a little while."

Elizabeth reached up to kiss him. "You're so sweet, you know that?"

He shrugged again, making her laugh. She turned to walk over to Vee. "Would you mind if Will and I went for a drive?"

* * *

><p>Will pulled up along the curb at the front of the house first, before pulling into the driveway. His heart was hammering away in his chest, and he thought for sure that if she was looking at him, she'd be able to see his pulse jumping in his neck.<p>

"I thought we were going to the beach?" Elizabeth asked, as she gazed out the window at her grandparent's home.

"We'll get there, don't worry. We still have a little time."

Elizabeth was quiet for a long moment as she stared outside. "Wow, whoever bought it has put some work into it. The landscaping looks nice, almost like it did when my grandparents lived here."

Without saying anything, he eased the car into the driveway.

She turned to look at him. "What are you doing? It's Thanksgiving, someone could be in there having dinner." She couldn't see any lights on inside, but smoke slowly puffed from the chimney, a sure sign that the owners were home.

Will put the car in park and shut off the engine before opening his door to get out, shutting it behind him.

"Will! We can't just walk around and check the place out!" She opened her door and stood outside the car, noticing the 'For Sale' sign leaning against the steps that led to the side entrance of the house. It had a bright red 'SOLD' sticker splashed across it, announcing to the neighbors that the house had a new owner.

He walked around the car and took her hand, shutting her car door. "Come on," was all he said, very calmly, as he led her across the driveway toward the steps.

"What are you doing? Where are we going?" she asked, completely confused.

Will stopped walking and turned to her, his heart in his throat. "It's okay, Lizzy, I know the owner," he said softly, smiling a little. "Come on."

He took another step, but she wasn't moving, and he heard her voice behind him.

"What do you mean you know-"

She stopped mid-sentence and dropped his hand, and that was it. He knew that she knew, that she had figured it out _right then._

Will turned to look at her, and the picture she presented instantly, amazingly, brought tears to his eyes. She stood with both hands covering her face, leaving only her eyes visible. She didn't move a muscle as her eyes darted first to him, then to the house, then to the sign, then back to him again. She began shaking her head ever so slightly, obviously overwhelmed, and took several steps backward, turning to face the car, her back toward him and the house.

He waited, wanting to give her the time that she needed to let the knowledge sink in. Honestly, he hadn't known what kind of reaction to expect, and he still wasn't sure what kind of reaction he was getting, it was hard to tell. Still, he felt too far away from her, so he walked a little closer, stopping when he was only a foot away from where she stood.

When he got closer, he realized her whole body was shaking slightly, so he reached out and gently took her by the shoulders, turning her to face him. That's when he noticed the tears coursing down her cheeks, and without hesitating he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. She buried her face in his neck, finally moving her hands so that she could wrap her arms around him as well. He continued to hold her tightly, stroking her hair, murmuring into her ear, not saying much really, just telling her how much he loved her.

Once she quieted, he pulled back from her a little, peering down into her puffy eyes. The late afternoon sun shown through the trees, casting dappled shadows over her face, and he thought that he had never seen her look so vulnerable, yet so beautiful. He swallowed, his throat thick with emotion, and reached up to stroke her cheek before kissing her gently. "Come inside, Lizzy."

Not able to say anything, Elizabeth only nodded. They walked together, holding hands, and when they got to the top step, Will paused and handed her the key so that she could unlock the door.

Elizabeth stepped through the doorway of the house, which led directly into the kitchen. She was shocked that she was here, standing _here_, _in_ _this kitchen_. The first thing she noticed was the cabinets, painted the same pale blue that she remembered. As a girl, she could never reach the top shelf in those cabinets, and probably still wouldn't be able to now. Her grandfather had built the ceilings throughout the house very high, more than likely to accommodate his six foot, five inch frame, and the cabinets extended all the way up.

Leaving the kitchen, she wandered into the dining room, and gasped when she saw the built-in corner china cabinets, the glass fronts gleaming, the wood highly polished. She could picture her grandmother's china in there, tucked away for special occasions. The cabinets looked beautiful, just as they did in her memories.

What she loved was that off of the dining room was the sun parlor, which ran along the entire front of the house. From the sun parlor, you could walk into the living room, and from the living room, you could walk back into the dining room. It formed a sort of loop, and when she was little, that loop was a well-worn racetrack of sorts.

The sun parlor was her favorite room as a girl. The front of the house was all windows, and her grandmother used to have a writing desk out there, and there was a daybed tucked in the corner, where she loved to sleep during the summer; the steady sound of the traffic going by used to lull her to sleep. This was where she would sit with her grandfather after he had his stroke. He would stare out the windows, watching the cars pass. Sometimes they would sit in the living room and watch the small color TV that they had, but he had liked to sit here too. At least, she liked to think that he did.

In the living room, she was surprised to see a fire burning brightly in the fireplace, and a giant air mattress, completely inflated and made up with pillows, sheets and blankets, pushed up against the wall. There were also a few pillows haphazardly piled on the floor. Other than that, there wasn't a stick of furniture to be seen.

She suddenly realized that she hadn't said a word to Will since they had walked in the door. Actually, she hadn't said anything to him since she asked him what the heck he was doing, when they were out in the driveway. Turning to look at him, she smiled, her lips quivering slightly. "I'm – I'm sorry," she said softly. Her voice was froggy, so she cleared her throat.

He looked surprised. "Why are you sorry?"

"I haven't said anything to you since we walked in." She looked around, taking in her surroundings again. "This is – it's unbelievable. It's like a dream. I can't quite comprehend that I'm standing here."

Will walked over to her, reaching for her hand, pulling it to his lips for a kiss. "You are."

She shook her head slightly. "It's just...a lot. To take in, I mean. It's sort of overwhelming."

He nodded. "I know. It's okay. Let's finish looking around, come on."

They walked back into the kitchen, and Elizabeth couldn't resist opening the door to the pantry. It was a huge pantry, with three walls of spacious shelves. She smiled when she saw that the same type of lighting fixture, operated with a pull string, was hanging inside. Unable to resist, she pulled the string, turning on the light, then pulled it again to shut it off.

They walked into the very short hallway and then into the first bedroom, which used to be her grandparent's. The walls were painted the same vibrant blue that she remembered, but the room looked so much smaller now. Actually, none of the rooms in the house were large, it was a fairly small home. She left that room and entered the bedroom next to it. This, too, was painted the same color that she remembered, a pleasant shade of light green. The bathroom was still pink, which made her laugh. Her grandmother had _loved_ her pink bathroom, with the big claw-foot tub. The last bedroom was Elizabeth's favorite. It was a shade of very pale peach, and when she was little, and not quite old enough to sleep in the sun parlor alone, this is where she slept, with Lydia and Jane.

After she had looked her fill, they walked back through the house, heading back out to the living room. It was starting to get dark, so Will turned on the light over the kitchen sink, and turned on a small lamp that was on the floor in the dining room. He encouraged Elizabeth to sit with him on the floor in front of the fire, using the pillows to get them comfortable. She sat between his legs, her back to his chest.

"So," he said softly, leaning forward to kiss her cheek, "I know you said this wasn't a 'gift holiday', but I got you a gift anyway. Happy Thanksgiving."

Elizabeth turned around, moving her body so that she was completely facing him. "Happy Thanksgiving," she whispered, and then it happened again. The tears started, pouring out in rivers, cascading down her cheeks unchecked. "Oh, here we go again. I can't help it, I'm sorry." She _couldn't_ help it, she really couldn't; the entire situation had completely overwhelmed her. _Will got me a gift. He got me this house. __This __house__._

"I – I didn't get you anything," she said between sniffles. "Just a – a card. I got you a stupid card, and you gave me – you gave me this."

Will couldn't help it, he chuckled, and he scooted closer to her so he could reach to wipe away her tears with his thumbs. "Your card wasn't stupid, it was sweet. And I don't need any gifts from you anyway, I have you, you're my gift. The gift that keeps on giving."

She rolled her eyes, but laughed, which is what he hoped she'd do.

"I just don't know what to say to you," she said quietly, suddenly serious, looking into his eyes. "I can't just say thank you, it's not enough. I can't put into words what I'm feeling right now. I'm still in disbelief that we're even here, sitting in _this_ living room, in front of _this_ fireplace." She paused, looking puzzled. "How are we sitting in front of the fire? Who lit it?"

Will shrugged. "Your uncle arranged all that. Apparently there are enough of the old neighbors around that he keeps in touch with. Your aunt came and set up this lovely air mattress yesterday, and a very kind neighbor came in and lit the fire about an hour ago."

Her eyes widened. "My aunt and uncle knew about this?"

Will nodded. "Your uncle has known from the beginning, but I'm not sure when he clued Vee in. He's been a huge help to me."

"I can't believe it." She was silent again for a few moments, staring into the fire with a serious expression on her face.

He turned her chin so she was looking at him again. "What's the matter?"

She shook her head. "I don't know how to tell you what this means to me. How do I thank you? I have no idea how to – how to express my thanks."

Will smiled. "Sure you do."

Elizabeth sighed. "Will-"

He interrupted. "You know just what to say. C'mon, say it." He nudged her knees with his, making her smile a little.

"It's not enough."

"It _is_ enough."

She leaned forward until her lips were lightly pressed to his, and finally whispered the words she knew he was waiting for her to say.

"Thanks Will, it's lovely."

* * *

><p>They had piled pillows up against the wall at the end of the double-high air mattress, and sat together to watch the fire burn in the fireplace. Will had already been out to the car to get their bags and the few things that Vee had packed for them. He had brought along his guitar, and Elizabeth moved to lay across their temporary bed, her head propped up on one hand, watching him absentmindedly strum the strings. He played little bits and pieces of things, and she loved to watch the different expressions on his face that appeared as he concentrated on the music.<p>

"Sing me something," she requested softly, reaching over to place her hand on his thigh.

He smiled. "What do you want to hear?"

She shrugged. "Anything. I just want to hear you."

Will started strumming the strings loudly, singing even louder. _"You can get anything you want, at Alice's Restaurant..."*_

Elizabeth slapped his thigh soundly, making him laugh. "No! Anything except that! I love the song, I do, but we already listened to it once today, that was enough."

He grinned at the sparkle in her eyes. "You said anything."

He started picking the strings slowly, having already decided what to sing. A love song was in order, after all; he couldn't sing to her in front of a fire and _not_ sing a love song.

_When I'm feeling blue, all I have to do  
><em>_Is take a look at you, then I'm not so blue  
><em>_When you're close to me, I can feel your heartbeat  
><em>_I can feel you breathing in my ear  
><em>_Wouldn't you agree, baby you and me  
><em>_Got a groovy kind of love._

_Anytime you want to, you can turn me on to  
><em>_Anything you want to, anytime at all  
><em>_When I kiss your lips, ohh I start to shiver  
><em>_Can't control the quivering inside  
><em>_Wouldn't you agree, baby you and me  
><em>_Got a groovy kind of love._

_When I'm feeling blue, all I have to do  
><em>_Is take a look at you, then I'm not so blue  
><em>_When I'm in your arms, nothing seems to matter  
><em>_My whole world could shatter, I don't care  
><em>_Wouldn't you agree, baby you and me  
><em>_Got a groovy kind of love, we got a groovy kind of love.**_

Elizabeth loved watching him sing, especially when they were alone like this, sharing a private moment. Again, she felt tears welling in her eyes. _What an emotional afternoon._

"That was beautiful. I've always loved that song," she whispered as he finished. He laid the guitar down on the floor along the wall, next to the air mattress, then motioned for her to move up next to him. They both stretched out and he pulled her in front of him, spooning around her, so that they could both face the fire.

He kissed her neck. "Beautiful song for a beautiful lady," he said, making her chuckle.

They were quiet for a while, watching the flames as they danced, casting continuously changing patterns of light on the wall. When Will spoke again, it was to apologize for the lack of furniture in the house. He explained that he wanted her to pick everything out herself. She shook her head, telling him not to apologize for _anything_. "This is perfect, just as it is. We're actually staying here tonight?"

"Yes. There's some fresh baked coffee cake and other stuff for the morning. I didn't think you'd want to eat again tonight."

"God no, I'm stuffed."

"Well, in case you change your mind, I believe we've been supplied with a little more pumpkin pie too."

Elizabeth laughed. "Aunt Vee knows me well."

Will nodded against her hair. "That she does."

"How did all this even come about? I mean, you buying this house...how did you even know it was for sale?"

"You don't remember?"

She shook her head.

"When we were walking down the beach after Jane and Charles' wedding – well, I was walking, you were hitching a ride – you mentioned to me that the house was for sale. You were looking out at the water, over toward the island."

She chuckled. "Oh, now I remember."

"You kind of said it in passing, but I could tell you were thinking about it. I talked to your uncle the next day, when we went to see him and your aunt at the docks. He got the ball rolling for me."

"Oh, Uncle Ed."

"He gave me the name of the real estate agent, and that was it."

Elizabeth sighed. She still was in shock over the whole thing, and felt like she was living in a dream. "You did this for me."

Will kissed the top of her head. "Yes, for you. But for us, too..." he swallowed. "I hope that someday, we'll be able to bring our own kids here."

Tears sprang to Elizabeth's eyes, and she rolled over to face him. She held his face in her hands, staring into beautiful brown eyes that looked so serious, yet so filled with love. "I hope for that too, I do," she whispered before leaning in to kiss him. Her fingers found their way to the top button on his dress shirt, and she began working each button open, one by one, until she reached the waist of his pants.

"What are you doing?" he asked playfully, kissing along her jaw.

"I'm taking your clothes off." She yanked on his shirt, pulling it free of his pants, and finished unbuttoning it. Her impatient actions made him chuckle against her ear, sending a shiver down her spine. "Do you want me to stop?"

"Not at all," he said, reaching down to let one hand glide up her leg until it slid under her skirt and drifted up her thigh, coming around to rest possessively on what he happily discovered was her bare bottom. He groaned. "Thong?"

She raised her lips to his once again. "Thong."

As they kissed heatedly, his hands moved to the bottom of her sweater, which had no buttons, no closures of any type; the only way to get it off was to pull it over her head. "Sit up."

She did as he asked, and he made quick work of removing the garment. Her hands pushed his shirt away from his shoulders, and he finished taking it off, removing his t-shirt as well. He eyed the skirt she was wearing, and shook his head. "Okay, stand up."

The request was answered with an arched eyebrow, but she did as he asked. He sat on the edge of the low mattress with her standing between his outstretched legs, and reached around to undo the button and the zipper. The skirt slid down with a swish and landed in a puddle at her feet. For a moment, he just sat and stared at her, letting his eyes roam her body from top to bottom, admiring her incredibly sexy pink bra and thong, and the way the firelight illuminated her skin and eyes.

Will reached around to cup her bottom, holding her to him as he kissed her stomach, letting his lips move over her soft skin. He worked his way across to her hip, kissing along the low band of her thong, until he finally hooked his thumbs into the elastic and slid it slowly down her legs. She stepped out of it, and he slid his hands back up her legs, then further up along her spine to the clasp of her bra, which he made quick work of. It slid down her arms and she let it drop to the floor.

Elizabeth sighed as she reached down to run her fingers through his hair, watching his hands as they moved to the front of her thighs, his thumbs tracing up higher until they reached her center. He stroked along the soft flesh there, his gaze focused on his hands, until he raised his eyes to hers and smiled softly at her. One thumb stroked in deeper, making her draw a quick breath, and his smile grew a little more. Without taking his eyes from hers, he gently parted her flesh with his thumbs and leaned in to let his tongue drag slowly across her sensitive skin. He did it over and over again, long, slow strokes, making her legs tremble. His eyes remained on her face, watching her reaction.

Will was in a state of bliss. This was what he loved; tasting her, bringing her pleasure, and being able to watch her while it was happening was the most erotic experience for him. Well, maybe not the _most_ erotic experience; that would have to be actually burying himself _inside_ of her, but this was a close second. He urged her to open her legs a little more, and she complied with a soft sigh. She closed her eyes, but still he watched her, wanting to see her face as she became more and more aroused, her skin flushing beautifully in the firelight.

His eyes dropped to her breasts, so perfectly shaped, her nipples already hardened, waiting for the touch of his fingers or tongue. Removing one hand from between her thighs, he reached up and let his fingers play with one tight peak. Her mouth dropped open slightly and she opened her eyes again to look down at him. He heard her intake of breath and kept up the now more insistent swirling motion of his tongue, wanting to make her come right there, standing in front of him. He still had his pants on, and at this point they were incredibly restricting; his erection swelled larger, pushing against the material, making him groan.

"Will," she whispered, looking down into his eyes, "I need – I need to be on the bed...let me-" Her words turned to another gasp as he lowered his hand from her breast and moved it back toward her center, spreading her more, finding the tight little bundle of nerves with his tongue and suckling it fiercely, making her cry out. She was breathing heavily, and tried to speak again. "Will, please." Elizabeth looked down into his eyes, and saw the mischievous glint there, the way his eyes gleamed up at her, and knew he wasn't going to let up, not now.

Will shook his head slightly as he looked up at her, making sure she watched him. There was no way she was getting on the bed, not now. He pulled his lips away from her, turning to kiss one thigh, and whispered against her skin. "You taste so sweet Lizzy, so sweet...so good." Moving his head, he kissed her other thigh, letting his thumbs move over her slippery flesh before moving his mouth back to take their place again.

Elizabeth gripped his hair tighter, letting herself become completely caught up in the movements of his tongue and lips, holding his head to her. Her hips shifted slightly, and he moaned against her. She cried out softly as she felt his fingers slide up inside of her, moving in and out, starting slow but gradually thrusting faster, just as the movements of his tongue became more precise.

A warm flush began spreading through her body, and she felt her muscles start to tighten on his fingers in a pulsing rhythm. Just as she was cresting, she felt his fingers slide from her body and felt his tongue surge up into her. For a moment, she forgot how to breathe, and then she was gasping as she held his head tightly, feeling as if her legs were about to give out. Every muscle was quivering uncontrollably as she climaxed, and she knew she couldn't remain upright for much longer.

Will selfishly kept her on her feet, not wanting to relinquish his position, enjoying the feel of her around his tongue as he lapped at her slowly, prolonging her orgasm, making her entire body shake. If she'd let him, he'd do this over and over again, all night. Apparently, from the way she was tugging at his hair, she had other things in mind.

He finally moved his mouth away from her, trailing kisses across one thigh before grabbing her hands so he could pull her down over him as he lay back. The mattress bowed a little under their weight, and they looked at each other in surprise, waiting to see if anything else would happen.

Elizabeth sat up on her knees, straddling his thighs, and looked down at him as her hands traced over the muscles of his chest before trailing down his stomach to his belt. "This thing better not pop."

He smiled at the frantic movement of her fingers, and let his hands trail lightly up her arms and over to her breasts, stroking over the tight centers, teasing them into stiff peaks. He moved one hand to the back of her neck to pull her down to him, needing to taste her again.

Elizabeth started to halfheartedly protest, but the words died on her lips as his mouth closed around one nipple, his warm tongue circling it, playing with it, before he moved to its twin, giving it the same pleasurable treatment. His other hand glided over her body until he was stroking her center again, using his fingers to arouse her more, bringing her just to the edge. She sat up suddenly, freeing her breast from his mouth, and her hands, which had momentarily stilled, began their attack on his belt again. As soon as she had the buckle free, she tore at the button and the zipper, opening both rapidly. "I want you inside of me," she whispered, her voice unsteady as she reached in to stroke him through his boxers. "Get these damn things off."

Will smiled at her impatience, and though his lazy movements belied it, he was feeling a bit on the impatient side himself. Still, he wasn't going to hurry. She gasped as he slipped his fingers inside of her again. "What if I want to keep doing this? Touching you like this, tasting you...I want to make you come again, just like this." His erection strained against her hand, begging for release and relief, but he kept himself in check.

Elizabeth's whole body shuddered as his words wrapped around her, making her muscles clench, squeezing his fingers tightly inside of her. She heard him moan, but was so lost in the sensations he was creating in her body that she couldn't do anything but soak them in like a sponge. Once again, she felt him raise a hand to the back of her neck to pull her down, this time bringing her lips to his for a deep, probing kiss. She slid her free arm behind his neck, making it arch, and slid her lips down to suck and kiss at his throat. At the same time, her hips gyrated on his fingers, and she felt the pad of his thumb as it drifted over her nub, making her bite at his throat.

Will bit at his own bottom lip, trying to keep control. Her hand was insistent, stroking over him, and he thrust lightly into her soft fist, unable to stop his body's instinctive response. The moment he felt another orgasm grabbing hold of her body, he used his other hand to lift her lips to his, kissing her deeply again, absorbing her soft cries into his mouth as she shuddered against him. He almost lost it then, but instead he moved his hand from between her legs and pulled her hips forward, pushing her hand away from him before grinding up and into her softness. He felt her damp heat through the material of his pants, and at that point his patience and control completely vanished.

Elizabeth raised up just enough so that Will could lift his hips and push his pants down. She helped as much as her jellied muscles would let her, feeling as though she had no control over which direction her limbs moved. Finally, she was able to push them down past his knees, and he used his own feet to finish pushing them off. He scooted back further on the air mattress, making it dip alarmingly, but this time neither of them noticed. Instead of laying down, he sat up and pulled her over him, her knees gripping his hips, and guided her down onto him in one fluid movement.

They both groaned loudly at the satisfaction of finally being joined, but neither of them moved at first. Both were nearly panting, a fine sheen of sweat covering their bodies, but still, they only stared at each other. Will reached up with one hand and stroked her face lovingly, pushing some wayward strands of hair away from her cheek.

Elizabeth wrapped her arms around his shoulders and leaned forward, closing the small distance between their lips, kissing him deeply as she lifted herself almost completely off of him, only to slide back down again. He thrust into her simultaneously, leaning back on one hand to prop himself up. Arching her back, she raised a hand to his head, guiding his mouth to her breast, while lifting and then lowering again. His lips closed around one nipple, suckling at it hungrily, making her muscles clench around him.

"Ohh Lizzy, I love you so much," he murmured roughly against her skin, and she pulled away to watch him in rapt attention, the way his cheeks were flushed now, the way he bit his lip, trying to maintain control.

She began riding him faster, not breaking eye contact as he stared up at her. "You feel so good," she whispered against his mouth, nearly out of breath. "I love you too." His other hand moved to her center again, and it took only a few well-placed strokes against her overly-sensitized flesh to put her over the edge. As she went, she watched the expression on his face with fascination as his orgasm tore through his body at the same time. He pumped into her in a steady cadence, still holding himself up with one hand, moving the other to grasp her hip so tightly that she knew he'd leave marks there.

Finally, he collapsed backward onto the bed, Elizabeth going with him, laying over his chest while they both worked at catching their breath, reveling in their connection. "Oh my God," she whispered quietly.

Will chuckled, his voice low and rough, and nuzzled her hair. "My thoughts exactly." His hands moved slowly up and down her back, then left to trace a trail to her hips, then to the tops of her thighs, then over her bottom and back up her spine and over her shoulders. It seemed as though he was trying to memorize every curve and nuance of her body, every dip and swell.

She rose up a little so she could look down at him. "I can feel your heartbeat...it's beating perfectly with mine. Can you feel it?"

Will smiled at that, and placed his fingertips over her heart. "Yes."

Her eyes filled with tears as she looked down at him, and after a long moment, she spoke. "Sometimes it's hard for me to tell where I end and where you begin."

His smile grew, and he felt his eyes sting as he raised his head to kiss her softly, lovingly. He knew just what she meant, just what she was feeling. "That's good, right?" he whispered.

Elizabeth nodded as tears rolled down her cheeks, and she kissed his thumb as he reached up to wipe them away. "I love you so much, Will." She kissed him again. "Happy Thanksgiving."

He wrapped his arms tightly around her, pulling her down into his embrace. "I love you too, Lizzy. Happy Thanksgiving."

* * *

><p><em>So, did that put anyone in the mood for...turkey? Next post should be up around the 13th of October. Please leave a review if you can. Thanks!<em>

_*Fenway Park is the home of the Boston Red Sox, and Gillette Stadium is the home of the New England Patriots._

_*'Alice's Restaurant', by Arlo Guthrie, which is traditionally played every Thanksgiving on many radio stations around the USA._

_**'A Groovy Kind of Love' by Phil Collins._


	56. Chapter 56

_Hello all! I'm a day early, I can't believe it. This is a pretty long chapter, so make sure you're ready to settle in before you read. We're winding down to the end now... Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing, a lot of you have stuck with me from the very beginning, and I appreciate it!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 56<strong>

Georgiana woke on a Saturday morning and snuggled up to the man sleeping soundly beside her. She was used to having Matt around on weekends now, it was a given that he'd be here, on the Cape, at her home. Sometimes she traveled to Boston to see him, but those trips were rare; they both preferred to be here.

She stretched languidly, not wanting to wake him as it was still early, but also because she wanted some quiet time to think. Maggie Harper had called her late yesterday afternoon, and had given her some good news.

Georgiana knew that George Wickham's trial had begun on December first. Maggie had called her a few days before that to let her know it was set to begin, barring any delays. There was bound to be some news about it in the Boston papers, and Maggie was concerned that Georgiana's name might pop up again. Georgiana had appreciated the call, but was determined not to concern herself with it. The way in which Wickham's life played out, from that point on, had no bearing on Georgiana's life whatsoever; he was no longer a figure that hovered in her subconscious, lurking, causing nightmares.

Yesterday's call from Maggie was good news, in that it conveyed the details of Wickham's punishment; after a twelve-day trial, he was sentenced to ten years in prison for the rape charge, and was given three years for the drug charges as well. The terms were to be served consecutively, not concurrently, which meant he was looking at thirteen years behind bars. Because Wickham used a drug to render his victim helpless, the state was denying him any opportunity of parole.

After thanking Maggie for the call, she hung up and just sat for a bit, taking it all in. She did shed some tears, but they were tears of relief, and weren't even for herself; yes, she was relieved, but more so for the girl who had gone to trial against Wickham. This girl, whoever she was, had the bravery and the courage to do what Georgiana couldn't do eleven months ago, and she was thankful for that.

Georgiana had wanted to tell Will and Elizabeth right away, of course, but when she had wandered over to the house an hour or so after the call, they were getting ready to go out to a holiday party that was being thrown by the Reserve. They were all dressed up, and were both in such festive moods that Georgiana didn't have the heart to bring up Wickham's name, even though everything she had to say would be welcomed news. She didn't want Wickham to be the subject of their thoughts or conversation while they were out.

She pressed herself a little closer to Matt. _I'll let them know today._

Matt began to stir, and she raised her head to watch him. She loved the way he looked when he woke up, though she knew he'd be a little bit of a bear until he had some coffee; it was just his way.

His eyes blinked open and looked into hers. "Good morning," he said, yawning and stretching all at once.

"Good morning." She leaned up to plant a kiss on his chin. "Sleep well?"

"Mmhm, I always sleep well when I'm here." He rolled over onto his side to pull her close. "Must be the ocean air."

Georgiana smiled into his neck. "I'm sure that's it."

"What time is it?"

"It's almost nine."

"Hm," he grunted. "How long have you been awake?"

"Not long, a half-hour or so."

Matt burrowed further under the covers, pulling Georgiana with him. "You didn't get up to turn on the coffee by any chance, did you?"

She laughed. "Nope, sorry. It's chilly out there, warm in here. I am getting up soon, though, because I want to catch Will before he and Lizzy leave for the Vineyard. I think they're taking the noon ferry."

"They're going over _again_?"

"Yes, they're going over again. They're trying to get the house all squared away, and I think they have more furniture coming today."

"They've been there every weekend since Thanksgiving weekend."

Georgiana pulled away from him, looking at him with a glint of humor in her eyes. "Yes, every weekend. All _two_ of them. Well, three if you count this one." She laughed at the frown on his face. "Aww, are you missing your new friend?"

He rolled his eyes and playfully tried to push her away. "Shut up."

She laughed again. "I think you are. You miss Will, don't you?"

"I don't _m__iss Will_, for crying out loud. I like hanging out with him, yeah, but I don't _miss_ him. That would be weird."

"I know, I'm just teasing you. I'm glad you've become friends. He likes you."

"What's not to like?" he asked, grinning at her.

"Honestly?" she answered, pulling herself over him to give him a kiss, "Nothing at all."

* * *

><p>"Uggghh."<p>

Will smiled when he heard the pitiful groan coming from the other side of the bed. He reached over to stroke his hand over Elizabeth's hip. "Good morning," he said in a sing-song voice.

"Uggghhhh...says you," she replied, "too loudly, I might add."

He laughed when Elizabeth sat up slowly, her hair completely askew, and watched the grimace form on her face.

"Oh, you are just lovely in the morning," he said playfully, teasing her.

Without opening her eyes, she reached over and slapped him on the chest. "Quiet down."

"I can't believe you have a hangover, you drank almost nothing and you certainly weren't drunk."

"I think the eggnog was spiked."

Will crinkled his nose. "That stuff is disgusting anyway. But come to think of it, if it was spiked, that would definitely explain why you feel like shit. You drank a lot of it." He laughed again. "The boat ride to the island should be enjoyable today."

"Uuugghh," Elizabeth groaned again, dropping back down to her pillow, throwing one arm across her forehead. Fenway jumped up on the bed and curled up on her chest, purring and rubbing his face along her jaw.

"At least someone feels sorry for me," Elizabeth mumbled, reaching to stroke his head.

"I feel sorry for you, I do. Not as sorry as I feel for myself, since I have to deal with you this morning."

That earned him another slap as he laughed once again, and she finally turned her head slightly to glare at him with one barely-opened eye. Fenway jumped off her chest and moved to the end of the bed, settling himself comfortably. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Will smiled, but wisely chose to say nothing. After a moment, he leaned over her and removed her arm from her forehead, forcing her to open both eyes and look up at him.

"I enjoyed myself last night," he said quietly.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "One track mind."

Will chuckled. "I'm not talking about what happened _after_ the party, although that was – well, I don't even have the wordsfor what _that_ was, but oh yeah, I enjoyed that." A series of vivid images from the night before flickered through his mind, each one containing Elizabeth, her red pumps, and his desk in their office. The images, in turn, began to cause a physical response, one that he knew his hungover girlfriend wouldn't appreciate at the moment.

Taking a deep breath, he forced his thoughts back to the present and reached to lightly stroke her mussed hair, making her sigh in contentment. "I'm talking about the party itself. I liked mingling with all of your brainy friends, having you on my arm, dancing with you...catching you under the mistletoe."

She chuckled. "I don't know who was in charge of putting up the mistletoe at that restaurant, but boy, they really went crazy with it. I think Mary purposely stood under some every time you got near her."

Will smiled. "She caught me a couple of times. I felt like I spent the entire night wiping bright red lipstick off my cheek. I don't think her husband was happy about it."

"Oh, he was getting a kick out of it, and believe me, he got even by plastering _my_ cheeks with kisses all night. Milton is a nice man."

"Yeah, he is." He continued to play with her tangled curls, just staring down at her as she laid there with her eyes closed. He sighed and glanced at the clock. "I hate to say this, love, but if we're making the noon boat, we need to get up, it's almost ten."

Elizabeth pulled the covers over her head and groaned again. "Is it sunny out?"

Will glanced toward the French doors. "Um, so-so. A little overcast." He pulled the covers away from her face. "Come on, I'll get a nice hot shower running for you and get you some aspirin or something. I bet you'll feel much better in half an hour."

"Promise?"

"No."

"Ugghhh."

* * *

><p>An hour later, they were sitting in the living room, listening to Georgiana as she told them about Maggie's call. Matt sat with her, his arm resting casually along the back of the couch behind her.<p>

"That's excellent news," Will said when Georgiana finished, feeling a surge of gratification. He wished it was more, wished that Wickham was going to be put away for life, but he'd take the thirteen years.

Elizabeth smiled, agreeing with him. "I'm so happy to hear it. How do you feel?"

Georgiana shrugged. "Relieved. Satisfied." She felt Matt give her shoulders a squeeze. "Glad that someone was able to find the courage to do what I couldn't."

Will shook his head. "Georgie-"

She interrupted. "I'm not coming down on myself, I'm really not, but it's the way I feel. She was able to find it within herself to go after him when I couldn't, and in a way...it's almost like I feel proud of her for doing that, even though I don't even know her. It's hard to explain."

"I get it," Elizabeth said quietly.

Georgiana shrugged. "It's just how I feel." She cleared her throat. "We don't want to hold you guys up, I know you're catching the ferry in an hour. I'll come over later to feed the beast."

"Thanks," Will said, rising off of the love seat to pull his sister up and give her a hug. "Go out and celebrate tonight."

Matt smiled. "That's the plan," he said, looking tenderly at Georgiana. "I'm taking my girl out for a night on the town."

* * *

><p>Will and Elizabeth settled back comfortably in the chairs on the ferry. Thankfully the ocean was relatively calm, so the ride was smooth; Elizabeth's stomach was still churning rebelliously, but the pounding in her head had receded to a dull thump. She peeked over Will's shoulder to see what he was reading, and when she saw it was the financial section of the New York Times, she immediately lost interest and leaned her head against his shoulder, closing her eyes.<p>

She couldn't wait for the furniture delivery to come today. This was the last of it, for the time being anyway. They had kept things very simple. Well, _she_ had kept things very simple; Will insisted on having no say in the furniture choices, only agreeing to tell her if it was something he absolutely didn't like.

The first rooms to be furnished had been the living room, dining room, and what they would use as their bedroom, which used to be her grandparent's room. They also put a nice desk and a pair of overstuffed chairs in the sun parlor. It had quickly become their favorite place to have coffee in the morning. Today, furniture was coming for the other two bedrooms. They had decided to leave the apartment over the garage empty for now, not foreseeing any reason that they would need to have it furnished at this point.

All of their purchases had been made from stores on the island, which Elizabeth felt was important; a lot of the businesses there struggled during the winter, and with the amount of furniture they were buying, she wanted to make sure the money went into someone's pocket on the island, and not into some big chain store on the mainland. Her only exception was the dining room table. She had found one almost identical to the one her grandparents had when she was little. It was a round, solid cherry table, with huge, thick legs. It pulled apart so that a panel could be added to the middle, changing it from circular to oval. Jane had spotted it at a large store outside of Boston when she was looking for a new bedroom set for her and Charles, and had let Elizabeth know about it immediately.

They had also purchased a used SUV at the sole car dealership on the Vineyard. Getting a car over to the island on short notice in the summer wasn't easy, as one usually had to make reservations months in advance. They wanted to be able to come and go on a whim, so it made more sense to keep a car there; plus, they had a garage to store it in. Will liked the idea of having something with four wheel drive, in case they went over in the winter. He found a vehicle that was in excellent condition during their second weekend there, and bought it outright.

There were other things that Will wanted to do to the house, and they had discussed them at length. She was all for anything he wanted to do to make the house more energy efficient, and had told him to make all the decisions in that respect. He had promised that the structure of the house wouldn't change, and that was all she was concerned about; she wanted it to still _look_ the same.

So, with her approval, Will set about changing a few things. Solar panels would soon be installed on the south side of the roof, which would be the most drastic outward change. The panels wouldn't be seen from the road, though, so Elizabeth had agreed to it. Installing them would also necessitate trimming a few of the trees on that side of the house, but again, it would be nothing drastic. The plumber that had completed the new pipework was going to eventually come to install a tankless hot water system, and new windows would be put up very soon, before it got much colder. Instead of installing an air conditioning system for the summer, Will had suggested – at Stephanie's recommendation – that they install a whole-house fan in the attic. At night, with the windows open, the fan would draw in the cool air; then, during the day, if the windows were kept closed and the fan turned off, the air in the house would remain cool. Stephanie insisted that it was just as effective as air conditioning, but used a lot less electricity. Lastly, they bought all new energy efficient appliances and light fixtures. _It's a start_, Elizabeth thought.

Her mind traveled frequently to what Will had said on Thanksgiving night, about them being able to bring their kids to the house someday. The thought of it always made her smile, and gave her a little thrill inside. When would that day come? She didn't want to rush it, didn't want to push marriage or kids, but God, she really couldn't wait. Will had to be ready though, and she knew that whenever he was, she would know. _Wouldn't I?_

Elizabeth moved her head back to her seat so she could turn and watch him as he read the paper, brows furrowed in concentration as he looked at stock quotes and reports that made absolutely no sense to her. She loved looking at him, and never got tired of doing so. She loved his nose, perfectly straight; his jaw, how strong it was, and how sexy it looked when it was covered with stubble in the morning; his beautiful brown eyes, whether they were warm with humor or dark with desire; his hair, his very kissable lips, his dimples...she could go on and on, really. He was just...very easy on the eyes, and she never got her fill of studying him.

What would it be like to call him her husband? To have children with him, parent with him? Grow old with him? Sometimes she thought to herself, _'What are we waiting for?' _But then she remembered that this man had only been in her life for about seven months. Granted, if she used Jane and Charles as an example, it was certainly long enough; _they_ had met, dated, got engaged, and then married in less than seven months, which still amazed Elizabeth. And yet, they were so perfect for each other. Like Jane had told her a long time ago, she and Charles were soul mates; when you know, you know.

Will turned the page of his newspaper, and without looking towards Elizabeth, spoke quietly, a glint of humor in his eyes. "You're staring at me."

Elizabeth grinned, knowing that he would see her do so out of the corner of his eye. "I know."

* * *

><p>Before they knew it, Christmas was upon them. It seemed to come rapidly; one minute, they were having Thanksgiving dinner, and the next, they were picking out a Christmas tree.<p>

Their First Christmas Tree As A Couple.

Every time the tree was mentioned, Will smiled, only because that was how Elizabeth referred to it. It wasn't '_the Christmas tree_'; it was always '_our __first__ Christmas tree_'. He was okay with that. Firsts were good; it meant there was more to come.

They had mutually agreed to forgo presents for each other, as they had been pouring so much work and money into the Vineyard house. Actually, it was Elizabeth's suggestion, and Will had agreed, but had broken the agreement in less than a week. How could he not? It was Christmas, for Pete's sake, he had to get her _something_. It really was nothing big...at least, to him it was nothing big. And really, the money he'd been putting into the house had been pocket change. He had taken advantage of running an errand without her on the Vineyard at the beginning of the month, and had made a side-trip to the small jewelry store in Edgartown where he had purchased her starfish earrings and necklace. The jeweler there had agreed to design a bracelet to match the set, and had promised it in time for Christmas.

To Will, it was something small, but he knew that Elizabeth would see all those diamonds, and her head would probably spin.

Elizabeth was preoccupied with an entirely different situation; what to do about her parents. She was upset that it was even a 'situation' to begin with. At first, she felt nonchalant about it, telling herself that she wouldn't invite them to have Christmas dinner with her and Will. The problem was, her list of dinner guests had grown, as she knew it would, and now included everyone in her family, except for her parents. The Gardners were coming from Martha's Vineyard on Friday, and were staying with Jane and Charles for the weekend. The four of them, plus Lydia, were all expected to come for a late afternoon dinner. Georgiana and Matt were coming as well, of course, and Will had even invited Mrs. Reynolds, but she had decided to stay in Boston with her sister and brother-in-law.

Now, five days before Christmas, Elizabeth was feeling guilty, especially since Lydia had basically told their mother that _everyone_ was going to Elizabeth's home for dinner – except Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Now she knew exactly how Jane felt before her wedding.

"Why do I feel guilty?" she asked Will. It was snowing lightly outside, and they were sitting in the living room, having just finished cleaning up after a light dinner.

Will shrugged. "Because you're a good person, and even though your parents don't deserve your compassion, they're getting it anyway."

"I don't know what to do."

He sighed. "Do what you want, Lizzy. Do what's going to make you happy."

She frowned at him. "That's not very helpful."

Will tamped down his frustration at their conversation. He _always_ got frustrated when they discussed her parents. "I'm sorry, love, but I'm not making this decision for you. If it would make you feel better to have them here, if it makes you feel less guilty, then have them here. I'll be nice to them, I'll be civil, but I'm not going to suck up to either one of them."

"I would never expect you to do that."

He nodded. "I know, I know you wouldn't, but you know what I mean. I'm not going out of my way to be pleasant to them, when they've brought you nothing but heartache since I've known you. Even before I knew you..." he let his voice trail off as he could feel himself becoming more negative, determined not to go there. "What does Jane think?"

"I haven't asked her."

His eyebrows rose. "You haven't asked her?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, I – something is going on with her, I think. Maybe she has a lot going on at work lately or something, she seems – I don't know, unfocused. Maybe I'll call her later. Still, it's your house-"

He interrupted, shaking his head, and his brows furrowed. "Our home," he said adamantly.

She closed her eyes. "Sorry, it's _our home_, and I think the decision should be ours, not mine and Jane's."

"But she's not my mother, she's _your_ mother, and Jane and Lydia's mother, so maybe you should ask them what they think."

Elizabeth nodded silently, staring out the slider, watching the snowflakes swirl around the deck light.

Will gently pulled her toward him, wrapping one arm around her, using his other hand to turn her face back in his direction. He stroked her chin lightly. "I'm not trying to put this all on you, sweetheart, I'm really not. I just want you to do what you think is best. My feelings on the matter are secondary; yours come first." He leaned in to kiss her lightly. "I'll support whatever decision you make."

She nodded again. "I know you will," she whispered, "and it's okay, I understand what you're saying. Maybe I'll call Jane in a little while."

* * *

><p>Because Christmas fell on a Saturday this year, Elizabeth's office was closed the day before, giving her a three-day weekend. She had a lot she wanted to do, and was grateful for the extra day to get things accomplished.<p>

Before she tackled anything, she just wanted to sit and enjoy a quiet cup of coffee. The past couple of days hadn't been great, to say the least. She had made her decision about her parents, and had called to invite them to dinner, an invitation they readily accepted. When she had told Will what her final decision was, he had simply nodded and said 'okay', and that was that. His 'Mr. Darcy' facial expression had given nothing away of what he was thinking, and she was torn between being relieved and being annoyed.

Since that phone call, she'd been a bit…well, out of sorts. She'd done what she thought was the right thing, but now she was almost dreading tomorrow, and she hated that she felt that way about her first Christmas with Will. Because she felt this way, she'd been mostly moping around the house. The only thing that seemed to take her mind off of it was working on the present she had planned for Will. It was something that she had been putting together in her darkroom for the past three weeks or so.

She had found a unique type of collage frame at Ortin's. It was actually three separate frames, each able to hold six photos, but they could align together to make one large collage as well, able to hold eighteen different photos, of various sizes, and she had painstakingly made sure she had the perfect photo for each frame. They were all black and white, and most were of the two of them, though there were a couple of Old Silver beach and one small one of Fenway. There were photos from their numerous trips to the Vineyard, and from their trips to New Hampshire and California, and a lot were just of them hanging around on the Cape, at the beach. Some were just of Will, and some were just of her, but most were of them together.

The one in the center, a larger portrait, was her favorite and was taken at Jane and Charles' wedding. In it, Will and Elizabeth faced the camera, but she had her arms wrapped around his waist, and he had one arm wrapped around her shoulders, the other lightly covering her arms. The reason why she loved it was because they weren't just smiling at the camera; no, the only way to describe their expressions was to say that they were _beaming_. The emotion, the happiness radiating from them was so obvious, it was blinding.

Thinking about that picture now, she felt her heart sink. Will had been treating her with kid gloves since Tuesday, going out of his way to be thoughtful and sweet, trying to reassure her that the day would be fine. _And here I am, acting like Scrooge_.

She really needed to find him and apologize. The question was, where was he? In the office doing work, she assumed, so she set her mug down on the table and rose from the couch, intending to head toward the hallway. Suddenly, a movement outside the sliding doors caught her attention, and she was surprised to see that it was Will, trudging through the snow in the backyard. Curious, she walked to the slider to watch him. He saw her standing there, in her pajamas still, and he waved, smiling brightly at her. She grinned and waved back, wondering what in the heck he was up to.

He was walking up and down and around on the snow-covered lawn in an odd pattern, but she couldn't see exactly what the pattern was, because the deck was in the way. Still in her pajamas, she went to the front foyer to grab her boots and gloves from the closet, along with her winter coat. She walked back to the slider and stepped outside into the chilly December air, closing the door behind her.

"What are you doing?" she called down to him.

He smiled again as he looked up at her. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

She looked closer at the lines in the snow, trying to discern exactly what they were, and then it became clear. _I love you_, written just the way he wrote it with seashells on her birthday; the letter 'I', a huge heart for the word 'love', and then a 'U'.

"I'm just sending you a reminder," he said. Steam from his breath rose up around his face as he spoke.

Elizabeth shook her head, smiling slightly. "I don't need a reminder, I know you love me."

"Well, tomorrow, when your mum is driving you crazy and you want to escape, you can walk out onto the deck and look down at this."

She pulled her coat tighter around her and smiled a little more. "Thank you, I love you too." _He really is very sweet, _she thought. "I'm sorry I've been such a bitch for the past couple of days."

He looked at her and shook his head. "You haven't been a bitch, Lizzy, don't say that." A broad smile grew on his face. "Although, if that _was_ you being a bitch, I'd say I've got it pretty easy."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open as she laughed at his tease. She reached to scoop up a handful of snow from the deck railing, and quickly formed it into a snowball, staring at him as she packed it firm, making it perfectly round.

Without taking his eyes off of her, Will bent down to grab a handful of snow and did the same, packing it, then holding it loosely in his gloved hand.

Elizabeth pointed behind her. "Windows. Sliding door. Lots of glass."

"My aim isn't that-"

Before he even finished his sentence, she hurled the snowball at him full-force, nailing him in the upper thigh.

"Ow! Hey, that was awfully close to a very sensitive area!" He heard her laugh in response. "Shit, of course I have the softball pitcher for a girlfriend," he muttered to himself. He threw a snowball at her, and she easily ducked out of its path before turning to go back into the house.

Elizabeth pulled on the door handle, but it wouldn't budge. _No!_

Realizing her predicament, Will grinned and started advancing quickly toward the stairs, although he wanted to be careful not to trample all over the little love note he'd just left in the snow. He ascended the stairs two at a time, and found Elizabeth standing in the corner, clutching her coat around her, giggling nervously.

"What are you doing way over there?" he asked, chuckling at her.

"Hiding from you."

"Now, why would you need to hide from me?" he asked innocently as he scooped up a handful of snow from the railing and started walking toward her.

Elizabeth put her hands out in front of her. "Don't you dare, William. I swear, I will _kill_ you, don't you dare come near me with that snow!"

He kept coming, advancing on her slowly, his grin growing into a full smile. "You look cold. Come here, I'll warm you up."

"Oh sure, and I've got a bridge to the Vineyard I'd like to sell you," she said, laughing, watching as he crept toward her. "Ooh no, you're freezing...I'm sure your nose and hands and other parts of you are cold..._none_ of you is touching me."

"This from the girl who skinny dips in the ocean." He stopped in front of her. "You locked us out. I don't have my keys, they're in the house."

"Um, no hide-a-key anywhere?" she asked hopefully, looking up at him as he playfully loomed over her. There was no mistaking the predatory gleam in his eyes.

"No, no hide-a-key. Well, not yet, anyway." He moved even closer, still holding the snow.

She glanced around him at Georgiana's house, nodding her chin in its general direction, knowing Georgiana had the day off as well. "Um, why don't you go see if they're – if Georgie's awake, she has a key."

Will rolled his eyes. "I am _not_ knocking on that door." Noticing that Elizabeth was truly starting to look cold, he sighed and dropped the snow, finally taking pity on her. "Come here." He unzipped his coat and opened it, and she immediately pressed up against him, snuggling into him.

"Ohhh, you're not cold at all, you're nice and warm," she said into his chest as he wrapped his arms around her.

He pulled her collar away from her neck and leaned down to rub her warm skin with his cold nose, making her squeal. "Cold nose, warm...heart," he said, moving the collar away further so he could press his icy lips to her skin, making her squeal again. Pulling back away from her, he reached to open her coat and stare at her pajama-clad chest, wiggling his eyebrows. "Hm, the cold does have its, um, perks."

Elizabeth pulled her coat closed again. "Pervert."

Will grinned and shrugged. "I'm your pervert," he said quietly, pulling her back into his coat.

She smiled, unable to hide it any longer. "That's true. Lucky me." They stood quietly hugging on the deck for a moment, until Elizabeth spoke again. "I _am_ sorry you know, I meant that. I've been kind of a crab for the past few days."

"It's alright." He was quiet for a moment, trying to decide what he wanted to say to her to make her see the situation in a different light. "You just have to look at it this way; Christmas is only one day. And out of that one day, they'll only be here for a few hours."

"I know it's only one day, but it's our first Christmas together, and I want it to be special."

"Do you think it won't be, just because they're here?"

Elizabeth looked up at him and shrugged. "That's my biggest worry, yes."

"Lizzy, nothing is going to make this Christmas less special, certainly not your parents. _Especially_ not your parents. I refuse to let them have that much influence over us, or over our feelings. It's not as if it's just them coming over anyway, everyone else will be here too, and we'll have a good day. It's going to be fine."

"I hope so."

He tilted her chin up so he could kiss her. "Please don't worry about it anymore, okay?"

She nodded. "Okay."

Will kissed her again, then playfully rubbed her nose with his. "You're very chilly, Miss Bennet," he said, letting his lips drift over hers one more time, "but luckily, your perverted boyfriend knows just how to warm you up. Too bad we can't get in the damn house."

She giggled against his lips. "Oh, come on, let's go down to Georgie's and get the key. I'll knock." She bent to tuck the cuffs of her pajama bottoms into her boots to keep them dry, then stood up straight again and winked at Will flirtatiously. "By the time we get back from there, I'll probably be _really_ cold."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth woke slowly on Christmas morning, curling into Will as he slept soundly beside her. As she stretched, she felt Fenway moving at the foot of the bed, and smiled as he made his way toward her. She could hear him purring as soon as he was close to her, and he tentatively reached his nose out to hers.<p>

"Merry Christmas to you too," she whispered, petting him gently, and smiling as he settled comfortably on top of the comforter, in the small hollow of space between her stomach and Will's back. She watched as the cat became focused on Will's head as he stirred a bit, and she saw him begin to get himself into attack mode. Her hand held him gently as she quietly reprimanded him. "No, you're not doing that this morning. Let him sleep." She gave him a soft nudge. "Scoot, troublemaker." Fenway, obviously displeased at having his playtime thwarted, jumped from the bed and walked slowly out of the room.

Elizabeth pressed up against Will again, and began lightly kissing his back and shoulders, inhaling the faint scent of cologne that still lingered on his skin, before laying her cheek against his warm back. He began to stir more, and she slid up in the bed a little so she could reach his ear. One arm snaked around his waist, and she let her hand rest on his stomach, lightly stroking it.

She began kissing his neck and lightly biting his earlobe, making his body jump slightly. His breathing changed, and she knew he was awake.

"Good morning," she whispered quietly.

Will lifted his head off of the pillow and turned to peer over his shoulder at Elizabeth. She was bright eyed and smiling, and he immediately rolled over so he could face her, pulling her close. "Good morning," he said sleepily. He buried his face in her neck, kissing her there and breathing in the scent of her, entwining his legs with hers. She didn't say anything for a moment, just continued to lazily move her hands up and down his back, and he felt himself being lulled back into a warm, comfortable sleep.

Elizabeth could tell he was drifting off again, and that was okay. She let her hands drift over him with a featherlight touch, up to his shoulders, then to his neck. From there, they drifted up into his thick hair, and she massaged his head lightly, letting her fingernails graze his scalp just a little. She felt the movement of his lips against her neck, and knew that he was awake again, and more than likely smiling. Pulling one of her legs loose from his, she hooked it over his hip and pushed against him further.

Will moved his head from the very warm crook of Elizabeth's neck so that he could look at her face. She was beautiful, and he loved looking at her, especially in the morning. _And,_ it just so happened that all the right parts of her body were pressing into all the right parts of his, and his blood was starting to pump a little harder. Honestly, when it came right down to it, it didn't take much. He was always hungry for her, and was amazed that as much as they were with each other, as much as they made love, he always wanted more. Feeling the first stirrings of arousal, he pressed himself tightly to her.

"Merry Christmas," he said quietly as he gazed down at her.

She arched her eyebrow at him, and he knew he was in for a tease as she hitched her leg up even higher on his hip and slowly moved her breasts against his chest. "Merry Christmas, Will," she said, leaning in to kiss him at the same time that her hand moved to stroke his growing erection under the sheets.

"I see you're ready for the holiday," she said, still grinning as she kissed him again.

"I am," he said, smiling widely. "I come bearing gifts."

She bit her bottom lip, and he watched as her eyes lit with mischief. "Better yet, you bear gifts that come."

He tickled her waist, making her laugh. "Elizabeth Rose Bennet!" he said with feigned shock.

"Oh, you poor thing, did I offend your delicate sensibilities?"

He growled playfully. "Not at all." It was obvious she had something more to say, and he sighed, smiling at her. "Go ahead, say it. You're dying to say something."

She bit her lip again, trying not to laugh. "Is that – is that a yule log you've got there, or are you just happy to see me?"

He smiled, watching her as she cracked herself up, enjoying the fact that she was relaxed and playful. The day ahead was full of uncertainties, but this little bit of time between them, this respite from the outside world, was full of nothing but certainties and truths and love – a tremendous amount of love.

Eventually she quieted. Her hand still stroked him persistently, and he moved one of his hands up to cup her breast, molding it gently, watching her nipple as it hardened under the attention of his thumb. He raised his eyes to hers again. "Merry Christmas, Lizzy," he whispered, all traces of humor gone, his gaze now filled with love and desire.

"Merry Christmas, Will." She kissed him deeply before pulling away slightly. "I love you."

He moved to gently roll her onto her back, hovering over her, looking down into her shining emerald eyes. "I love you too, Lizzy. Always."

They made love tenderly and slowly, basking in the emotions that swirled between them, bringing them closer, binding them together. They dozed lightly afterward, wrapped up in each other, as the snow began to fall once again.

* * *

><p>"What's up? Is something wrong?" Elizabeth asked her sister, concern showing on her face.<p>

Everyone had been at the house for a little over an hour, and so far, everything was going well. The mood was festive, and although her father was mostly quiet, even he seemed to be enjoying himself. Elizabeth saw that he watched Will quite a bit, and guessed that he was trying to get a measure of what type of man Will was. It was her father's way to observe people and try to puzzle them out; she was the same way, and knew that the habit had been picked up from him. She also knew that _Will_ knew that her father was watching him, and he went out of his way to dote on Elizabeth, even more so than he usually did.

Her mother was pleasantly subdued. The look on her face as she walked into the house was almost comical; she had been to Charles and Jane's house, and was amazed at its size, so her shock was expected, as the Darcy house was quite a bit larger, as was the amount of property surrounding it. After entering, she greeted Elizabeth with a kiss on the cheek and a brief hug, granting the same greeting to Will. He was a bit stiff with both of her parents, but it didn't bother her in the slightest. She knew he would never be completely comfortable with them, and that was fine with her.

Lydia arrived with Jane, Charles, Uncle Ed, and Aunt Vee, and not too long after that, Georgiana and Matt strolled across the back yard to join them, careful not to trample Will's love note (which Georgiana teased him mercilessly about). Elizabeth, Jane, and Lydia welcomed Georgiana into their 'sister' circle quite readily, and the four of them got along very well. Georgiana and Lydia even made tentative plans to have lunch while Georgie was on a holiday break from teaching. Will's eyebrows rose when he heard that, but Elizabeth reassured him with a squeeze of her hand that it was fine. Lydia had come a long way in a very short period of time.

Elizabeth was a little concerned, though, that Jane had pulled her aside, telling her she needed to talk to her about something. They had gone down the hall to the office, away from everyone, and Elizabeth had shut the door behind them.

"No, nothing is wrong," Jane answered. "I – I have something for you, and I wanted to give it to you in private, that's all." Jane held out the small, festively wrapped gift that she had carried with her, unseen by Elizabeth.

"Jane, we never exchange gifts anymore, you shouldn't have gotten me anything."

"Oh, stop. You'll understand when you see what it is."

Elizabeth sighed, then reached out to take the package from Jane's hand. It only took a moment to pull the paper off, and at first, Elizabeth was puzzled by what she was looking at. It was a tiny white baby bib, with the words _'I Love My Auntie' _embroidered in green across the front. Suddenly it clicked, and Elizabeth looked up at Jane, eyes wide.

"Jane, are you – are you pregnant?"

Jane could only smile broadly and nod, her eyes shining.

Elizabeth reached for her sister and wrapped her in a big hug. They stood there, laughing and hugging for a moment before Elizabeth pulled back to look at her. Both women had tears in their eyes. "How long have you known? When are you due?"

"We found out right after Thanksgiving, but I didn't want to say anything then, it was too soon. It still kind of is, but I wanted to let you know. I'll still wait a while before telling anyone else. I'm due at the end of July."

"I'm so happy for you!" Elizabeth said, genuinely overjoyed. "How's the father to be?"

Jane rolled her eyes. "Oh, over the moon, of course, doting on me, and completely convinced that he has super-strength sperm."

Elizabeth laughed at that. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. Good days and bad days. It's bearable. I remember you mentioning that Lauren was really sick all the time, but for me, it's been mainly in the morning, and it's only been nausea. I've never actually gotten sick."

"Oh, that's good." She smiled softly at Jane and stared at her for a moment, before she shook her head. "I can't believe you're going to be a mommy."

Jane smiled back, on the verge of tears again. "I can't believe it either. I'm so excited, we both are. Oh, and listen, you can't say anything to Will, Charles wants to tell him."

"I won't." Elizabeth gave Jane another hug. "Congratulations Jane, I'm so happy for both of you."

"Thanks Lizzy."

Elizabeth stared at the little bib in her hands, smiling. _Some day_.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth stood in the kitchen, finishing up the last of the dishes, and reflected back on the day. It hadn't been bad. Will was right; having everyone there helped ease the tension, at least a bit. She decided that it felt nice to spend the day with everyone she loved, including her parents. And, she was relieved to realize that she could spend time with them without pulling her hair out. As she stood at the sink, she felt a presence behind her, and turned to see her mother there, looking around, examining everything.<p>

"This is quite a house, Lizzy."

Elizabeth nodded. "It is."

"It's beautiful. And now William owns my childhood home. I still can't understand why he bought that old place."

_Because he loves me_, Elizabeth wanted to say, but she didn't, she kept quiet.

Her mother droned on. "It's a tiny little house, no views, nothing extravagant to speak of. But here..." Mrs. Bennet glanced around again, running her hand along the granite counter top, "you've done well for yourself."

Elizabeth sighed, reaching for a towel to dry her hands. "I know I have, but I'm pretty sure that we have a difference of opinion in _how_ I've done well. So, tell me. How do _you_ think I've done well? In what way?" She knew she was being deliberately provocative, but she couldn't stop herself.

Her mother rolled her eyes. "In _this_ way," she said, gesturing openly with her hands at the room around her. "Look at this place! You have it all."

"I already had it all, before I moved in."

"Oh, you know what I mean. Do you have to pick apart everything I say? Just don't wait too long to get a ring on his finger, mind me on that. Once a man gets the milk for free, he's less likely to buy the cow."

It was Elizabeth's turn to roll her eyes. "Mother, please. Do you know how ridiculous you sound when you say things like that?" Her exasperation and frustration rose to the surface. "Will loves me. _Me_. He loves all the things about me that drive you crazy. He loves that I'm independent, that I'm a scientist, that I play softball and ride my bike and play in the mud. He loves the way I dress and that I like to take walks and go running. He loves _me_. Not just – not just the _milk_."

"Of course he does, _right_ _now_. Do you understand how easy it is for another woman to swoop in and change all that? A newer, younger model, perhaps one with prettier eyes, longer legs? Men are men, Lizzy, and when you get down to it, they're all the same."

Elizabeth stood there, shocked at what her mother had just said, but not so shocked that she wouldn't jump to Will's defense. "When did you become so damn bitter? Will is not just any man, he would never do that to me, and I refuse to let you pigeonhole him into some screwed up stereotype you have in your head. Did you tell Jane that too, before she married Charles?"

"Of course not. Jane has nothing to worry about, that man is wrapped around her finger."

Elizabeth rubbed at her eyes, feeling the stirrings of anger along with the beginnings of a headache. "You are unbelievable. Just because dad screwed around on you doesn't mean every man is like that," she said, almost under her breath.

The moment the words left her mouth, she wished she could take them back. But they were already out there, hanging in the air between them. Her mother stared at her, then blinked a few times.

"What did you just say?"

"Nothing, forget it. I don't know what I said."

"No, I won't _forget_ _it_. What did you say, Elizabeth?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I – you said something a few months ago, about men straying, and it made me think, that's all. Why would you say something like that, unless – unless you were talking from experience?"

Just then, Will walked into the kitchen, interrupting them.

"How's everything in here?" he asked, instantly noticing the tension in the room.

Mrs. Bennet glanced at him, then looked back to Elizabeth. "Would you mind giving us a few more minutes of privacy, William? Elizabeth and I need to talk."

"Sweetheart?" Will looked at Elizabeth, obviously uncertain as to what he should do. She nodded to him slightly, and he understood. "Okay." He turned and walked out, expelling a long breath, feeling a little anxious about leaving her alone, but doing it because it was what she wanted.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore," Elizabeth said quietly, after Will left the kitchen. "We have a house full of family, and this is not the time or the place."

"Then I suppose you shouldn't have said what you just said." Her mother hesitated a moment. "As far-fetched as it seems to you, I am only looking out for your best interests." She sighed. "Do you know how I met your father?"

Elizabeth looked at her, confused. "Um, yes...you met him on the island. He was with some of his college buddies, staying for the summer. One of them had a summer home there, right?"

Her mother nodded. "Yes, that's right. It was the summer before his senior year. I was already involved with someone when I met him." She hesitated again. "Another 'seasonal', as we called them back then. Boys who came for the summer. This other young man, Michael...he was from a very wealthy family that lived out on Long Island, in New York. We had been together for two years. He was wonderful, and I was in love with him, but your father...I met him at a party, and I swear, he made it his sole purpose that summer to sweep me off my feet. He had not a dime in his pocket, but he had the power of persuasion and charm to spare."

Elizabeth listened attentively, completely drawn into what her mother was telling her, hoping it would shed some light, _any_ light, on her mother's skewed way of thinking.

"By the end of the summer, I was a goner. I couldn't imagine living without your father, and Michael couldn't understand it. We fought horribly at the end...we were young, passionate, foolish kids, and we said hurtful things. He made it clear that your father would never be able to give me the life I deserved, would never be able to give me the things that Michael could give me. He insisted I would be miserable, living the life of a school teacher's wife, stuck on Cape Cod or even worse, on the island, never to leave, never to see the world, never to experience a full life...I refused to listen to him, of course, and sent him on his way. I broke his heart, he said." She shrugged, lost in her memories. "I was in love with David Bennet."

She looked at Elizabeth seriously, but when she spoke, her voice was soft. "Yes, your father had an affair. Years ago. It's been over for a long time, but the pain of it is still there. It always will be, I suppose. Do you know how often since then that I've thought I should have chosen Michael over him? Should have gone with the man who promised me everything, instead of the one who wrote me love letters and picked me flowers, and promised to love me forever? Love fades, Lizzy. Infatuation, adoration...they disappear. Promises get broken. Your father's did."

Elizabeth stood there, not knowing what to say, shocked at everything she had just been told. This is just what she _didn't_ want to know, yet here she was, listening to every sordid detail. "How – how did you find out? About dad?"

"The usual way. Odd charges on his credit card bill. Late nights out. Strange phone calls. It all began to add up."

Elizabeth chewed her lip, almost feeling as if she was going to cry, but not wanting to, not now, not in front of her mother. "I'm sorry that happened to you, mum, I really am. But you have to understand that not every man is dad. Will loves me, and I love him. He fought to get me back."

"Yes, he did – after he left you."

Elizabeth swallowed. _That stung_. "You're right. And when he first tried to come back, I wouldn't let him, I pushed him away, as hard as I could. But then I couldn't push anymore, I didn't _want_ to push. He loves me, mum, for all the right reasons, just like I love him for all the right reasons, and his wealth isn't one of them. He's not making me empty promises, or trying to charm me into believing he's someone that he's not. He's the best man I know...I can't imagine my life without him."

Mrs. Bennet walked over to Elizabeth, taking both of her daughter's hands in her own. "My sincerest wish, Lizzy, is that you're right about him. I would never wish for any of my daughters to travel the road I've traveled. That's why I say the things I say, and although they may sound _ridiculous_ to you, I suppose it's my way of trying to look out for you and protect you."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, Elizabeth Rose," her mother said, squeezing her hands tightly. "You can say what you want, and think what you want, but I do love you, and I want what's best for you. If you feel that William is what's best...then you need to protect that, protect what you have, and don't settle for anything less than one-hundred percent of his heart, and in return, you give him one-hundred and ten percent of yours. Don't give him the chance to lose sight of whatever it is he loves about you, because that's when the trouble starts."

Inwardly, Elizabeth sighed. Her mother really was trying to give good advice, and in a twisted way, it almost made sense, but right now, her brain was entirely too fried to think on it. "I know, mum, I know what you're saying. I get it. You have to understand, though, that I'm a grown woman. Your advice – or what you call advice – isn't helpful to me. The things you say, the things you imply about Will, _and_ about me – they're hurtful, and it's time for you to stop. Can you just try to be happy for me, at least a little?"

Mrs. Bennet stared at her for a long moment, and Elizabeth was surprised when her mother pulled her into a hug. "I really do want you to be happy, Lizzy. I want _all_ of my girls to be happy."

"I know you do, mum," Elizabeth said quietly, sighing in resignation and hugging her back loosely. "I know you do."

* * *

><p>Charles joined Will on the deck, as both men decided they needed a breath of fresh air. Charles' eyebrows rose when he saw the message that Will had written in the snow yesterday. "Whose work is that, yours or Lizzy's?"<p>

Will smiled sheepishly. "Mine. She was feeling a little bit unsettled about having her parents here today, she was afraid that they would ruin the day. I wanted to cheer her up."

Charles shrugged. "That's not an unreasonable fear, with her parents. They've been pretty tame today, though. I'm kind of surprised. Mrs. Bennet has even been helpful."

"Yeah, they've been okay," Will said flatly, taking a sip of his beer. Even though he was standing out on the deck, his thoughts were back in the kitchen.

Charles cleared his throat. "Caroline asked me if she could join us today."

That got Will's attention. His eyes opened wide, and he almost choked on his drink. "You're kidding me. No offense, Charles, but what the fuck is wrong with your sister?"

Charles laughed. "No offense taken, believe me." He sighed, still smiling a little. "It's not really funny, I know, but I just have no idea how to get through to her. When I told her she wasn't invited, she wanted me to call you to ask if she could just tag along."

"What did you say?"

"I was honest with her. I told her she insulted you and Elizabeth at the wedding and embarrassed me. I told her that you wanted nothing to do with her, and that it would be a cold day in hell before she ever received an invitation to your home. Then I dropped the bomb, and told her that Lizzy had moved in with you."

Will smiled. "What did she do?"

"Nothing, really. She muttered a lot, then swore up and down that some day, you'd see the error of your ways."

Will shook his head. "Why doesn't she just focus on someone else? I don't understand why she's so intent on acquiring _me_. I mean, there are plenty of wealthy men roaming the streets and trolling the clubs of Boston, why doesn't she go after one of them?"

"Hm...good question...I don't know what the hell she sees in you."

Will gave him a hard shove, making Charles' beer slosh.

"Actually, she _has_ been seeing someone," Charles said, a bit sedately.

Will's eyes opened wide. "Are you shitting me?"

"Unfortunately, I shit you not."

"What do you mean _unfortunately_? Who is it?"

Charles cleared his throat. "Dalton McCray."

Will let out a guffaw. "_Dalton_?" He knew exactly who Dalton was. They had gone through high school and then Harvard at the same time, and would see each other out and about occasionally, usually at big society events, when Will lived in Boston. He knew that Dalton was married, but was still very much the playboy, and was quite wealthy. "She really couldn't sink any lower. Dating a married man?"

Charles shook his head. "I tried to talk to her about it, talk some sense into her, but she wouldn't listen to me." He grunted. "What else is new. He's treating her like a queen right now, but you and I both know that he goes through women pretty damn fast. It won't last long, I'm sure. Jane is horrified, she can't even look her in the face. Caroline stopped by last week and was bursting at the seams with wanting to talk about him, and Jane shut her down pretty quick, she didn't want to hear about it at all. It made her really uncomfortable..." His voice trailed off, and he shook his head. "It really disturbed her."

Will wondered then if Jane shared Elizabeth's theories about their father. "Hell, it disturbs me."

"Me too."

Will looked at Charles, and felt a little sorry for him. "Charles, she's a grown woman, she makes her own mind up about things. If this is the path she's chosen for the time being, let her travel it. Karma has a way of coming back to bite you in the ass. And honestly, it really doesn't surprise me that she'd be with someone like Dalton. He has everything she wants, and gives it away pretty freely, from what I've heard."

"And at least she doesn't want it from you anymore, right? The sad thing is, she readily admitted to me that he's just a temporary diversion to take her mind off of you. If you so much as winked at her, she'd be on your doorstep. So, she's occupied for the time being...at least, until Dalton discards her when he gets bored with her. I'd give it a month or so."

"You're right, she'll only get a quick fix from him." Will shrugged. "She sees in him exactly what she sees in me; dollar signs." He chuckled. "It's almost comical, because it's really the thing that Lizzy cares the least about. I would say that she has a slowly developing awareness of it, but she chooses to ignore it. When she first moved in, it was more of a problem for her than it was a plus."

"I remember us talking about that. She's getting used to it, I assume?"

Will shrugged. "I think she's more comfortable with it."

"Good." Charles chuckled. "Jane adjusted pretty quickly." He shot Will a look out of the corner of his eye and cleared his throat. "Once the baby comes, Jane won't be working as much anyway."

Will was looking towards the backyard, and nodded absentmindedly. "Yeah." Suddenly, he realized exactly what Charles had just said, and whipped his head around to look at him. "Wait, what did you say? Did you just say '_the baby_'? What baby?"

"Our baby."

"You have a baby?"

"Yes," Charles said, smiling widely. "Well, almost. Almost a baby. Jane's pregnant. We're having a baby. She is. We are."

"Charles, that's fantastic!" Will said, reaching out to shake Charles' hand, then giving him a brief hug, slapping his back. "Wow. You certainly didn't waste any time, did you?"

Charles shrugged, still smiling. "We didn't want to wait. Neither of us thought it would happen this quickly, but...we're happy about it."

"How is Jane feeling, is she alright?"

"Yeah, she's great. She gets nauseous sometimes, but other than that, she feels good." He smiled widely again, making Will laugh.

"Who else knows?"

"No one. Well, no one except Lizzy. Jane was going to tell her today, I don't know if she has yet or not, so don't say anything to her."

"Okay." He held out his hand again. "Congratulations, Charles."

Charles grasped his hand, shaking it firmly, smiling once again. "Thanks Will."

* * *

><p>The last of their guests had just left, and Will slowly closed the door behind them. Elizabeth sagged against him, wrapping her arms around his waist as they headed back to the living room. The fire was still rolling gently in the fireplace, so Will dimmed the lights. They sank down onto the couch, kicked off their shoes and stretched out, laying next to each other, enjoying the holiday music as it played softly over the surround-sound system.<p>

"Long day, wasn't it?" Will asked, smoothing his hand down Elizabeth's back as she curled into him.

"It was, but you were right, it went okay. Most of it, anyway."

"Did you get a chance to talk to Jane much at all?" Will asked, trying to get a feel for if Elizabeth knew the Bingley's news. He knew that Jane and Elizabeth had disappeared together for a little while, and figured that Jane must have told her then, but he had to be sure.

Elizabeth raised her head up slightly off of his chest to look up at him. "I did, yes. Did you...talk to Charles much?"

"I did. We were out on the deck for quite a while at one point, actually."

Neither said anything for a moment, but they smiled at each other.

"He told you?" Elizabeth asked, biting her lip.

"He did. Jane?"

"She did. Isn't it exciting?" Elizabeth said quietly, a soft smile gracing her features.

Will nodded. "Yeah, it is. Charles was excited, definitely. How about Jane?"

"We cried," she said, laughing a little. Once again, she rested her head on his chest.

"That figures."

Elizabeth pinched his thigh. "She's hormonal."

"That's a scary word. And what's your excuse?"

"I was happy – you know how I can get when I'm feeling overwhelmed."

He squeezed her tightly and kissed the top of her head to show he was teasing. "Yes, I know how you can get."

Elizabeth sighed lightly. "I'm so happy for them."

Will kissed her head again. "Me too."

They were quiet for a little while longer, until Will broke the silence. Even though Elizabeth was clearly happy about Jane and Charles' news, he could tell that she was slightly preoccupied, and knew the reason why. He decided to broach the topic now, instead of letting it sit there unacknowledged.

"You and your mum were in the kitchen for quite a while tonight." He felt her answering nod against his chest. "Do you want to talk about anything?" This time he felt the shake of her head, and leaned down to kiss it. "Are you sure, love?"

She didn't answer right away, so he took advantage of her silence. "I wanted to stay in the kitchen with you, I didn't want to leave you alone with her. What did she say?"

Elizabeth caved. "She just – well, she basically confirmed what I've been thinking about my dad. He did have an affair a few years ago. She told me about how she and my father met, what their situations were at the time...I think it's the first time I've really heard their back-story. I knew they met on the Vineyard when he was there one summer, but that's really all I knew."

"So...she just – she just blurted everything out? Told you everything?"

"No, it wasn't like that. I said something without really thinking about it, and she took it from there. She was pretty straightforward about it, there was no drama, no tears...just the facts. It's like she's indifferent to it now."

"You didn't talk much to your dad after you came out of the kitchen."

She shrugged. "I don't know how I feel about him right now. I don't know if I even have the _right_ to feel anything. Like I've said, it's their marriage, and my mother made the choice to remain in it. She made that decision, so do I actually have the right to be angry with him?" She swallowed loudly. "I don't know how I'm supposed to feel."

Will reached down and moved her body so that she was laying completely on top of him, peering down into his face. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'm sorry you had to hear that today, of all days." He lifted his lips to hers, reaching up to cup her cheek with one hand as he kissed her once, then again.

Elizabeth closed her eyes and rubbed noses with him gently. "It's okay. I'm fine, I am. I don't want to think about it anymore tonight." She lifted her head slightly and glanced at her watch. "There are only four hours left of this holiday, and I don't want to spend them thinking or talking about my parents." She wiggled around on top of him a little.

He smiled up at her. "I don't either." His other hand rose to her face, and he kissed her deeply before speaking again. "I have a little something for you."

She smiled and wiggled again. "Hmm. Little? I don't think so."

He rolled his eyes and reached to give her a soft slap on the bottom. "Now who's the pervert? I am referring to a gift, Miss Bennet, not...something else." She was obviously determined to move on from the conversation, and he let her, knowing they'd talk about it at another time.

"Oh, it's a _gift_ alright," she went on, enjoying the distraction that teasing him provided. "Or...should we call it a _package_? Do I get to unwrap it?" One of her hands slid between their bodies, and she felt his body jump slightly as she found her target and began to massage him through his pants. "It seems pretty substantial. You told me a while ago that I was the gift that kept on giving. Well, I think I can say the same for-"

Will stopped her ramblings with another deep kiss, and another, and another, until she was too breathless to talk. He stared up at her, loving the way her eyes were lit with desire. "Are you going to let me give you your actual Christmas gift now?"

"You weren't supposed to get me anything."

He shrugged, trying to look innocent.

She laughed and kissed him. "I have something for you, too."

Elizabeth lifted herself off of him and went to the basement, coming up with her larger package. Will had retrieved his from the office as well, and was already back on the couch.

"Can we sit on the floor?" she asked quietly. To her, Christmas gifts were meant to be opened while sitting on the floor in front of the Christmas tree, not in a chair or on the couch.

"Sure," Will said, shrugging.

She smiled at him. "Thanks."

Will gave her the little box, wrapped in pretty silver paper, and she gave him the large box, wrapped in red, green, and gold striped paper. They opened the gifts simultaneously, and Elizabeth was the first to lay eyes on hers.

"Oh, Will...this is gorgeous." She raised her eyes from the bracelet to him, and was rewarded with his beautiful dimples.

Will stopped opening his gift to watch the surprise on her face. He had to admit, the jeweler had done a fantastic job. The starfish were all connected as if they were holding 'hands', the surface of each one completely encrusted with diamonds.

"I don't remember seeing the bracelet in the store when we were there," she said as she stared at the gems, glimmering brightly from the light of the fire.

"That's because there wasn't a bracelet, this one was made just for you."

Her eyes opened wide. "Really?"

"Yes, I wanted you to have a bracelet to match."

She leaned forward from her cross-legged position on the floor to kiss him. "Thank you so much, I love it."

"You're welcome."

"Open yours, open yours," she said, excitement in her voice.

He did, and Elizabeth was pleased to see his reaction. Mostly he was speechless, but he stared at each of the pictures for a long time, as if he was reliving the memories associated with them.

"Lizzy...this is unbelievable. It's – it's – I don't even have the words." He swallowed thickly. "Look at you..." he said, staring at one picture that was just of her, wearing his thick cream-colored cable knit sweater, hair loose and flowing down around her shoulders, her body curled up in one of the adirondack chairs, a broad smile on her face. The black and white image did nothing to dampen the sparkle in her eyes. "God, you are so beautiful..." Again, his voice trailed off.

Will turned to look at her, becoming entranced by the emotions clearly written on her face. He soaked everything in, all these feelings, the love and the happiness bouncing madly between them, and knew then that he would ask her to marry him soon. He wouldn't do it now, not tonight, but...when the moment was right, he would know it. He would _feel_ it, and would let his heart guide him.

"You'll have to help me find the perfect spot for this," he said quietly, his voice tight with emotion.

Elizabeth took a moment to show him how the larger frame separated into three smaller ones, and again, he found himself staring at the pictures. He set everything down gently, then leaned to kiss her. "Thank you, it's a beautiful gift. I love it."

She smiled. "You're welcome."

Just then, Fenway flew into the room and launched himself at the wrapping paper, tearing it up as he played.

"We have to clean that up or he'll eat it," Elizabeth said, laughing as she watched him.

"You know he's completely high from all those catnip toys you got him, don't you?" Will replied, unable to stop himself from chuckling as the cat flew around the room, chasing imaginary prey. He stood from the floor and held out a hand to help Elizabeth up, then bent to pick up all the shredded bits of paper. They locked up and shut the lights off, all but those on the tree, and headed upstairs.

Elizabeth walked out of the master bath to find that Will had lit the fireplace, giving the room a soft glow. She turned to the bed, and there he lay, stretched out on top of the comforter, resting against the pillows that were propped up against the headboard. His hands were laced comfortably behind his head, the very head upon which sat a 'Santa' hat. It was bright red, complete with white trim and a giant white pompom. He wore the hat, and nothing else.

Will looked at Elizabeth, and as their eyes met, they smiled widely and both began laughing. It seems she had gotten the same idea, and was now adorned in a similar hat. To Will's delight, however, she had an entire ensemble to wear; a silky red bit of lingerie, and those red high-heeled shoes. _Those shoes!_

"We're ridiculous," Elizabeth said, still laughing a little.

"We're not ridiculous at all." He patted the bed, looking her up and down. "That's the last word I'd use to describe you right now. Come on over, Mrs. Claus."

She giggled, but climbed onto the bed with him. Snuggling up next to him, she lifted her legs to cross them over his, dragging the toe of one red shoe up his calf, and smiling when she heard him groan.

"Those heels have given the best return-for-investment I've ever made," he said, reaching down to stroke one of her thighs. Looking down at her, he smiled before suddenly pulling her up to straddle his lap, making her gasp in surprise. He leaned down to nibble at her lips before kissing her thoroughly. "Now tell me, Miss Bennet...just how naughty have you been?"

Elizabeth kissed him deeply, reaching up to hold his face gently, stroking his cheeks with her thumbs. They remained thus occupied for several long minutes, until hands began wandering, knowing exactly where to go, seeking warm skin.

Elizabeth pulled her mouth from his, just barely, and murmured against his lips. "Not nearly as naughty as I plan to be."

* * *

><p><em>Ahhhh, Christmas in October. I hope to post again next weekend, but honestly, work has me on the run right now. It might be another two weeks. Please leave a review andor comment if you can! Thanks!_


	57. Chapter 57

_Here it is...and it's even longer than the last chapter! Hopefully it's worth the wait. Thanks to everyone reading and reviewing! Only a couple of chapters left._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 57<strong>

On the Wednesday before New Years Eve, Will stood with Elizabeth in the kitchen, having just finished cleaning up after dinner.

"That was delicious, love, thank you," he said quietly.

Elizabeth smiled at him. "You're welcome."

"Would you mind if I headed over to Georgie's for a little bit? I want to talk to her before I head out tomorrow." He was leaving for Boston in the morning, so that he could spend the day getting some work done at his office. He'd stay overnight, and if needed, would go into the office again on Friday morning.

"Of course I don't mind, go ahead."

He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. "I'll be back in a bit."

"Take your time." Elizabeth knew that Will was preoccupied of late with thoughts of his sister, and thought that perhaps they were long overdue for a heart to heart.

New Years Day fell on a Saturday this year, and Jane and Charles had begged Elizabeth and Will to come to Boston for the New Years Eve 'First Night' festivities that had been planned in the city for Friday night. After some deliberation, they had decided to go, and when Elizabeth found out that Elliot would be visiting Megan from South Carolina, she invited the two of them along as well, telling them they had ample room at the brownstone. Even though Will had only socialized with Elliot a couple of times (not counting the night Will had paid him off to let him use the stage while in South Carolina), their shared passion for music had given them plenty of things to discuss, and the two men had become friendly very quickly. Since Elizabeth's office was closed on Friday in observance of the holiday, she would catch a ride up to Boston on Friday afternoon with Megan and Elliot.

Before she arrived, Will had his mind set on accomplishing three things.

The first, though not necessarily the most important, was to catch up on some work at RJD. He hadn't been to the office since the middle of December, and although he kept up on most things from his office at home, it wasn't the same as being there. He had four conference calls set up for Thursday afternoon; one with Richard, one with Stephanie, and then two others with people from his Washington DC office and his New York office. Out in San Francisco, FRD Design was doing enormously well already, growing beyond Will's expectations, which was a great relief for him. In fact, it looked as though he'd need to hire another architect sooner rather than later.

The second thing he wanted to do was pay a visit to Mrs. Reynolds. They talked at least once a week, but he wanted to visit her, alone, before Elizabeth came. They would probably visit together on Sunday as well, before they headed back to the Cape.

The third thing he wanted to do, and definitely the priority for him, was to go out and buy his girl a ring. A real, honest-to-goodness engagement ring. He got nervous just thinking about it, only because he wanted said ring to be absolutely perfect. Having the ring didn't mean he was going to propose this weekend; in fact, he knew he wouldn't. He didn't want it to be predictable, didn't want to pull out the ring at the stroke of midnight and drop down on bended knee.

Nope, not him.

Of course, just because he had ruled out _that_ idea didn't mean he had a better one, and he absolutely _did_ _not_. So, he just figured he'd carry the ring around with him, somehow, wherever they went, and when the moment came, he'd know it and he'd act on it. Impulsively. _Brilliant_.

Georgiana and Matt had also been invited to celebrate New Years Eve in Boston, but Georgiana had immediately declined the invitation, saying that she and Matt wanted to ring in the New Year quietly on the Cape. This had come as no surprise to either Will or Elizabeth; they both figured that the last place she'd want to be on New Years Eve was in Boston.

Although Georgiana had moved on admirably from the events of a year ago, he was sure that the celebration of New Years Eve would bring all those horrid memories back. He wanted to check in with her before he left for the weekend, to make sure she was doing alright.

Matt was up in Boston, but Will knew he would be arriving tomorrow night. Matt was a huge source of comfort for Will; he liked him a great deal, and was becoming more and more accustomed to Matt being around, staying with Georgiana whenever he could. At first, Will was worried that her relationship with Matt would be a fly by night thing, but it was obvious that he was head over heels for Georgie, and wasn't going anywhere. It was also very obvious that she felt the same way.

Will knocked on Georgiana's front door, and when it swung open she stood there, cell phone to her ear.

She grinned at her brother. "Hey, Will's here to visit, can I call you back later?" There was a moment of silence, and then she blushed before turning away.

Will rolled his eyes, but found himself smiling. He heard her murmur something into the phone, something he was obviously not supposed to hear, and then she hung up before turning to face him again.

"Hi," she said, grinning widely at him. "Come on in."

"Hi there. I didn't interrupt anything, did I?" Will couldn't miss the sparkle in her eyes as they walked into the living room. They plopped down on the couch, one at each end, and turned to face each other.

"Oh, no, that was just Matt."

Will nodded. "Is he still planning on heading here tomorrow night?"

"Yup, that's the plan."

"Are you doing anything special for New Years Eve?"

She scrunched her nose. "Not really. Neither one of us wants to go out. It's kind of lame, but...I like the idea of just having a quiet night at home, just the two of us and the big silver ball in Times Square."

Will grinned. "Doesn't sound bad. I can't believe I'm doing First Night. I haven't done that since college."

Georgiana chuckled. "It's those Bennet sisters, they like to have fun."

Will smiled. "That they do. Speaking of which, did you have lunch with Lydia?" Georgiana was on holiday break from teaching, and he knew that she and Lydia had made tentative plans to get together.

"I did, yesterday," Georgiana replied. "We met at a little pub in Falmouth. It was fun."

"Good."

Georgiana noted the expression on his face. "Look, Lizzy and I have had discussions about Lydia. Not too in-depth, but enough that I know there were issues between them. Lydia even said a little yesterday, but she did say she's trying to make up for things. I didn't ask her to go into detail, but she seems like she's really making an effort to rectify whatever happened between them. Did you know she's going to try to get into culinary school?"

Will nodded. "Yeah, Lizzy mentioned that at some point. Maybe she could offer you some lessons."

Georgiana giggled. "That's what I said to her! She said she'd love to teach me. She starts classes at the community college in a few weeks, but she said she'd give me some pointers. God, I could use all the help I can get."

"I've made Lizzy head chef of our household. She's a much better cook than me."

"But she said she's not that good of a cook."

"She's still better than me." They both laughed.

"So, what's up?" Georgiana asked after a moment. "Did you just come over to say hi?"

"Yeah, that and...I wanted to see how you were doing. I'm leaving in the morning, and I won't be back 'til Sunday, so...I just wanted to check in."

Georgiana smiled at him, her expression softening. She knew what he was thinking about, because she was thinking about it too. "I'm okay, Will," she said quietly. "I'm good."

He stared back at her, his eyes roaming her face, looking for any traces of sadness. "Are you really? I mean, you seem like you are, but I just want to make sure. We haven't really talked much lately, and I kind of feel like I've been...well, not very involved."

Georgiana sighed and smiled at him. "You? Not involved? That's impossible." She paused. "You know that I would talk to you if something was bothering me, right?"

He shrugged. "I would hope so. You can always talk to Lizzy too. And you have Matt now, and I know that you can lean on him, and I'm happy about that. I just want to make sure you know that I'm here for you too."

"Of course I know that," she said softly. "This – this horrible anniversary – it's looming, but I'm not dreading it like I thought I would. Wickham is in jail, Collins is gone...life is moving on. There are so many good things happening right now, for both of us, I just want to welcome the new year and the possibilities and opportunities it represents; I'm not going to dwell on the past."

Will smiled softly at her. "Sounds good to me. I think we're both looking toward the future."

Georgiana nodded. "Speaking of which...when are you going to ask Lizzy to marry you?"

Will's smile widened. "Soon."

"Soon? That's all I get? Soon?"

"That's all you get, because that's all I know."

"Did you get a ring yet?"

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"When are you getting the ring? Oh, wait, don't tell me. _Soon_, right?"

Will laughed. "Yes, soon. Quit asking me questions. What about you? What's up with you and Matt?"

Georgie shrugged and smiled shyly. "We're happy."

"I can see that. He's good to you?" Will asked quietly, needing to know that she was being taken care of, being treated well, being loved as she deserved to be.

"Yes, of course he is. I wouldn't be with him if he wasn't."

Will nodded.

"I love him, Will, and he loves me," she said quietly. Will watched as the expression on her face softened. "We're just – we're happy." She shrugged again. "I don't know how else to say it."

"You don't need to say anything else. I'm not prying, or being nosy, I just want to be sure..." his voice trailed off, and he felt a lump rise in his throat. He knew he'd always have a place in his sister's life, knew that they would always be incredibly close, but he also understood that Matt was the man in her life now, and he was truly happy for her.

Georgiana seemed to read his thoughts, and she moved down to sit next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder, like she always used to do. Will dropped his arm from the back of the couch and wrapped it around her shoulders, giving her a gentle squeeze.

"I know you want to be sure. You're my big brother, and I know you're looking out for me, and that you always will."

Will kissed the top of her head, his eyes misting slightly. "I always will."

* * *

><p>Nine o'clock on Friday morning found Will standing in Long's Jewelers, the very store he had gone to with Charles when he was getting ready to purchase Jane's engagement ring. In fact, the same clerk was there that had helped Charles.<p>

"Mr. Darcy," she said without hesitation, smiling when she recognized him instantly, "how nice to see you again."

Will immediately walked toward her. "Thank you, it's nice to see you too."

"Can I help you with anything?"

"Um, yes, you can," he said, a smile on his face. "I'm here to buy a ring."

Two hours later, he walked out of Long's with a spring in his step and a ring in his pocket, pleased with what he had ultimately decided on, convinced that Elizabeth would like it. The clerk had been extremely helpful without being overbearing, and hadn't pushed him to buy something larger or more ornate. He was tempted at first, but then the clerk started to ask him questions about Elizabeth, about the kind of jewelry she liked to wear, what her style was, what type of person she was...and then it clicked with him; she wouldn't want a huge rock on her finger, as much as he'd like to put one there. It just wasn't...her. It wasn't who she was.

To be sure, the ring he _had_ settled on had a substantial, flawless diamond, but it wasn't gaudy or flashy. No, this ring was like Elizabeth; simple yet beautiful, classy and sophisticated yet unassuming and unpretentious. It was her, definitely.

He grinned to himself as he walked down the sidewalk, headed back to his car, the ring tucked safely in the inside pocket of his suit jacket. Now, there was only one minor detail to work out.

_When?_

* * *

><p>Georgiana held hands with Matt as they strolled down the beach in New Seabury on Friday morning. It was chilly, both were bundled up, but the sun was shining brightly, casting enough warmth that the thin layer of snow remaining on the ground was beginning to melt.<p>

"So what's our big plan for tonight?" Matt asked, playfully wrapping his arms around Georgiana, bumping her with his hip as they walked.

She smiled. "I don't know, what do you want to do?"

"Well, other than kiss you at midnight, I didn't have anything else in mind."

"You don't mind staying in?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Of course not, you know I don't. We've had this discussion, and I told you that whatever you were in the mood to do, I'd go along with it. I just want to spend it with you."

Georgiana planted a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you."

"Are you – do you find yourself thinking about last year a lot? I mean, you must be thinking about it a little, but – I'm not sure if I should be asking you to talk about it, or if I should just ignore it..." He stopped talking and shrugged. "I don't want to do or say the wrong thing."

They stopped for a moment and looked out at the water, their arms still wrapped around each other. "Of course I'm thinking about it a little." She hesitated. "This will probably sound strange, but...sometimes when I think about it, I end up remembering our first conversation about that night, when you told me you were going to ask me out. It's odd to think that we could have been celebrating our one year anniversary tonight, if things hadn't happened the way they did. I might still be living in Boston, teaching there, maybe we would be living together...do you ever think of it that way?"

Matt nodded. "Yeah, of course I've thought about that. I wish there were a lot of things I could change about that night."

His expression changed, and Georgiana noticed it instantly. "What happened to me is part of the past, and I want to try to leave it there. We _both_ need to leave it there. So, no more talking about it, especially today." She tugged on him so he would turn to face her, and raised her lips to his, kissing him thoroughly, until she knew that any thoughts of the events of a year ago had fled from his mind.

As they slowly pulled apart, she recognized the now familiar shine of desire in his blue eyes. "No more talking about the past, okay?"

He nodded and kissed her again. "Okay. So, if we're not talking about the past, let's talk about the future."

Georgiana looked at him, puzzled. "The future, meaning tonight?"

"No, I mean the real future. Beyond tonight." He took a deep breath. "I've been job hunting locally, and I think I might have found something in Plymouth."

Georgiana smiled widely. "Plymouth?"

Matt grinned and nodded. "I have an interview on Monday. It's a relatively new company, they've only been around for a few years, but I did a lot of research on them, and they've been really successful. They build business applications and portals, and they do a lot of work with corporations that need multi-channel applications, which is right up my alley. I'm hoping I have a shot."

"Of course you have a shot. That's so exciting! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I just heard from their personnel director on Wednesday, and I wanted to tell you in person." He cleared his throat. "So, um, I'm definitely thinking of making a move. And not just with my job." His eyes bored into hers. "I want to live on the Cape. I'm done with the city, and I want to be closer to you."

"Well that's good, because I want you to be closer to me too." She reached up to kiss him again.

"Okay, but...how close? Before you answer that, let me just say something. The days that I spend with you here, and the nights, are the best part of my week. When I go back to Boston, all I think about is when I'll be able to come back." He sighed. "I want to get a place on the Cape, but I know what will happen-"

"You'll be here all the time," Georgiana finished for him. "It seems kind of silly, doesn't it?"

Matt shrugged. "I don't know, does it?" He swallowed loudly and plowed on. "I know we've only been together for – well, for not even six months – but I want us to live together. You don't have to answer me right now, I know it's a lot to think about, and we'd have some things to figure out. I just wanted to put the idea out there."

Georgiana's face softened, seeing how unsure he was of himself at the moment. She pulled on his arm to get them walking back toward her house. "It _is_ a lot to think about. The thing is, I don't want to just move in together because it's convenient for you, or for me. If we live together, it has to be because it's the next step in our relationship, and because it's leading us further along to other steps. Does that make sense?"

Matt nodded. "Of course it does, and it's not for convenience, believe me." He stopped again, and turned her to face him. "I love you Georgie, that's what this is about. It sounds crazy, but even after such a short period of time, I know how I feel, and I know what I want, and I want you."

Her heart gave a funny little flutter as he spoke, and she felt herself tearing up as he continued.

"Can we just leave it open for discussion, at least? I mean, we'd have to find a place, and-"

"What do you mean, we'd have to find a place?" she asked quietly. "We would already have a place."

"That's one of the things we'd need to discuss. I couldn't – I wouldn't feel right, living off of your family, off of your brother."

"Matt-"

"No, Georgie, it's how I feel." He paused for a moment and sighed. "Look, we're getting ahead of ourselves. I don't want you to rush into a decision about this, I want you to take your time and really think about what you want. If you don't want to live with me yet, it's not the end of the world. I'll take what you're willing to give, as long as you don't push me away."

One tear slid down her cheek, and she wiped it away.

"Why are you crying?" Matt asked softly. "Shit. I shouldn't have said anything, I'm sorry. It's too soon, and now you're crying." He took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Shit."

Georgiana let out a watery laugh. "Knock it off, I'm not crying because I'm upset. With everything you just said to me, why would I be upset? I'm just...emotional. Hearing you say things like that, of course it's going to get to me. And I would never push you away, not ever." She sniffled. "But I do need to think about it, and I'll want to talk about it more at some point."

He nodded. "Okay, that's fine. Just let me know when."

She smiled at his eagerness, finding it endearing. "I will, you know I will."

They continued walking, finally arriving back at her house. Georgiana's mind was racing with all that they had just discussed, and strangely, she thought of Will and Lizzy and the progression of their relationship. They had been through a pretty rough time in the middle of it all, but they were so..._together_ now. Will seemed to have a clarity and a sense of purpose that she had never seen before, not in his personal life anyway. He had always been that way with business, but now...it was as if the road ahead was clearly marked, and he was getting ready to enjoy the journey, with Elizabeth along for the ride.

Maybe she and Matt had already been through their own rough time, when they first got together; they had worked through the guilt and regrets he had about everything that happened last New Years Eve, and at the same time, they had conquered her own guilt and fears and insecurities. It had brought them so much closer together, and she felt as though they really could handle anything that was thrown at them.

Of course, she knew that he loved her, there was no question as to the depth of his feelings, and she also knew that she felt the same way. To make a home with him and have him there with her, all the time...the thought of it excited her, because she knew it _would_ be the beginning of the next step for them. Neither of them would settle for anything less.

As they walked through the door, after stomping the snow from their boots, they removed coats and hats and gloves, shaking off the chill of the late December air.

Georgiana turned to face him, placing her hands on her hips. "Would living here be up for discussion at all?"

Matt's eyes opened wide as he considered her question – and her stance. Her body language wasn't hard to read. "Georgie, I – I can't live off of your brother." He sighed. "We'd have to come to some kind of agreement, work something out. I don't want to sponge off of him."

"So it's not out of the realm of possibility?"

He smiled slightly, shaking his head. "Uggh. You kill me. No, I guess it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility." His blue eyes zeroed in on hers, and he could practically see her mind at work. "We'll talk about it more this weekend, okay? Let's just have a quiet night. No more talk of cohabitation."

She grinned at him. "Okay, no more talk of cohabitation." Reaching up to place her arms around his neck, she gave him a long kiss before taking his hand to lead him toward the master bedroom. "I would like to discuss co-showering, though. Is that okay? Can we discuss that?"

* * *

><p>"When is Elizabeth arriving?" Mrs. Reynolds asked Will. They were seated in her cozy little living room after eating lunch, which Will had picked up at a nearby deli. He glanced at his watch.<p>

"She'll be here in an hour or so. Some friends are driving her up, and they'll be staying with us for the weekend."

"Oh, that's nice. You'll have fun tonight, though it's supposed to get quite chilly. Don't forget to go to the Commons to see all the ice sculptures, I've been seeing them on the news."

"We'll get there eventually. It's going to be mobbed."

She grinned. "I'm surprised you're doing this, William. You're not much for big crowds."

Will shrugged. "Lizzy and Jane want to go, so...we're going." He smiled. "It will be fun, I'm sure."

Mrs. Reynolds smiled as she studied him. His gaze had traveled to the small table near the end of the couch, where she had placed the picture of him and Georgiana that Elizabeth had taken on the fateful day of their meeting. His inattention gave her a chance to observe him for a moment.

"Things are going well?" she asked, drawing his attention back to her.

"Very well." He smiled. "All things."

"I was referring to things between you and Elizabeth. I don't want to pry, of course. Living together is working out?"

His smile grew. "Yes, you could say that. It's more than working out." He thought for a moment. "It's funny, there was really no – no adjustment period. It just worked, from day one. Pretty seamlessly. Everything feels right, you know? It feels natural. There's no other way to explain it. The stars aligned, the fates conspired..." He shrugged. "Whatever you want to say, it happened. I can't imagine my life without her."

Mrs. Reynolds' eyebrows rose. "And?"

Will reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out the small ring box. "Here it is."

Mrs. Reynolds' hands rose to her chest. "Oh, William, is that what I think it is?"

He nodded, smiling, and began to open the box, but she stopped him.

"No, no, I don't want to see it, not until it's on her finger. She should be the first one to see it."

Will chuckled. "Okay, that's fine." He tucked it into his pocket again. "I just haven't decided when to ask her. I think I'll just wait until the right moment comes along, and take advantage of it."

She reached over to pat his knee. "That sounds like a fine idea to me." She paused briefly, examining him again. "How is everything else? I know that work is going well, and Georgie is happy, and your cousin is happily anticipating fatherhood, as is Charles...but what about you?"

He nodded and spoke quietly. "I'm okay. Actually, I'm more than okay. I still think about my father a lot, and I still hear his voice in my head occasionally, but I guess I just hear it in a different way now. There's no criticism or negativity, and I don't let it put fear or worry into me. It will always be there, I think, especially when it comes to business matters. Most of the time now, though, I hear Lizzy's voice. If I'm worried about something, I just talk to her." He chuckled. "Hers is the voice of reason. She's helped me learn a lot about myself."

Some of the words of the song he sang to Elizabeth in South Carolina came back to him suddenly. _I had to learn, what I got, and what I'm not, and who I am... _

_Truer words have never been sung, _he thought_._

"I know I've said this to you before, but you helped me too," he continued.

"Nonsense, I just turned you in the right direction and gave you a little push. That's all you needed."

Will smiled, shaking his head. "You're always so humble." He sighed. "You helped me tremendously, more than you know. And you've helped Georgiana, too. Although, you gave up on those cooking lessons a little too soon."

Mrs. Reynolds laughed. "I have a keen eye, and it enables me to see when something is a lost cause. Your sister is beyond my help in the kitchen."

Will's mouth dropped open. "Mrs. R!"

"Well, she is. I can't cook using measuring cups and teaspoons and all those things. I use dashes and pinches and a little bit of this and a dab of that...she needs some good cook books with recipes to follow, not cooking lessons."

"I'll have to tell her that."

She reached over to squeeze his knee. "You'll do no such thing. I'm sure she'll figure it out."

He glanced at his watch again. "I should go, Elizabeth will be arriving with Megan and Elliot soon, and I want to be home when they get there."

They rose from the couch and he patted the pocket of his suit, making sure the ring was there.

Mrs. Reynolds noticed the gesture. "How are you going to hide that from her?"

He shrugged, laughing. "I was just having that same thought, and I have no idea. I'll find a way." He leaned down to give her a kiss on the cheek and a hug. "Happy New Year, Alice."

"Oh, Happy New Year to you too, William. Enjoy the festivities tonight, but please be careful! All the crazies will be out prowling the city."

He laughed again. "I know. We have a car driving us around, so we'll be fine. If you'll be home on Sunday, Lizzy and I will stop by before we head back to the Cape."

"That sounds fine, I'll be here. I'll see you then."

"See you then. Bye Mrs. R."

"Bye now, William." She closed the door behind him as he left, thinking about the changes in him that had taken place over such a short period of time. As much as Will felt he owed her a debt of gratitude for helping him when he was low, she knew who was really responsible for encouraging those changes.

Smiling, she spoke quietly to herself. "Thank you, Elizabeth Bennet."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth thrummed her fingers on her legs, impatient to arrive at the brownstone. Although she was used to Will occasionally going into Boston overnight so that he could spend a couple of days at his office, she still didn't like it very much. True, a little solitude wasn't a bad thing, but at night when she went to bed, she missed him, missed the warmth and the solid weight of him next to her in the big king-sized bed.<p>

Traffic going into the city was heavy, as people were pouring in from everywhere to celebrate New Year's Eve. What started out as a small celebration years ago had grown to epic proportions; First Night events now started in the morning and continued past midnight, into the new year. Poetry slams, concerts, film festivals, dance shows, museum tours, puppet shows, fireworks – you name it, someone in Boston was doing it.

She had no idea what Charles and Jane had in mind for tonight, except for the fireworks, which Jane had mentioned she definitely wanted to see. Elizabeth had packed for the arctic; temperatures were expected to plummet during the evening, and the wind was supposed to pick up a bit. As much as she was looking forward to celebrating with everyone, she was also anticipating returning to Will's brownstone after the partying to celebrate privately. A small grin lifted her lips, betraying her slightly lascivious thoughts, as she stared out the car window at the slowly passing scenery.

She glanced at her watch again, and saw that they were running behind, but only by half an hour. She pulled out her phone to text Will.

_Mr. Darcy? _She smiled as she typed, knowing he would be smiling as well when he saw her greeting. A few minutes passed before he answered.

_Yes Miss Bennet? _ Her smile grew.

_We're running a little late, traffic is horrible. Where are you?_

_Home, waiting for you. _

She smiled again, and then her eyes opened wide as a thought occurred to her, and she typed quickly.

_Is the guest room all set? _

_Yes, I took care of it. I never noticed how nice that bed is in there. It has a great mattress. _

_Thank you for taking care of it, _she responded_, and pull your mind out of the gutter._ She laughed when she realized her mind had just _been_ in the gutter only moments before.

_I can't help it, I miss you. How far away are you?_

Elizabeth glanced outside again. _Fifteen minutes._

She chuckled softly when she read his response. _Fourteen minutes too far. See you in a bit. Xo_

When they pulled up outside the brownstone, Will walked out to meet them. Elizabeth couldn't get out of the car fast enough, and greeted him with an enthusiastic kiss, making him smile. They removed all the bags from the trunk, and Will gave Elliot directions on where to park. Even while he was talking, his arm wrapped around Elizabeth's waist, squeezing her tightly. When Elliot pulled away from the curb, with Megan along for the ride, Will immediately turned to Elizabeth and pulled her into his arms, lifting her off of her feet and giving her a thorough kiss.

He had to stop kissing her when her smile grew too much, and so he pulled away and looked at her, as they were just about eye to eye. "You told me fifteen minutes. It was twenty-six."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Sorry. If I'd been driving, it would have been ten."

Will raised his eyebrows. "For some reason, I don't doubt that." He loosened his hold on her, letting her slide down his body before kissing her again. "I missed you."

"So you said. I missed you too, believe me." She burrowed into his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Can we go in? It's freezing out here, and you don't have a coat on."

He chuckled. "Let's go." They picked up all the bags and carried them into the brownstone.

Once everyone was settled, the four of them headed over to the Bingley home. Jane had insisted on cooking dinner for everyone, and served a fabulous meal. They ate and relaxed for a bit, until the car came to pick them up at seven. Elizabeth was concerned that Jane wouldn't make it through the night; she was visibly tired, but insisted that she was fine. Charles seemed aware of how tired she was as well, and suggested to Jane that maybe the two of them should plan on ending the evening a little earlier than everyone else. Needless to say, his suggestion was rebuffed strongly by his stubborn wife, who was set on enjoying the fireworks that were due to start at the stroke of midnight.

Elliot had spent some time perusing the internet, and had chosen the evenings musical entertainment well. At about 11:00, the six of them found themselves in a crowded blues club located on the outskirts of Boston Commons. They had just come from the Commons, taking the time to walk around and admire the ice sculptures that Mrs. Reynolds had mentioned to Will. There were plenty of street performers as well, enough to keep them entertained for a while before the chill drove them into the small club.

Charles managed to secure a seat on a stool for Jane, and the six of them soaked in the warmth of the room, enjoying the sounds of a trio that was performing. There were two young men, one on drums and one on an upright bass, and a woman on an acoustic guitar. They played and sang beautifully, and received a huge round of applause after each song.

Will stood with his hand at the small of Elizabeth's back as she chatted with Megan. He turned to Charles, who had just returned from the bar with four glasses of champagne and two glasses of sparkling cider. He passed the champagne out, and kept the cider for himself and Jane.

"You pregnant too?" Will teased, smiling over the rim of his glass.

Charles shrugged. "It's no fun to get tipsy if she's not getting tipsy with me. Plus, champagne goes right to my head, I don't know what it is."

Will laughed. "It goes right to Lizzy's head too, believe me."

Charles looked around, surveying the room. "This place is packed. I've seen a few familiar faces."

"Yeah, me too."

"I've only been in-"

Will realized that Charles hadn't finished his sentence, and saw that he was staring at the door. Turning to follow his gaze, he saw exactly who Charles was staring at.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Charles said quietly. "I swear to you, she had no idea where we were going tonight."

Will sighed. "I know she didn't. _We_ didn't even know where we were going. Don't worry, it's so crowded, maybe they won't even see us."

"Darcy, you and I are taller than half the people here, of course she'll see us."

He had no sooner uttered the words when he heard his sister's voice calling him from across the room.

"Charles! Charles!" She waved at him frantically, moving through the crowd, tugging a man along behind her.

"Oh Christ, Dalton is with her," Will said, rolling his eyes.

Elizabeth turned when she noticed Caroline and saw that she was approaching their group. Instinctively, she moved closer to Will, wrapping her arm around his waist. He recognized her gesture for what it was, and returned it, pulling her closely to him.

She looked up into his face and smiled sweetly, which made him laugh when he heard the quiet words she spoke to him. "What is that horrid bitch doing here?"

"Same as us, I suppose," Will replied drolly. "Celebrating." He watched as Charles walked toward his sister and her date, meeting them partway through the crowd, stopping them from moving any further toward their group.

Elizabeth's gaze landed on Caroline, who was now standing and talking to Charles."There are how many clubs in Boston? And she and that – that ass that she's with, end up here?"

"Well, hopefully they'll keep their distance."

Jane, who had just risen to go to the restroom with Megan, saw who her husband was talking to and immediately moved to stand next to Elizabeth. "I can't believe she's here."

"Who?" Megan asked, looking around curiously. "Who's here?"

Jane rolled her eyes. "My awful sister-in-law and her married-but-cheating boyfriend."

"Oooh, which one is she?"

"You can't miss her," Elizabeth said caustically, "she's the one in the flaming pink hat over there, talking to Charles. Hopefully she'll _stay_ over there." She spoke too soon; unfortunately, Charles, Caroline, and Dalton were now headed back toward them.

"Hello everyone," Caroline trilled as she stood before them, a beaming smile on her face. "Jane, you look wonderful, as always," she said, air-kissing Jane on each cheek. Her gaze fell on Elizabeth, and on the way she and Will had their arms around each other. "Darcy, Eliza, how _nice_ to see you both. Let me introduce you to my _wonderful_ escort." She turned to the man behind her, pulling him forward to stand beside her. "This is-"

"Dalton," Will said flatly, interrupting Caroline, no expression on his face whatsoever, "how are you?"

The other man offered his hand in greeting. "Darcy, it's good to see you. Been awhile, hasn't it?"

Will showed only the slightest hesitation before shaking his hand briefly. "It has."

Jane and Megan excused themselves to go to the ladies room, and Jane looked at Elizabeth, silently asking her if she needed an escape. Elizabeth had no intention of leaving Will's side, though, not while Caroline Bingley was anywhere in the vicinity. She shook her head slightly, indicating to Jane and Megan to go on without her.

Charles was riveted to his spot, making small talk with Elliot, but keeping an ear tuned to the conversation occurring next to him. One rude comment, or one nasty look from his sister, and he would be on her so fast it would make her head spin.

"How goes the real estate world?" Dalton asked Will, resting an arm around Caroline's waist.

"It goes just fine, thank you." Will answered. "How's Wall Street?"

"Oh, it has it's ups and downs, as you well know, but I always seem to be on the up."

He puffed himself up a bit when he said that, making Elizabeth roll her eyes a little. He was the last man that should be claiming he's on the 'up'.

"I see I'll have to introduce myself to this lovely lady," Dalton continued, directing his gaze at Elizabeth and holding out his hand. She noticed Caroline wound her arm through his, holding him tightly, as if she was afraid that Elizabeth was going to bite him. "Dalton McCray."

Elizabeth shook his hand lightly, which required her to remove it from Will's waist. "Elizabeth Bennet," she said formally, giving him only a small, indifferent smile.

"A pleasure, Elizabeth," the man said quietly, as his eyes traveled down, then back up her body. He was quick about it, but not so quick that Elizabeth – and Caroline – didn't notice.

Will didn't miss it either, and he bristled at the way Dalton had blatantly looked at Elizabeth. He cleared his throat loudly, which brought Dalton's attention back to him. "Dalton, tell me, how's your wife? Sarah, isn't it?"

"Yes, Sarah. She's – she's doing well. Doing well." He seemed suddenly flustered.

Will let his gaze flicker over to and linger on Caroline, who stood there speechless. "Too bad she couldn't join you tonight," he said coldly, his message loud and clear. His face was expressionless as he turned to Dalton again. "And the kids? How many is it that you have, three?" Will asked, steely glare still in place.

"Um, no, two. Two boys."

"Ahh, of course. Two boys. Must be nice, huh?"

"Um, yes, yes, it's great," Dalton said somewhat weakly, "just – just great."

Will was pleased to see him wilt like a dying flower. It was a tad immature, but he wanted to make them both just a little bit uncomfortable – at least enough so that they'd both walk away. For all the crap that Caroline had rained down on him and Elizabeth – and for the way Dalton had just _looked_ at Elizabeth – he felt it was only fair that he get a few well-placed barbs in. His ploy worked.

"Well, it was good to see you, Darcy. I'm sure I'll see you around town," Dalton said, obviously ready to move on.

Will shrugged. "I'm sure you won't, I make it a point not to be here too often." Will hugged Elizabeth tighter to him, planting a quick kiss on her temple. "Home is the Cape now. I've no desire to be in Boston, there's nothing here for me except work."

Dalton cleared his throat, looking completely uncomfortable now, but not nearly as uncomfortable as Caroline looked. She had not spoken a word, but her face was twisted in a grimace.

"Well then, enjoy the Cape," Dalton said, extending his hand again.

Will shook it briefly. "I always do." He gave a brief nod in Caroline's direction. "Miss Bingley."

She gave a half-hearted smile, all traces of confidence and bravado completely wiped from her face. "Happy New Year," she said quietly.

"Same to you," Elizabeth said, feeling no sympathy for Caroline's discomfort whatsoever. After they walked away, she let loose a huge exhalation of air. "God, what are the chances?"

Will shook his head and sighed, ready to forget about the last ten minutes of his life. He turned to look at Charles. "Time for the fireworks?"

Charles smiled. "Oh, you mean there's more? I thought maybe we were going to get some in here."

Will glared at him. "Very funny."

"Seriously, you handled that very well. I think you brought Caroline down a notch."

Will grunted. "She's doing that all on her own."

The six of them left the club and walked until they found a good vantage point to see the fireworks, letting the limo driver know that they'd call him when they needed to be picked up. At the stroke of midnight the pyrotechnics began, lighting up the city sky, but the three couples were too busy kissing to notice.

Will cupped Elizabeth's face in his big hands, bending to give her a long kiss. "Happy New Year, love," he whispered against her lips.

Elizabeth smiled and reached to kiss him again. "Happy New Year, Will."

* * *

><p>January seemed to drag by, as only cold, gray Januarys do. It seemed to snow throughout most of the month, something that Will enjoyed immensely, but Elizabeth...not so much. Some of her work still required her to be out of doors, and while she didn't mind the cold, the snow was a nuisance. In general, she liked snow, but <em>not<em> when it interfered with work. Then there were Will's weekly trips to Boston. When the weather was snowy, she couldn't relax if she knew he was on the highway, especially since he always drove Route 3, which was notorious for accidents during the winter months.

Will's birthday was on February 1st, which fell on a Tuesday, and so they decided to head to Martha's Vineyard the weekend before to celebrate. Her gift for him was already at the house, thanks to the assistance of Aunt Vee.

She had purchased a beautiful new guitar for him, one made right on the island. They had wandered into the small music store that was located in Vineyard Haven back in December, and he had eyed the guitar for a long moment, before picking it up and playing some chords. The owner of the store had watched, and smiled when he recognized that Will actually knew what he was doing. Elizabeth had made note of the name of the guitar, and had called the shop right away, making the purchase over the phone. She had debated giving it to him for Christmas, but had already put so much work into the photo collage, that she decided the guitar would make a better birthday gift. She couldn't wait to give it to him.

Aunt Vee had taken care of going to the music store to pick up the guitar, and even went through the trouble of wrapping the case for Elizabeth. For the time being, Vee had kept it at her house, ensuring its safe keeping. Sometime today, though, she was supposed to deliver it to Elizabeth and Will's house, and told Lizzy she'd call her to let her know where she left it. Aunt Vee and Uncle Ed had a spare key, and checked on the house often, especially when the weather was bad.

On Friday, as she stood in their master bedroom in New Seabury, packing some clothes into a suitcase, her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Will coming down the hallway, having just arrived home from Boston. She looked up and smiled as he walked in and made a beeline for her, wrapping her up in a big hug.

"Hi sweetheart," he said against her hair. Leaning back, he lowered his lips to hers to give her a soft kiss. The nights spent in Boston would never be agreeable to him, he thought. Still, they were a necessary evil, and a small price to pay for being able to live on the Cape.

"Hi yourself," Elizabeth responded, hugging him tightly to her. "How was your drive back?"

"Terrible. Slow. Icy. We need to allow ourselves plenty of time to get to Woods Hole, at least an hour, just to be safe." Will stepped back from her, but reached up to hold her face gently as he leaned in for one more kiss. He loved coming home to her after being away.

Elizabeth glanced at her watch. "We'll have to leave soon then. Did you eat?"

He shook his head. "No, and I know you probably didn't either. We could grab something from the snack bar on the boat."

She scrunched her nose. "I'd rather grab a pizza once we get there, honestly."

Will chuckled. "That sounds better. Oh, I talked to Richard today. Lauren's about ready to pop."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "That's a nice way to say it."

"I'm just repeating Rich. _'The bun is ready to come out of the oven'_, he said. Any day now."

"He'll call you as soon as it happens, right?"

"Yes. And he wants us to fly out for the baby's christening, whenever that will be."

Elizabeth smiled. "That would be nice." She had talked to Lauren a week or so ago, and knew that she was ready for this baby to be born. They hadn't found out the gender, so both were anticipating the moment where they would get to meet their son or daughter.

Will walked into the closet, stripping off his work clothes as he went, and pulling on jeans and a sweater. He yanked a shirt from a hanger, grabbed another sweater and another pair of jeans, opened a drawer to take out some boxers and socks, and tossed it all over to the suitcase. "I'll fold that stuff in a minute," he said, as he disappeared into the bathroom.

Elizabeth shook her head, smiling at his method of packing, which always took him all of thirty seconds. She began to fold his clothes as she stood there, taking a moment to hold his shirt to her face, breathing in deeply.

"Caught you," he said as he strolled out of the bathroom, chuckling. He spanked her bottom lightly. "You can smell me, you know, I'm right here, and I probably smell better than that shirt."

She turned to him and stood on her tiptoes, laughing when she saw his smug expression. Burying her face in the crook of his neck, she inhaled deeply and felt a flutter deep in her belly. "God, I love the way you smell."

* * *

><p>Saturday had turned out to be a beautiful day, despite the low temperature. The sun was shining brightly, reflecting with blinding intensity off the fresh layer of snow, and the sky was a vivid royal blue, without a cloud in sight.<p>

After discussing what to do with the day, Will and Elizabeth had decided to attempt sledding. Or tobogganing, to be precise. Elizabeth had called Vee, who was happy to let them use the old wooden toboggan that she and Ed had kept stored in the shed behind their house. It was a huge thing, big enough to fit six adults comfortably. They drove to Edgartown in the morning to pick it up, visiting with Ed and Vee for about an hour while they were there. After driving back home, they walked to an area about a quarter of a mile away that had a large hill, Will pulling the toboggan down the deserted sidewalk behind them.

"When I was little, that was a New England Telephone office building," Elizabeth said, pointing to the brick structure that stood next to the hill, "and this hill used to be a cow pasture. When we were little, we always thought it would be the perfect place to go sledding, but the cows were always in the way."

Will smiled, looking around. "No cows now." There were two other families braving the chill with their small children, and Elizabeth smiled as she watched one girl ride a giant inner tube down with a man who Elizabeth assumed was her father. She looked about three, and belly laughed the entire way down the hill. Her joy was contagious, and the two of them found themselves laughing softly as well.

After thirty minutes or so, the other families left, leaving the hill to Will and Elizabeth.

"I've got something for us," Will said, smiling down at her. He reached into the pocket of his jacket, but then stopped for a moment as he looked at her. Her cheeks were flushed pink, her hair transformed into curls upon curls from getting wet during their first few trips down the hill, and her eyes were sparkling as she smiled up at him expectantly. At that moment, he mentally kicked himself for not bringing the ring with him. He hadn't wanted to risk losing it in the snow, so he had left it tucked safely in his nightstand at the house.

_This would have been the perfect moment_, he thought. _Damn it_.

He leaned down to kiss her instead, pulling her close, letting the kiss go on and on until they were both breathing heavily.

Elizabeth slowly moved her lips from his but kept her eyes closed. "Hmmm, that was nice." Slowly, her eyes opened, and she fanned her face. "Not cold. Not anymore." She glanced at Will, and recognized the heavy-lidded look he now wore. "Hm. You're not cold anymore either."

"Not by a long shot."

She grinned. "So...what do you have for us?"

"Oh." He had momentarily forgotten what he was doing in the first place. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small bottle of blackberry brandy. "This will keep us warm too."

"Eww, really?"

"What do you mean, '_eww, really_?'" Will asked, laughing. "It is _the_ drink of choice when sledding. A few sips of this, and you'll feel like you're in the Bahamas."

Elizabeth laughed. "Sure."

Will unscrewed the cap on the top and took a pull from the bottle. Elizabeth watched as he made a face and shook his head. "Woooo, that's good," he said, smacking his lips.

"I don't want to get drunk while we're maneuvering this thing downhill. We'll crash into the trees."

"I don't want to get drunk either...believe me," he said, the meaning behind his words obvious as his gaze traveled first down, then back up her body. "It just takes the chill away. Try it."

Elizabeth tried it, and found that she liked it, but more than that, she found he was right. She felt warmer after a few sips, but stopped then, as she was already starting to feel it's affects.

Not twenty minutes later, the warmth was completely gone as Will tackled her into the snow. She had made the mistake of tossing a few well-aimed snowballs his way, and instead of tossing some back, he had retaliated by chasing her and hauling her down into the snow with him. They were both soaked through, but were laughing and enjoying the moment.

"Ready to go home?" Will asked, still chuckling and shaking his head to get the snow out of his hair.

Elizabeth smiled at him softly, feeling an unexpected surge of emotion at his words, though he was completely unaware of it. "Yes, I'm ready to go home."

Once they were back at the house, they helped each other remove wet clothing, and Will carried everything into the basement, dropping it into a pile next to the washing machine. When he came back up, Elizabeth was running steaming hot water into the big bathtub, and he smiled at the sight of all that bare skin, tinted pink from the cold.

"Is that a bath for one, or two?" he asked, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. He was already half-hard just from watching her move around the bathroom, her body causing his to come to complete attention almost instantly.

She snuggled back into him. "For two, definitely."

They took a long, soothing soak in the tub, chasing the chill out of their bones. Elizabeth sat between Will's legs, her back to his chest, and his hands began to wander, as they tended to when he had a naked Elizabeth in front of him. He couldn't help it, didn't _want_ to help it, and loved the way she responded to him. His hands drifted around, up to her breasts, and he cupped them lightly in the water, which was still quite hot. Her nipples grew hard under his thumbs as he stroked them and rolled them between his fingers, making her groan softly.

Elizabeth felt his mouth nuzzling at the curve of her neck, and little tendrils of desire opened inside of her, stretching throughout her body. She settled back against him and let him do as he wished, her desire for him growing by the minute. He continued to play with her breasts, kissing her neck, and she felt the hardness of him against her lower back.

"We should get out," she whispered, having lost the ability to speak loudly. "We're getting pruned."

Will gently bit along her shoulder. "We should," he said quietly, against her skin. He slid his body down slightly, encouraging her to lay back on him even more. She did, and when he felt her completely relax against him, he slid his hands down over her stomach, reaching between her thighs, using his ankles to hook them under hers and spread her legs a little wider. He massaged the insides of both of her thighs with his hands, stroking the soft skin there.

"Will," she said quietly, the gentle movement of the water and their breathing the only noise in the room.

"Hmmm," he murmured against her neck, as the fingers of one hand slowly caressed at the apex of her thighs, opening her up, allowing entrance to the fingers of his other hand. She squirmed lightly under his touch, and he smiled against her skin, feeling the beginnings of her impatience. Still he kept up his steady touch, eventually raising one hand to her breasts again, teasing first one peak and then the other.

Elizabeth's heart was hammering away in her chest, and every touch of his mouth and and tongue, every stroke of his long fingers fed her arousal, notching it up slowly, making her blood simmer. Abruptly, she sat forward, sloshing the water around and startling Will, who had leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

"What's the matter?" he asked, surprised by her sudden movement, his hands now gripping each side of the big claw-foot tub.

Elizabeth turned to face him, and reached to stroke his jaw lightly. "Nothing's the matter," she whispered, tilting her face toward his so she could draw his bottom lip into her mouth, "I just want to kiss you." She leaned forward to kiss him, turning around completely so that her chest was pressed to his. He sat up more and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly to his body, kissing her thoroughly, reaching up to caress his hands over her shoulders before pulling the clip out of her hair that held it piled on top of her head. It came tumbling down around her, and he sank his fingers into the lushness of it, bringing some of it forward to fall between them.

Elizabeth pulled her lips from his and sat up slightly, straddling his lap and bringing her breasts into proximity with his mouth, which he took immediate advantage of. The combination of her wet skin, the cool air, and his warm mouth was intensely arousing, and she found herself reaching down between their bodies to grasp his erection, stroking him up and down firmly, making him groan.

He pulled his mouth away from her body and looked up at her flushed cheeks. Before he could say a word, she positioned him at her entrance and lowered herself down onto him, completely sheathing him in one languid motion. They both sighed loudly in satisfaction, and Elizabeth moved her arms to wrap them around his shoulders.

Will watched her face, the passion and love that suffused her expression as she stared back into his eyes. They kissed slowly as her body rose up and lowered back down again, and he moved his hands to her hips, guiding her into a slow rhythm that they would both enjoy. Her lips moved to his throat, and he sighed and let his head drop back as she placed warm, open-mouthed kisses along the column of his neck, up to his ear. When she returned to his lips, he pulled away slightly.

"Do you want to get out of the tub? Go to-" his words stopped as she rose up and sank down on him again, this time a little harder, grinding down as she kissed him again, making him completely lose track of what he was going to say. Her hands slid from the back of his neck to the front of his chest, and she dragged her thumbs across his nipples, causing him to release a long breath. He opened his eyes again and smiled when he saw the look in hers, the deep green coloring partially hidden by her slightly lowered eyelids. She wore such a blissful expression, one that he had seen many times before, one that he would never, ever tire of seeing on her beautiful face.

"You can't be comfortable, love. Do you want to move to the bed?" he asked, talking softly, his voice restrained. His hands drifted from her hips back up to cup her face, before sliding down to her breasts, stroking the centers into even tighter, harder peaks, making her sigh in pleasure before she lifted her body and came down on him once again.

Elizabeth shook her head in answer to his question. She could tell he was holding back, probably concerned that she would get hurt within the confines of the tub. "This is perfect," she said hoarsely. "I need you...I want more of you." She slid one hand around to the small of his back, to the perfect indentation above his bottom, and held him there, encouraging him to thrust into her harder. Leaning forward, she nipped along his jaw. "Give me more, Will...I love you, I need all of you."

Her softly-spoken words almost caused him to spill right then, but he held on to his control and moved to grip her hips firmly, determined that he would always give her whatever it was that she desired, whenever she desired it. With a small grunt he surged up into her, forcing her up with him, and again he felt her arms grip his shoulders. One hand left her hip to cup the back of her head, pulling her lips to his, and he kissed her deeply, almost roughly, but she returned the kiss in equal measure, fisting her hands in his hair, holding his mouth to hers.

Elizabeth's hands left his hair to grab the edge of the tub behind him as his thrusts grew harder, and she moaned at the feel of him filling her, reaching that spot inside of her at just the right angle, causing her muscles to clench around him tightly.

"You feel so-" she paused, sucking in a breath as he stroked the spot again, the friction and sensation bringing her closer to the edge, ready to drop off. "You feel so good inside me," she finally managed to say, and this time it was Will who sucked in a breath. He tugged her head toward his for another kiss.

"You feel so good around me, love," he murmured in response, and then groaned loudly when she clenched her muscles around him again. "Ohh god Lizzy, you're so tight, you're so warm." He grabbed at her hips again, before sliding one hand between them to stimulate her sensitized flesh, feeling how swollen she was. It didn't take much pressure at all, only a few well placed strokes, and she came apart around him, seating herself on him tightly as he surged up into her with no restraint whatsoever.

Elizabeth sank her teeth into Will's shoulder as her climax slammed through her body. The sensation of her bite, combined with the sensation of her body squeezing his so tightly, caused Will to come almost immediately, echoing her cries with his own.

Neither moved for a little while, with the exception of Will's hands gliding slowly up and down Elizabeth's back. Finally, she raised her head from his shoulder, pulling back slightly to look at him. "I'm sorry I bit you," she said, feeling somewhat self-conscious.

He reached up to push her tousled hair out of her face, then ran his thumb across her bottom lip. "Oh love, don't be sorry, I'm not. It didn't hurt, and I loved it. I love you." He raised her chin, lifted her lips to his and kissed her again, softly now, his desire – and hers – temporarily sated.

A short while later they rose from the tub and dried each other off, before walking down the hall to tumble into bed. They lingered there for a long while, curled together, knowing they had no pressing reason to get up yet; and they kissed – long, drawn out, heavenly kisses that made Elizabeth's stomach flutter and her breasts ache all over again.

When the afternoon light began to wane, Will got up to turn on the light over the kitchen sink, and grabbed some bottled water for them before coming back to bed. He climbed in at the opposite end, facing Elizabeth, his head at the foot of the bed, the blankets draped loosely across his waist. He propped his head up on one hand and stared at her intently, making her grin.

She knew her face was flushed, and her hair was probably a mess, since he had tangled his fingers in it so much in the past two hours. Her lips felt puffy and tingly, a reminder of the way they had kissed, over and over again, until they had to separate in order to breathe properly.

Elizabeth cleared her throat, suddenly and inexplicably feeling self-conscious. He hadn't taken his eyes from her, and she wondered what he was about. Her legs sought his under the sheets, until they were entwined. "What are you thinking?" she asked quietly.

_Loaded question_, Will thought as his smile grew slightly. "I'm thinking about how idyllic this is. It's like our little haven, our little escape. I love being here with you."

What he was _really_ thinking about was this: _Is it proper to propose to the love of one's life immediately after having mind-blowing, poetry-inspiring, heart-stopping sex in the bathtub? _

He didn't know what to do. Everything felt right about _right now_, but they were in bed, for God's sake, naked as the day they were born, still feeling pleasantly boneless, the physical effects of their interlude still very much present.

"I love being here with you too," Elizabeth said, nudging his leg and bringing him out of his reverie. Suddenly, her face lit up. "Ohh, I have an idea."

He raised an eyebrow in response.

"Why don't I go get your birthday present so you can open it now?"

"But it's not my birthday."

She rolled her eyes. "I realize that, but this whole weekend is about celebrating your birthday. Opening your present is part of the celebration, isn't it?"

"I guess so."

"What do you mean, you guess so?"

Will grinned as his legs began to slide over hers. "Maybe I don't want you to get out of bed." He let one foot travel higher on her thigh, making her giggle as she grabbed at it to stop its progress.

"You're awfully frisky, old man."

His eyes twinkled. "I am _not_ old, not even close." His foot began its wayward journey again. "Would you like another demonstration of my...unflagging youth? I'd be glad to provide one."

Elizabeth laughed, grabbing his ankle. "Stop trying to distract me. I want to give you your present now."

He sighed. "Alright, alright. Do I have to get up?"

"Absolutely not, and I'll be right back to join you again. Don't move a muscle." She climbed out of bed, leaving him with a warm kiss. Will watched her go, appreciating the sway of her hips as she left the room.

Elizabeth headed for the closet in the back bedroom, and pulled out the nicely wrapped guitar case. Once she walked back into their bedroom, he would know, of course, what she had gotten him. Still, she hoped he would be surprised.

"Close your eyes," she called out from the hallway.

"Yes ma'am," he answered, sighing again.

Elizabeth waited a moment, smiling to herself. "Are they closed?"

"Yes, yes, they're closed. Will you get back in here please?"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," she replied, padding quickly back into the room. "Brrr, it's chilly." She climbed back onto the bed, placing the present alongside of him and resuming her position under the covers, propping up some pillows against the headboard so she could sit up. "Okay, you can open your eyes."

He did, and his gaze lit on her first, before finally being drawn to the large, colorful gift next to him. After a moment, he looked at her again, smiling at the look on her face. "What did you do?" he said, laughing a little at her obvious excitement.

"Open it."

Elizabeth bit her bottom lip as he tore at the paper, finally reaching the beautiful black case underneath. He looked at her, a smirk on his face, and shook his head. "You shouldn't have done this."

She raised her eyebrows. "Done what? You don't know what's in there."

He laughed. "I think I have a pretty good idea." Slowly, he unlocked the case and opened it, and when he realized exactly what guitar he was looking at, his eyes widened. "Lizzy, this is – this is the guitar from that shop, isn't it?"

Elizabeth nodded and smiled at him, watching as he slowly lifted it, holding it out in front of him and gliding his fingers along the wooden neck, before laying it across his lap to look at the beautiful red cedar body. She knew he had loved the guitar as soon as he saw it in the shop, loved the way it sounded when he played it. It had to be his.

He glanced up at her then. "I can't believe you did this," he said softly. He knew how much it cost, he had looked at the tag when he was at the shop with her that day. Granted, he had other guitars that had cost two or three times what this one did, but still, it was expensive.

"I wanted you to have it, I could tell you loved it. And it was made right here, on the island. I think that's pretty cool."

Will smiled at her. "It _is_ pretty cool. It's more than pretty cool, it's incredible." He placed the guitar gently back into its case, before crawling up the bed toward her and placing his hands on either side of her hips, holding himself over her. "_You're_ incredible. Thank you very much, I absolutely love it."

She reached up to kiss him, weaving her fingers into his hair. "I absolutely love you," she said against his lips, before kissing him again. "Are you going to play for me?"

"How about I play _for_ you after I play _with_ you?" he murmured, from somewhere in the vicinity of her collarbone.

Elizabeth hummed in satisfaction, loving the feeling of his warm lips as they glided across her skin, making her break out in goosebumps. "Mmmm, that's nice," she said hoarsely as he slid lower, "but I really want to hear you sing."

He tugged the sheet down to reveal one breast, and dragged his tongue slowly over its center. "I really want to hear _you_ sing," he said, his voice low and gravelly.

Her breath caught. "Ohhh...please sing something for me," she said softly, making him lift his head.

Sighing dramatically, he kissed her again. "Okay."

He sat back again, at the end of the bed, and pulled the guitar out. After a few minutes spent tuning it to his liking, he adjusted the blankets around his waist and strummed it repeatedly, getting used to the feel of it. Elizabeth watched everything he did, just soaking it all in, loving his frown of concentration when he was trying to get it tuned to the perfect pitch, and then the way his face softened when he played. She had to admit, though, that he was a quite a sight to behold; the blankets only covered him to his hips, his beautiful chest was bare, and his muscular arms loosely embraced the guitar, gently coaxing a deep, rich sound from sighed softly. _Quite a sight indeed_.

The song he began to play was familiar to her, because the singer was one of her favorites, though he was known for his rock music rather than this particular country-sounding song. She was slightly surprised that Will even knew it, although when it came to music, he was always full of surprises.

_You're my world, the shelter from the rain  
><em>_You're the pills that take away my pain  
><em>_You're the light that helps me find my way  
><em>_You're the words when I have nothing to say.  
><em>_In this world where nothing else is true  
><em>_Here I am still tangled up in you  
><em>_I'm still tangled up in you  
><em>_Still tangled up in you._

_You're the fire that warms me when I'm cold  
><em>_You're the hand I have to hold as I grow old  
><em>_You're the shore when I am lost at sea  
><em>_You're the only thing that I like about me_

_How long has it been since this storyline began?  
>And I hope it never ends, and goes like this forever...<em>

As he sang the rest of the song, she stared at him, and in his eyes, she could see those things that she'd thought about so often, reflected back at her. She could see them here, years from now, enjoying this house, this _haven_, as Will had called it. She could see their kids running the loop that she used to run, through the dining room, living room, and sun parlor, chasing each other and laughing.

Their hearts, their minds, their very lives were so entwined, one with the other; and at that moment, what she wanted became so clear to her that she couldn't push it aside. She felt this odd sense of urgency, which she knew was ridiculous, because they weren't in any hurry. But did that mean they had to wait? And what, exactly, were they waiting for again? Why were they waiting? Strangely, she couldn't remember, and her eyes welled up as he stopped playing.

"_I'm still tangled up in you,"_ he sang quietly, until he noticed that she was on the verge of tears. "Hey," he said softly, placing the guitar back into its case and moving up beside her, reaching up to hold her face in his hands. "What's wrong?"

Elizabeth sniffled, staring up into his beautiful brown eyes. "Nothing is – everything is right. I love you so much, Will, so much," she said as tears slowly coursed down her cheeks.

"I love you too, sweetheart." He leaned in to kiss her cheeks, wiping the tears away with his thumbs...and he knew it was time. The ring was there, inside the drawer of his nightstand, and it was time, _the moment was here_. He was pulled from his thoughts by Elizabeth's barely whispered words.

"I want to marry you."

He sat back slightly, dropping his hands, and looked at her, unsure if he had just heard her correctly. "What?"

"I – I want to marry you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I want – I want the rest of my life to start now. I don't want to wait anymore." She took a shaky breath. "Will you marry me, William?"

Will knew that the slack-jawed, wide-eyed expression on his face conveyed his surprise. "You're proposing to me?"

She nodded, wiping more tears from her cheeks. "Yes, I guess I am."

A smile blossomed on his face, and he gave a short, incredulous laugh. "I can't believe it."

"Why – why can't you believe it?" She sniffled again. "I'm – I'm serious, you know."

He reached up to hold her cheek with one hand and leaned in to kiss her slowly. _She proposed to me_. It made him want to laugh and cry at the same time. He'd wanted to propose to her, and she beat him to it.

"Are you going to answer me?" she asked quietly, and he noticed that she looked slightly anxious now, her beautiful green eyes wide, and wet with more unshed tears.

Once again, he kissed her softly, and felt his eyes sting when he felt her entire body quiver, whether with nerves or excitement, he didn't know. He released her and silently turned toward his nightstand, opening the drawer to pull out the ring box, then closing it again. He turned to her with the box held in his palm, holding it between them.

Elizabeth looked down at the box, then looked back up at him, eyes wide with shock. "Will..."

Without saying anything, he opened the box, and there sat the most gorgeous ring she'd ever seen. She heard him swallow, and her eyes traveled back to his face.

Will cleared the roughness from his throat. "I've – I've had this for a little while now, and I told myself I had to wait for the perfect moment," he said, speaking softly. Lifting her left hand, he very gently slid the ring onto her ring finger, and immediately became overwhelmed at the emotions that gripped him as he performed that simple, but deeply meaningful, act. Elizabeth, too, became more emotional, the tears flowing freely down her cheeks now, while Will tried valiantly to keep his in check. "But then I realized...every moment with you is perfect. Yes, Lizzy, I will marry you." He smiled a watery smile at her, and lifted her left hand to kiss the ring he had just placed there. "Will you marry me?"

Elizabeth launched herself the short distance into his arms, holding him tightly, making no effort now to stem the tide of tears, choosing instead to embrace the moment and let her emotions take over. "Yes, yes, yes, I'll marry you. Yes." She lifted her head from his shoulder and kissed him, holding his face, raining kisses all over his cheeks, lips, and eyes. "I love you, Will."

He caught her face in his hands, and pulled her lips to his for a long, sweet kiss. "I love you too, Elizabeth. _My_ Elizabeth."

She nodded, her forehead pressed to his, and smiled through her tears, her bright green eyes staring into his warm brown ones. "Your Elizabeth. My Will. Always."

* * *

><p><em>Okay, was the proposal worth the wait? Please leave a review and let me know! Next post will probably be up in two weeks, unless real life suprises me and gives me some free time this week. Thanks for reading!<em>

_Song: 'Tangled Up In You' by Aaron Lewis_


	58. Chapter 58

_Moving further along, tying up loose ends, and getting closer to the finish. Thanks for sticking with me!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 58<strong>

Elizabeth woke early on Sunday morning, and for a moment she just lay there, unmoving. The events of the previous day slowly crept back into her consciousness, and she smiled to herself. Will was curled up behind her, one heavy arm stretched across her waist, his head nestled next to hers on the pillow, his legs bent perfectly behind hers. Slowly, so as not to wake him, she pulled her left hand out from under the covers and held it up, letting her ring catch the early morning light filtering into the room.

The diamond sparkled, and she moved her hand back and forth slightly, watching as the light refracted off of the stone. _It really is a beautiful ring_. She brought her hand back under the covers and snuggled back into him a little, bringing their bodies closer together. Ideally, she would have loved to go back to sleep, but her mind, and her emotions, were too fully awake now. She felt Will nuzzle into the back of her neck, and his arm squeezed her tighter to him, a clear signal that he was starting to wake. As if on cue, her eyes filled with tears, as she knew they probably would throughout the day, and possibly throughout the week.

"You awake?" Will asked, his sleepy voice coming from directly behind her ear.

"Mmhm."

"What time is it?"

Elizabeth glanced at the clock on her nightstand. "It's only seven-thirty. Why don't you go back to sleep?"

"I will if you do." He kissed the curve of her neck, pushing her hair aside with his nose, and inhaled deeply. Before he could get too comfortable again, Elizabeth began moving around, and eventually rolled to face him.

"I can't go back to sleep," she whispered, smiling at him, even though his gorgeous brown eyes remained shut. "My mind is going a million miles an hour already."

Without opening his eyes, Will moved his face closer until his lips found hers, and he gave her a soft, sleepy kiss, before pushing his head further up on the pillow so he could tuck her under his chin, against his chest. She sighed in contentment, then inhaled deeply, breathing in the perfect scent of his skin, mingled with the scent of hers. One of his hands drifted lazily up and down her bare back, and she felt herself relaxing again.

"Sleep a little more with me, love," Will mumbled, already drifting back off. "Stay right here."

Elizabeth kissed his chest once, then again, the soft hair there tickling her chin and lips. "I'm not going anywhere," she whispered. She wrapped her arm around him and tangled her legs in his, becoming lulled by the warmth of his body. Eventually, her mind slowed, and she fell back to sleep, nestled in his arms.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Will had told the Gardners they would stop by on Sunday before heading to the ferry, so after coffee and a light breakfast in the sun parlor, they headed to Edgartown. The sun was shining brightly once again, and the air felt slightly warmer than it had the day before. The roads were wet, a result of some of the snow beginning to melt, and there were a lot of people out walking, enjoying the slight break in the cold. During the car ride over, Elizabeth found herself looking at the ring on her finger quite often, just to make sure it was really there, and to convince herself that last night wasn't a dream.<p>

She thought back to the morning, and how she had managed to drift back to sleep in Will's arms, only to be awakened a couple of hours later by the feel of his warm lips and rough growth of beard on her neck, then at her breasts, then her stomach, and finally her thighs. He had pleasured her with his tongue and lips and teeth, licking, suckling, and nibbling as if he had all the time in the world. Sometimes he murmured words of love and devotion to her, other times he told her exactly what he wanted to do with her body, what he _would_ do with her body.

The whole experience was extremely erotic, and by the time he lifted his head from between her legs, her body quivering with the after-effects of two orgasms, all she could do was lift her arms and beg him to climb on top of her. He did, but then rolled her onto her side so he could enter her from behind, pulling her top leg up and over his to allow himself to slide into her as far as he possibly could. One of his hands snaked around to her breasts and he fondled them, alternating from one to the other, teasing the centers, making her whimper and ask him for more. He obliged, changing the angle of his hips and the speed and intensity of his thrusts.

When his hand slid from her breasts to the swollen, hooded flesh between her folds, she had come instantly, her overly-sensitized body convulsing and tightening around his, squeezing him as she cried out his name. Will rode out her climax as long as he could, his fingers still drawing out the sensations as they crashed through her body, before he surged into her one last time with a barely audible groan, holding himself within her as he came in one long, deep thrust.

Not long after, she had rolled over to face him, laying on her side. She kissed him, playing with his mouth, the taste of her body on his lips and tongue. Her eyes began to water again as she pressed herself to him, and one tear leaked out, sliding down across her nose. He opened his eyes in time to see its slow progress, and reached to wipe it away, smiling at her softly.

"You okay?" he asked, letting this thumb stroke over her cheek in a rhythmic motion.

She had nodded silently at him in response, not trusting her voice, and feeling that even if she could talk, the words she would say would be inadequate anyway. She could only swallow and take a deep, shaky breath, and burrow deeper into the warmth of his body.

He leaned in to kiss her again, nuzzled her nose with his, and whispered softly. "Me too, love. Me too."

* * *

><p>They had no sooner walked into the Gardners' house and said hello, when Aunt Vee's gaze zeroed in on Elizabeth's left hand and the new piece of jewelry adorning her ring finger.<p>

"Lizzy! What – what is that?" she asked, pointing to Elizabeth's hand. "That was _not_ there yesterday."

Elizabeth laughed, blushing slightly. "No, it wasn't there yesterday."

"Well, let me see!" Aunt Vee said excitedly.

Elizabeth lifted her left hand, reaching for Will with her right. He clasped it tightly, smiling down at her as Vee inspected the ring. Ed stood with her, admiring it as well.

"It _is_ what I think it is...isn't it?" Ed asked, one eyebrow raised.

Elizabeth nodded, smiling at her uncle. "Yes, Uncle Ed, it is." She glanced up at Will. "We're getting married." Her breath caught a little, as the words came out of her mouth for the first time.

Hugs, handshakes, and words of congratulations were passed around, and again, Elizabeth felt teary. Mentally, she rolled her eyes, wondering if she was becoming one of those women who cried at just about everything.

As excited as she was, she was also feeling a bit selfish. She wanted to share the news with loved ones, she really did, but part of her also wanted to enjoy it with just Will for a little while. That would be next to impossible, as the ring was very noticeable, especially since she never really wore rings at all. Still, she wished they could just stay in this cocoon of bliss a little while longer, without intrusion from the outside world.

Will's cell phone rang, interrupting the mini-celebration, and when he saw that it was Richard, he quickly excused himself to take the call. Ten minutes later he was back, smiling from ear to ear. "That was Richard, he and Lauren are the proud parents of a baby girl."

"Oh, that's great!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "How is everyone doing? When was she born?"

"Lauren and the baby are fine. She was born around one o'clock this morning."

"How much did she weigh?"

Will furrowed his brows. "Umm...I think he said seven pounds and something...maybe? I'm not sure. Is that important?"

"Typical male," Vee chimed in. "They never remember all those details."

"How about a name, did you get that?" Elizabeth asked, chuckling.

"Yes. Well, yes and no. I asked, but they haven't decided yet...it's between two, but he wouldn't tell me what they are, because he didn't want my opinion." He laughed. "Anyway, they're going to wait and see which name seems to suit her best as the day goes on, and Rich said he'd text me later."

Ed smiled at Will and Elizabeth. "Well, I'd say this has been a pretty big weekend for your family, Will."

Will nodded, the happiness he was feeling completely obvious in his unguarded expression. "I'd say it has."

* * *

><p>The ferry ride home was quiet as the ship was nearly deserted. Will and Elizabeth sat in the chairs closest to the rear windows in the large passenger cabin, caught up in their own little world. His fingers traced over the ring repeatedly, as if he needed to assure himself it was really there. Suddenly, he became curious about something. Elizabeth's head was resting against his shoulder, and he turned so that he could plant a soft kiss in her hair. "Can I ask you a question?"<p>

Elizabeth squeezed his hand. "Of course you can."

"When did you decide to ask me to marry you?"

She chuckled softly. "About three seconds before I did it."

His eyes opened wide, though she couldn't see. "Really?"

"Yes, really. Did you think I planned it?"

He thought about that for a moment. "Well, no...I guess not. How long have you been thinking about it, though? Us getting married, I mean."

Elizabeth shrugged gently, and he wrapped an arm around her, hugging her to him. "A while, I guess. Since we moved in together, definitely. Then at Christmas, when I found out Jane was pregnant...I felt like I was ready, but I wanted to make sure you were too. How long did you have the ring for?"

"I bought it on New Years Eve, before you got to Boston."

She sat up and looked at him. "You've had it for a month?"

He nodded. "Just about, yeah."

"What were you waiting for?"

Will took a deep breath. "I don't know. I guess I had it in my head that there would have to be this – this perfect moment. I'd get hit by the proverbial bolt of lightning, and wham – I'd ask. Funny thing is, that's exactly what happened, but you were already in the middle of telling me you wanted to marry me."

Elizabeth grinned at him, her eyes sparkling. "Great minds think alike."

He laughed. "I guess so." His gaze dropped to the ring again as he rubbed his thumb over it. "Are you sure you like it? I wanted it to be just what you'd want, but it was harder than I thought to pick one, there were so many to choose from. If you're not sure, we can-"

She pressed her fingers to his lips, stopping him before he could ramble any further. "It's perfect, and I love it. I _love_ it. It's absolutely beautiful, and looks fabulous on my hand, if I do say so myself." She held her hand up in front of them, admiring the squarish, cushion-cut diamond, which was surrounded by smaller stones. Dozens of small diamonds were also set into the thin platinum band. The center stone was large, but not garishly so, and as she had said, it was perfect for her finger, and proportionate to the size of her hand. "It's gorgeous." She turned to give him a long kiss, and settled back in against his shoulder once again.

"Should we tell Georgie when we get back?" he asked quietly.

Elizabeth nodded. "We probably should. She'd kill us both if we didn't."

Will laughed. "She would, you're right. I'll see if her and Matt want to come to dinner tonight? Or would you rather have me all to yourself?"

She grinned. "I suppose I can share you for a little while."

* * *

><p>"Oh, Lizzy, it's beautiful! Congratulations!" Georgiana threw her arms around Elizabeth, hugging her tightly, before turning to her brother and doing the same.<p>

Will and Elizabeth had only been home from the Vineyard for a little while, but Will had wanted to call Georgie to let her know right away. He was excited and happy, and felt a little like he was going to burst at the seams if he didn't tell _someone_.

"It's about time," Georgiana whispered in his ear.

Will grinned as he hugged her back. "I told you it would be soon."

Matt stood back, smiling, and when Georgiana released Will, the two men shook hands.

"Congratulations to both of you," Matt said, moving to give Elizabeth a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks," Elizabeth said, her face beaming. Fenway walked over to her and rubbed against her leg, so she bent to pick him up, knowing he'd probably missed her and Will over the weekend.

"Have you set a date yet?" Georgiana asked, her excitement over their news obvious.

Will laughed. "Um, no...we've only been engaged for a day, so give us some time. We'll let you know as soon as we know."

"Okay. No rush."

Will rolled his eyes. "Gee, thanks. Hey, what are you guys doing for dinner? Want to join us?"

Georgiana glanced at Matt, and Elizabeth had a feeling they were communicating about something, although they didn't speak. The glance said volumes.

"Um, actually, that would be perfect. Are we going out or eating in?"

"Why don't we go out?" Will said, looking at Elizabeth. "Is that okay with you?"

"Sure. How about Trevi? I've been dying to go there."

"Oh, me too. Sounds good," Georgiana replied, and Matt nodded in agreement.

"Trevi it is," Will said, wrapping his arm around Elizabeth's waist and pulling her close. He glanced at his watch. "How about six? That gives us an hour."

"Perfect," Georgiana said, "see you in an hour."

* * *

><p>"How's the new job?" Will asked Matt.<p>

The two couples were comfortably ensconced in a booth at Trevi, enjoying dessert after an outstanding meal.

Matt cleared his throat. "It's good, so far. I've learned a lot already. The technology they're using there is unbelievable, and some of it I've never seen, let alone used, so...there's definitely a learning curve." He paused. "The commute is kind of a drag, but hopefully that will change."

Georgiana glanced at Matt and smiled, reaching under the table to lay her hand on his thigh. "So, we wanted to talk to you about something, and this seems to be as good a time as any."

Will flicked his gaze first to Georgiana, then to Matt, before turning to glance quickly at Elizabeth, who gave him an 'I told you so' look in return. When they were getting ready to go out, she had mentioned that she thought something might be going on between his sister and her boyfriend.

"Okay," Will said cautiously, "what's up?"

"Matt and I are going to live together," Georgiana said, smiling brightly at Will and Elizabeth. She squeezed Matt's thigh under the table, giving him unspoken support, knowing how he felt about living in her house, and knowing how tough it was for him to broach the topic with Will. She had offered to let them discuss it privately, but he had told her that he wanted her there, and had no problem with Elizabeth being there as well.

Will raised his eyebrows. "Oh. Is – is that it?"

"Well, kind of," Georgiana said. "We've talked about a few things, one thing being us possibly finding another place, maybe in Sandwich-"

Will interrupted her. "Wait, why would you do that? What's wrong with the house you're in now?"

Georgiana turned to Matt, giving him a look that plainly said, _'See?' _

Matt sat up straighter in the booth, and held one hand up a little. "There's nothing wrong with the house, nothing at all. It's great, a perfect size, and the backyard is on the beach, for Pete's sake. Plus, it's only a thirty minute commute to Plymouth. It's not the house, really."

Will had an idea, then, of what this was about, and looked at Matt. "Are you concerned about living there because it's free?"

Matt blushed lightly. "Well, honestly, yes. I feel like I'd be mooching off of you or something. It probably sounds stupid-"

Will shook his head. "No, it doesn't sound stupid, and I get where you're coming from." Will _did_ get it; Matthew was a young man who wanted to be the provider. He understood that. "The thing is, you wouldn't be mooching off of me. The property is already paid for, so...moving somewhere else so that you can pay rent doesn't make much sense."

Matt shrugged. "It just feels weird to me."

Elizabeth smiled to herself, knowing exactly how Matt was feeling, as she'd been down this road with Will already. She also knew that right now, Matt was fighting a losing battle.

Will chuckled. "Well, I'll tell you what. All the money you make can be saved or invested or whatever, and then someday, you can go out and get yourself a mortgage on another piece of property."

Matt laughed as well. "Yeah, we could do that I suppose."

Will sighed. "Listen Matt, here's the thing. If it was a privacy issue, if you guys felt that you didn't have the space you needed or felt like I was intruding on your lives, that would be one thing. But for you to move out just so that you can pay money to someone, whether it's rent or a mortgage payment or whatever..."

It was Matt's turn to interrupt. "I know, it seems ridiculous now, even to me. And it's not a privacy issue at all," he said, glancing at Georgiana, "at least for me it isn't. It's not like the houses are on top of each other."

"It's obviously not a privacy issue for me either," Georgiana said. "I have all the space I need, and you're certainly not intrusive. I want to stay in the house." She shrugged. "I kind of like having you two as neighbors."

Will looked at Matt and shook his head, grinning. "Did you hear her? She wants to stay in the house."

"Yeah, yeah, I know she does," Matt said, laughing. "This has become a pointless conversation, right?"

Elizabeth finally chimed in. "Definitely."

A little while later, after Will and Elizabeth had returned to the house, his cell phone beeped, alerting him to an incoming text. He quickly scanned it, and a smile grew on his face.

Elizabeth knew what the text contained, and she smiled at him. "So?"

"Emma Grace."

* * *

><p>Over the course of the next week, Elizabeth had let both Lydia and Jane know that she and Will were now engaged. People at work found out as well, as the ring on her finger was hard to miss, and everyone was happy for both of them.<p>

As she talked on the phone with Jane on the Thursday night after Will's birthday, their conversation drifted to their parents. Elizabeth hadn't told Jane yet of the talk she'd had with her mother on Christmas day, but not for lack of Jane asking questions. Jane had noticed that they were in the kitchen for a while, and though she'd asked Elizabeth repeatedly about what had happened, Elizabeth had pretty much brushed her off. She just didn't want to get into it again, didn't want to revisit the conversation. It was a form of denial, she supposed, and probably more than a little selfish, but it was just the way she had felt.

"When are you going to tell mum and dad?" Jane asked, referring to the fact that Elizabeth was now engaged.

Elizabeth sighed. "I don't know. Eventually."

"You should just get it over with, you know." She paused. "I wish you'd tell me what you talked about with mum on Christmas."

Elizabeth knew she was right, and finally felt as if she was at a point where she could talk about it without getting upset. "I was right. My theory about dad was right."

There was silence on the end of the phone for a brief moment, and when Jane spoke, her voice was quiet again. "You were right about dad having an affair?"

"Mmhm. Mum confirmed it with me. She was talking about Will's house, how lucky I was to havesomeone with money, basically, and the conversation somehow moved to me needing to keep Will's interest, because he's sure to cheat if given the opportunity, blah blah blah. Which, do you know that she doesn't feel that way about Charles? I asked her if she had the same conversation with you about him, and she said no, because you had him wrapped around your finger."

Jane gave a short, humorless laugh. "You know what that's about, Lizzy. It's mum's way of thinking when it comes to us. I deserve a man like Charles, I've done all the right things to lure him in, while you have not. I'm prettier, curvier, dress nicer, live in the city, and _love_ to attend functions as Charles' trophy wife. Her thoughts, mind you, not mine."

Elizabeth laughed a little at the absurdity of it all, then sighed dramatically. "Oh Jane, how I wish I could be more like you."

"Pfft. Shut up. Anyway, that's how she sees us, you know that, so that's why she never had that talk with me. I rule the roost and wear the pants in this household, as far as she's concerned." She giggled softly. "Of course, it's kind of true, but don't tell Charles that."

They both laughed, and Jane spoke again. "So what else did mum say?"

"Well, everything she was saying was annoying the hell out of me, as usual, and I made the mistake of blurting out something along the lines of dad screwing around on her. I should have kept my mouth shut, but I didn't, so the entire conversation was my fault, really. She just said that he'd had an affair a few years back...actually, right around the time that I was going through everything with Jason. She found out about it, and it ended, and she kept him in check by threatening to tell us."

"Holy shit, really?"

"Yeah. That's what she said, anyway."

"Did you ask her why she stayed with him? I mean – it's possible she didn't even think about leaving to begin with, I guess."

Elizabeth thought for a moment. "I think she would have if circumstances were different. She didn't have her own life outside of dad, and I think she felt like she'd have nothing if she walked away."

"Wow."

They were both silent again, dwelling on their own private thoughts.

"Well, I'm glad you told me, finally," Jane said. "At least now I know."

"How does it make you feel? About dad, I mean?"

"I don't know," Jane said quietly. "Angry that he did that to mum, I guess. But she must have forgiven him, even a little, to stay with him, right? Even if she felt she had no other option...she must have found a little bit of peace with the situation. How could she not, and still keep her sanity?"

"I don't know."

"How do you feel about him?"

"Same as you. Upset. Not angry anymore, that's faded a little. I was angry when I found out, but I just ignored it. Healthy, huh?"

"Well, like you told me once before, it's their marriage. At least they didn't air out their dirty laundry in front of us. And it's been obvious for a long time that they're not in love. They might care about each other, but that's probably the extent of it. God, they can't even be around each other for extended periods of time without getting on each others nerves."

"I know." Elizabeth paused. "Are you coming to the Cape this weekend?"

"That's the plan, as long as nothing changes."

"Maybe I'll go visit mum and dad on Saturday to let them know."

"I'm telling you, get it over with. Then you can just focus on the wedding, making plans...like picking a date. Any ideas yet?"

"Possibly. We thought about May. It will be warm enough to have things outside, you know? I don't want to get married when the weather is cold."

"And that gives you a few months to plan, anyway."

"Yeah, it does, though we already decided we wanted small and intimate."

Jane smiled on the other end of the phone. "Sounds great. So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow night, or Saturday, depending on when we get in. Dinner Saturday night?"

"Sure, we don't have any plans. See you then."

"Bye Lizzy."

"Bye Jane."

* * *

><p>On Saturday afternoon, Elizabeth stood at the sliding door in the living room, watching the activity over at Georgiana's house. She was preoccupied with thoughts of her parents, and though she knew Jane was right, and that she should go over to talk to them just to get it out of the way, she just didn't feel like it. There was nothing to be gained by delaying the inevitable, but she just didn't want to go visit them. <em>Tomorrow<em>, she thought, _I'll go tomorrow_.

Matt and Georgiana had spent the day getting him settled into his new home, although it didn't take long; he didn't come with much, and they really didn't need help with anything. Matt's sister Julie had come to visit for the weekend, and the three of them were busy moving the very few boxes into the house.

Georgiana and Matt were a sight to see; they were both so happy about moving in together, it was almost comical. They wore the same love-struck, dopey expressions on their faces, and Elizabeth knew it would only be a matter of a very short time before they became engaged, even though Georgiana had told her that they wanted to live together for a while before they took the next step. Elizabeth smiled to herself. _That's what I thought too, at one time_.

Will snuck up behind her as she stood at the slider, watching their progress through the glass, and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Whatcha doing?" he asked, kissing her on the neck.

"Watching the happy couple and the best friend-slash-sister move boxes. I asked them if they wanted help, and they flatly refused me."

"Good. They're younger, let them do all the heavy lifting." He smiled against her neck as she chuckled.

"Did we have the same ridiculous expressions on our faces when I was moving in here?"

"Probably. Well, _you_ probably did. I'm too much of a man to wear that starry eyed, girly expression on my face."

He chuckled when she turned in his arms, eyebrows arched perfectly. "Really?" she asked, drawing out the word. "I think I've seen that _exact_ look on your face several times...too many times to count, in fact. Usually, it's right after we-"

Will bent to kiss her, effectively ending the conversation for the moment. He pulled away slowly, smiling. "Alright, maybe I look like that once in a while. Don't tell anyone."

Elizabeth reached up to kiss him again. "Your secret is safe with me." She snuggled into his arms for a moment, content to be held by him, until her mind wandered back to her parents. "I was thinking of going to visit my parents today to tell them about us, but I think I'm going to go tomorrow instead. I know it sounds awful, but I wish I could just avoid it altogether. I mean, I know they'll be happy for me, for us, but still, I'm just not looking forward to going over there to tell them."

"Are you sure you don't want to go today? We've got a few hours before we meet Jane and Charles for dinner, we can go now."

Elizabeth looked at him oddly. "I was just going to go by myself."

Will's eyebrows drew together. "Why would you go by yourself?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "I just thought it would be easier. You know my mum will make a fuss, she's bound to say something totally inappropriate and completely ridiculous...I thought I'd just go over there, tell them, and leave."

Will shook his head. "No, no. You're not doing that, no way."

"What do you mean, no way? If that's how I want to do it, then that's what I'll do."

"Are you serious?" He ran a hand through his hair, a sign of his growing annoyance. "Do you honestly think it's okay for you to go over there, _without me_, to tell them we're getting married?"

"I don't want you there. I don't want you to have to deal with them."

His face fell. "You don't want me there?"

For a moment it was silent, and Elizabeth looked at him, easily reading the hurt in his expression. "No, that's not it, I'm sorry, that was a bad choice of words," she said softly. "I just think it would be – it would be easier if you weren't." Her voice was unsteady, and she looked away from him.

He gave a frustrated grunt and stared at her for a few seconds before shaking his head. "That's great. Fine. Go over and tell them the news, all by yourself. Go now, go tomorrow, go whenever you want. It's your decision, they're your parents, I obviously don't have a say in it."

Elizabeth watched as he stalked out of the room, and her heart lurched in her chest. _He's making this into too big of a deal. _

Ever since she'd talked to Jane on Thursday, she'd thought of all these things that she wanted to say to her father, and if there was any type of – well, confrontation, for lack of a better word – between them, she didn't want Will to be there for it. It was just easier if he wasn't.

She sighed, wondering if he was truly angry. She was saving him an hour of unpleasantness, really. Her mind went over their conversation again, and she shook her head. _He'll realize it's best that he doesn't go with me_, she thought, _he just needs time to think about it more._

Elizabeth headed down the hall to the office, knowing that's where she'd find him, and as she was about to turn through the doorway, he was coming out, and they bumped into each other. He looked down at her, and reached to grasp her hand to lead her back into the office so they could sit on the couch next to each other.

"You're angry," she said quietly.

Will turned to look at her, and cleared his throat. "I'm sorry I walked away like that. I was on my way back."

Elizabeth shrugged. "It's okay, I knew you weren't going far."

"Still...I'm trying not to do that anymore. And yes, I'm angry. Well, not really angry, just...frustrated."

"Why are you frustrated? I thought that if anything, you'd be relieved that you didn't have to go over there with me."

He sighed. "Do you really think I'm that selfish? That I'd be thinking, 'let Lizzy deal with them, not me'?"

"No, I don't think you're selfish at all," she said earnestly. "I thought – well, like I said, I thought you'd be relieved."

He held her hand in his, stroking his thumb over the ring he had given her as he stared at it, and when he spoke, his voice was low and quiet. "But I'm _not_ relieved. Listen, I know how you feel about your parents. I know how they treat you, especially your mum, and you have to understand something; it's time to draw the line. You are _my_ family now, you are going to be _my_ wife, and I don't want you to have to deal with them on your own anymore. You shouldn't have to."

He paused, raising his eyes from the ring to her face. "Besides all that – even though I have very little respect for your father, what kind of man would I be if I didn't go over there with you to tell him that I've asked for his daughter's hand in marriage? I want him to see how happy you are, and I want him to seehow happy you make me. I want him to know that I'm taking care of you, and that I'll take care of you for the rest of your life. That might sound – I don't know, old-fashioned or something, but I want him to see – to see _us_..." His voice trailed off, and he sighed loudly again, looking back down at the ring. "It's hard to explain what I mean, and I'm probably not doing a very good job."

Elizabeth reached out with her other hand to stroke his chin, drawing his eyes back to hers. She smiled, and par for the course these days, she felt her own eyes fill. "You're doing a wonderful job, and I'm pretty sure I know exactly what you mean. I'm sorry, I didn't look at it like that, from that perspective."

Will shrugged. "I know you didn't. Why would you?" He leaned toward her, and she met him halfway for a kiss. "Just promise me that we'll deal with them together from now on, okay?"

She nodded and kissed him again. "Okay."

"So...when do you want to go? Now, or tomorrow?"

Elizabeth smiled and lifted her chin slightly. "Now."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Will left her parent's condo ninety minutes later in a haze of bewilderment. Her mother had been appropriately excited by the news, and had wished her and Will what seemed like heartfelt congratulations. There were hugs, and Elizabeth <em>almost<em> thought she saw signs of tears in her mother's eyes, but she couldn't be sure. She oohed and aahed over Elizabeth's ring, but not exceedingly so. For all intents and purposes, her mother had acted...normal.

As she sank into the passenger seat of Will's Porsche, she turned to look at him. "Is it me, or did we briefly step into the twilight zone?"

He laughed. "It's not you. That was one of the oddest visits with your parents ever. Not that I've had many, but you know what I mean. Your mother was so low key."

"What did you and my dad talk about when you were in his study?"

Will shrugged. "I told him I proposed to you-"

"Did you tell him I proposed to you first?" she interrupted, grinning at him, her eyes sparkling.

He laughed again and shook his head. "No, I didn't. I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

Elizabeth leaned over to kiss his neck. "Nope. So, what else did you say?"

"I told him that you accepted."

"What did he say?"

Will started the car. "He told me he was glad that someone had finally discovered your worth, and that he hoped I appreciated you."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. "He said _that?_"

"Yes."

"Was that it?" She was in disbelief over her father's words.

As he maneuvered the car out of the parking lot and into the traffic, he nodded. "Yes, that was it. It was a very matter-of-fact conversation, love. We shook hands, and...that was it."

"Okay."

Will glanced at her quickly. "Okay?"

She shrugged. "I didn't expect much more than that, really."

Will sighed quietly. _He_ had expected more than that; had expected that maybe, just _maybe_, David Bennet would show a little enthusiasm for his daughter's happiness. Instead, he just quietly observed them while they were there. Will would have loved to know what he was thinking, but knew he never would; god only knew how that man's mind worked.

Elizabeth interrupted his thoughts. "I had an idea for us, for a date."

He smiled a little. "You did?"

"I did. How about the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend?"

Will's eyebrows rose. "I thought we were trying to avoid the craziness of the holiday?"

"We were, but it's a significant day, sort of. That was the day of Charles' cookout last year, the day that we really began to like each other. I was finally beginning to realize that you _weren't_ an arrogant jackass, and you were starting to lust after me."

"I'm pretty sure I was lusting before that."

"Yeah, you're right, you probably were. Anyway, I thought it would be nice to have our wedding on that same Saturday of this year. It would be May 28th. Does that sound okay?"

"Lizzy, you could tell me you wanted to get married on the coldest day of the year, in the coldest place on earth, and I'd say it sounded perfect. Whatever you decide is fine with me."

"How about having the reception at the Popponesset Inn?"

He glanced at her again. "You really want to have it there?"

Elizabeth nodded, and stretched her arm up behind him, massaging the base of his neck, playing with his hair as he drove. "I do. I love that place, I love the view of the water...I love the memory of our first _real_ date there."

He smiled. "I'll say it again; whatever you want, love."

She leaned her head back against the headrest and stared at his handsome profile, watching as her hand played with his hair. "I just want you, Will. Just you."

* * *

><p>Dinner that night ended up being a celebration of Elizabeth and Will's engagement, and a belated celebration of Will' birthday. It was a large group that headed to The Regatta, an upscale restaurant, for dinner. Besides Will and Elizabeth, and Jane and Charles, there was Matt, Georgiana, and Julie, and also Lydia and a new friend of hers that she'd met at school, Ben.<p>

Elizabeth was happy to see that Lydia was still serious about school, and loved her classes so far. Ben was apparently in a lot of the same classes, and they had the shared interest of heading to culinary school sometime in the next few years. From what Elizabeth could see, Ben was just a friend; if there was anything romantic between them, they kept it to themselves. He was cute, and definitely doted on Lydia, but not excessively, and they seemed to genuinely enjoy each others company.

Will picked up the tab, and when dinner was over, they all headed back to the Bingley home, at Jane's suggestion. Elizabeth thought that Jane might be feeling a little tired, so instead suggested that they call it a night.

"It's still early," Jane said, "it's only nine o'clock. I'd love to have everyone over, as long as no one minds me changing into sweatpants and slippers."

"Of course no one minds," Elizabeth said, "but if you get too tired, kick us all out."

Charles lit the fireplace and everyone made themselves comfortable in the living room. Wine was flowing freely for everyone but Jane and Lydia; Elizabeth noticed that Lydia had had two glasses of wine at dinner, but was now drinking water.

The discussion went from the Bingley baby, to the upcoming wedding, and then to the question of whether or not Matt and Georgiana would be engaged soon. Georgiana was turning a vivid shade of pink, which Julie and Lydia found hilarious, and Matt just kept muttering, "I just moved in today, what's the rush?"

Will rose from the couch to head into the kitchen for another bottle of wine, telling Charles to stay put. Charles didn't have much of a choice; Jane was comfortably seated on the loveseat, with her feet up in Charles' lap, preventing him from moving much. Will wandered into the kitchen and started perusing the wine rack, astonished at the variety of wines that the Bingleys had collected. As he was pulling the bottles out one at a time to read the labels, he heard someone come into the kitchen behind him. He turned, and was surprised to see Jane there.

"Why'd you get up? I've got this," Will said, holding up a bottle. "I think I found a good one. When did you guys become wine snobs?"

Jane smiled. "Oh, that's me. I love good wine." She nodded toward the rack and smiled. "Those will be sitting there for a few more months, I guess."

Will chuckled. "Yup, I guess so. Um, you're feeling good? Everything is okay?"

She nodded. "Everything is fine, I feel great. Just tired sometimes, that's all."

"That's good." Will cleared his throat. "Did you need something else? Water or something?"

"Well, I told Charles that's why I was coming in here, so I do need to leave with a glass of water. Truthfully, though, I was hoping to talk to you for a moment, if that's okay."

Will's eyebrows rose just a bit. "Oh. Okay. What did you want to talk about?"

The corners of Jane's mouth lifted, just a little. "You. And Lizzy."

"What about me and Lizzy?" Will was curious about what she had to say, but at the same time, was almost dreading it. His relationship with Jane, while it had improved over the past few months, was still tenuous at best. He still felt as though she was keeping an eye on him, waiting for him to fuck up again.

Now she smiled completely. "Don't look so nervous, Will, it's nothing bad. I just wanted to tell you that I see how happy you've made Lizzy, and I know how much she loves you."

Will took a deep breath. "I love her just as much, Jane, if not more. She – she's everything to me, do you know that? I'll never hurt her again, not like I did before. I would never walk away from her."

Jane stared at him, her blue eyes shining, staring straight into his, and after a long moment, she spoke again. "I know you won't. I believe you when you say that. I'm happy for both of you, and I'm glad that everything worked out." She paused for a second, and her eyes teared up. "I know I don't need to tell you this, because you already know it, but I'm going to say it anyway; she's a wonderful, generous, caring, beautiful woman, and you're lucky to have her...so take good care of her, Will."

Will nodded. "I _do_ know that, and I promise I'll take care of her, Jane, I will."

Just then, Charles walked into the kitchen. "What's taking you both-" He stopped talking when he saw that Will and Jane were obviously in the midst of...something. "Oh, sorry...did I interrupt?"

Jane walked closer to Will, and reached up to kiss him on the cheek. She turned and smiled at her husband. "No, babe, you didn't interrupt." Her eyes went back to Will. "I think we're good."

Will nodded, allowing himself a small smile. "I think we are too."

* * *

><p>"Anything you want to tell me about tonight?" Elizabeth asked as she and Will were getting ready for bed.<p>

Will shrugged. "Meaning...what?" he asked, before beginning to brush his teeth.

Elizabeth put her toothbrush into its holder and watched him in the mirror, waiting patiently for him to finish. "Did you and Jane talk about anything?"

He nodded as he wiped his mouth on a towel. "Yup. Baby Bingley." He gestured for her to leave the bathroom ahead of him, and she did, seating herself on the bed. Will sat down next to her, and turned to face her.

"That's all? Just baby Bingley?"

"Why are you asking?"

"Because Jane said she was getting water, and she had a full glass sitting right next to her."

"Oh."

"And she walked out of the kitchen empty-handed."

"Oh."

"So...anything you want to tell me?" she asked again.

"Not really. We actually had a nice talk." He pushed Elizabeth back gently but purposefully, so that she landed on the pillows, and rearranged her legs around him, so that he was nestled between them. Lowering his lips to hers, he kissed her before smiling down at her. "She wanted to make sure I knew how lucky I was to have you in my life, that's all."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, laughing a little. "Oh, Jane. I'll forever be her little sister."

"Just like I'll forever be Georgie's big brother. It's not such a bad thing."

She sighed. "I guess not."

"Then she threatened to kick my ass if I ever hurt you again. She said she'd hunt me down."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped open comically. "She did not say that, did she? Please tell me you're kidding." Sadly, she didn't know whether to believe him or not. It could go one way or the other with Jane.

Will, amazingly, was able to remain serious. "I swear, she said she'd hurt me a million different ways. She scared the hell out of me, love. Had me pinned to the counter with a carving knife. Good thing Charles walked in when he did-"

He didn't get another word out, as she had begun to tickle him, making him laugh.

"You're such a liar, you really had me going until you mentioned a knife. She might have done that back in August, but not now."

Will held both of her wrists tightly in one large hand. "Oh great, that makes me feel so much better." He looked down at her hands. "Can I let these go now?" Her body squirming against his was causing quite a lively reaction below the waist, but he didn't trust her not to tickle him again.

She shifted her body to push her hips against his suggestively. "It would probably benefit you if you did."

He didn't need to hear it twice, and as soon as he released her hands, he rolled them over so she was laying on top of him. "Benefit me how?"

Elizabeth didn't answer, only smiled down at him as she lowered her head to kiss him deeply, sinking her hands into his hair. Her lips slid slowly to his neck and then further down to his chest, before moving over to tease and play with one small nipple. She smiled against his skin as it perked up under her tongue, and she lowered one hand to let her fingers play with its twin. Will released a long sigh of pleasure, and her smile grew even more as she felt his erection growing, pressing against her stomach through the material of his briefs. Moving slowly again, she let her mouth wander to his other nipple, and gave it the same loving attention.

Will reached up to work his fingers into Elizabeth's hair, the feel of it brushing against his body as she moved lower driving him to distraction. Her mouth was warm, and he felt the wetness of her tongue as she circled his navel then kissed him there, as her hands moved to the waistband of his briefs. She tugged on them lightly, and he obligingly lifted his hips enough for her to slide them down his legs, then off completely.

Elizabeth rose back up over him and laid atop his body completely, kissing him again, stroking his tongue with hers, until they were both practically panting. She lifted her head, but Will worked his hands into her hair again, bringing her lips back to his for more.

"You need to take this off," he finally said, tugging on the pajama top she still wore. His voice was thick, and his eyes had darkened. "These need to go too." He reached between them and pulled on her panties, sliding them halfway down, but unable to lower them any further.

Elizabeth sat up and straddled him, but only removed her shirt. Will's eyes immediately dropped to her breasts, and she closed her eyes and sighed as his hands moved to them, every sensation from the strokes of his fingers felt simultaneously between her thighs. Even though she still wore her panties, she rocked against him, letting herself move up and down the length of his erection, causing him to groan in satisfaction.

"Come here," he whispered softly, pulling her down so that her breasts were even with his mouth. He took his time, moving from one hardened peak to the other. She continued to rub herself against him, and he could feel the heat and dampness of her through the material of her underwear. He tugged at them again, and she quickly helped him to remove them. When he tried to lift her gently to move her over him, she shook her head, and the seductive smile she gave him made his heart pound.

"I'm not done with you yet," Elizabeth whispered as she slid back down his body, kissing down his chest and stomach once again as she went.

Will sighed loudly then groaned again as she took him into her mouth, slowly at first, but then with more intensity, letting her tongue glide over his length while she used one hand to stroke and caress at the base of his penis. As much as he loved this, loved watching her do it, he never could take it for very long; it drove him absolutely mad, and she knew it. She lifted her eyes to his, and he watched as she held him, stroking her tongue up, and then back down the length of him.

"Lizzy."

She hummed her acknowledgment against his skin, and he gasped softly. He sat up partially, leaning on one elbow, drawn into watching her again. Once again, her eyes flickered up to his. "Love...please. Come up here."

Again, she licked up the length of him and kissed the tip, letting her tongue dart out to swipe away the drop of fluid gathered there. "I'm having fun down here." Again, her tongue came out for one swirling lick, and he didn't miss the look in her eyes, the devilish gleam there.

He half-moaned, half-laughed, knowing she loved this, loved to drive him crazy.

"I won't last, I need to be inside of you. Please, love."

Her mouth molded over him again, and she sucked hard as she looked up at him, batting her eyelashes. He was breathing heavily now, and she released the suction of her mouth. "You are inside of me."

Once again, her lips moved over him, and he reached down to hold her head, unable to stop himself from thrusting into her warm mouth. Abruptly, he pulled out of her and scooted up, almost to a sitting position. Reaching down, he grabbed her and dragged her up over him before rolling her onto her back again. His mouth covered hers and they kissed passionately, while one big hand slid down between her thighs, two fingers caressing over her folds before parting her and sliding into her easily, her arousal evident. His thumb stroked around her nub, gliding over it briefly, making her squirm under him, as his fingers moved in and out of her.

"Get inside me," she whispered against his mouth, before his head lowered to her breasts again.

"I am inside of you," he said, his voice hoarse, and this time it was he who looked up at her from the vantage point of her chest, as he let his tongue drag over one taut nipple. He moved his fingers inside her, and felt her muscles clench tightly on them. She arched against his hand, and he couldn't wait any longer. Moving his fingers away, he pulled his body up and pushed into her in one long, fluid motion, then stopped completely, laying still on top of her.

Will nuzzled against her nose and lips, and they kissed again. He grabbed at her hands, lacing her fingers in his, pushing their joined hands into the bed on either side of her head. Elizabeth's hips surged up against his, and he responded, slowly at first, until she demanded a quicker pace. Her legs wrapped around his hips, and he could tell she was close, her skin flushing to a beautiful shade of pink. He released her hands so that he could push himself up on his arms, straightening them, giving himself more leverage to thrust into her harder. Her eyes locked onto his, and he watched as her orgasm took over, entranced by the expression on her face as it became suffused with pleasure. It didn't take long for him to follow, and after a few moments he collapsed on top of her.

Neither of them spoke, but he pushed his face into her hair, and pulled his body as closely around hers as possible, hugging her under him tightly.

Will was surprised when he heard Elizabeth's light laugh against his shoulder. He lifted his head to look down on her. "Laughter is not what a man wants to hear after that."

Elizabeth smiled up at him and laughed again, slapping his backside. "You'll never be laughed at for that, trust me." She reached up to bite his chin.

"So, what's funny?" he asked, lowering his head to kiss her.

"Your question was funny. _Benefit me how?_" She giggled again. "What a ridiculous question."

* * *

><p>Elizabeth was surprised when the doorbell rang at ten o'clock the next morning. She and Will hadn't been up for long, and she was getting ready to head down into the basement with him to work out, something they had both been skipping out on a little too often lately.<p>

Will answered the door, and she heard the unmistakable voice of her father talking to him. _What on earth is he doing here? _She forced a smile as he walked into the room with Will behind him.

"Good morning, Lizzy," Mr. Bennet said quietly, as he removed his hat. "Sorry to pop by without warning."

"Oh, um, that's okay. What's up?" Elizabeth asked, curious as to why he would 'pop by' at all.

"Well, I was hoping that you and I could have a chat." He glanced quickly at Will out of the corner of his eye. "Privately."

Elizabeth glanced at Will as well, and couldn't miss the frown that formed on his face at her father's words. As much as Will wouldn't like it, she'd give her father the time he asked for. If anything, it would give her the opportunity to get some things off of her chest.

Will addressed her. "Elizabeth?"

She smiled softly at him. "It's fine, Will." When she looked at her father, he had a slightly bemused look on his face, and she could only imagine what he was thinking.

"Alright," he said quietly. "I'll be in the office if you need me." He gave her a quick kiss and without another word to Mr. Bennet, sauntered off down the hallway.

Mr. Bennet watched him go. "Does he think you're not safe with your own father? What exactly does he think you'll need him for?"

Elizabeth shook her head, staring directly at her father. "Don't try to bait me, dad, it won't work. What do you want?"

"Well, can we at least sit first?"

Elizabeth gestured to the couch. "Fine. Have a seat."

Mr. Bennet cleared his throat. "Your mother told me of your conversation with her on Christmas Day. She said she told you everything, as you seemed to have some suspicions of your own anyway."

Elizabeth nodded, her face impassive. "I did, she just confirmed everything."

"So, then, you understand why I'm here."

Elizabeth pursed her lips. "No, not really."

"No? That surprises me. You're marrying a very wealthy man, Lizzy. One who hasn't always treated you as well as you deserve to be treated, yes?"

Elizabeth felt anger flare up inside of her, but held it in check. "That's in the past." She paused. "And at least he's never cheated on me."

Mr. Bennet nodded once. "Point taken."

"Will you just get to it, dad? Whatever it is that you're trying to say, just – just _say_ it."

"Fine, fine." He hesitated briefly. "I want to make sure you're not sacrificing a part of yourself to settle for someone who – well, someone who is not suited to you. I've watched the two of you together, and he seems to be a bit – well, a bit standoffish. Arrogant."

Elizabeth took a deep breath, determined to keep herself calm. "I thought that at first, a long time ago, but he's not that man at all. Of course he'd appear that way to you; I don't think he'll ever feel comfortable enough to let his guard down completely and be himself around you and mum. He's a wonderful man, and I'm not _settling_ for him. I love him, more than I thought I could love anyone, and I can't imagine not marrying him, not spending the rest of my life with him."

Her father watched her closely as she spoke, and she suddenly wanted to know why he was so concerned that she was marrying for love.

"I find it kind of odd that you're worried about this particular thing," she said. "After all, you and mum supposedly married for love, and look what happened to your marriage."

"Your mother and I married for infatuation, not love. We married for the _idea_ of love. I don't want you to make the same mistake we made. William is wealthy, to be sure, but don't let that overshadow the things that are important."

Elizabeth cut him off before he could go further. "Dad, I appreciate you coming here to talk to me, but I don't need to hear this, I really don't. I love Will, he loves me. I could care less about his money, and if you knew me at all, you wouldn't be here talking to me about this."

"Now, don't get yourself upset, Lizzy," Mr. Bennet replied, "I'm just looking out for you."

Elizabeth looked at him and shook her head, in disbelief over what he had just said. "You're looking out for me? Really? You haven't been looking out for me for years, dad. For the past seven years, I've had to deal with a mother who treated me like a piece of chattel she was trying to sell off to the highest bidder. Either that, or she made me feel like I was to blame for things that happened in my life that I had no control over." She paused. "What really bothers me is that she started to change right around the time you had your affair. You _knew_ that, and yet you let her continue to treat me like crap. _Oh, you know your mother Lizzy, just ignore her. _How many times did I listen to those words come out of your mouth?"

She stood up and started to pace, her frustration and anger preventing her from sitting any longer. "You could have stepped in and put an end to it, but you never did. You had already left your marriage, emotionally anyway, and you pretty much walked away from being a father as well. Oh sure, we could talk about my job, politics, the state of the world, anything like that. But if I even broached the topic of mum and how she treated me, you shut down and blocked it all out, because you felt _guilty_. You knew your behavior was partially to blame for mum's actions, but it was much easier for you to just pretend it wasn't happening, and encourage me to do the same. What kind of father does that?"

Mr. Bennet looked as though he had been slapped in the face. He stared at Elizabeth, and finally spoke. "I did my best, Lizzy," he said quietly.

"No, you didn't," she said quietly but firmly. "You did what was easiest for you."

He rose from the couch, and she knew he was ready to leave, that as far as he was concerned, the conversation was over.

"I'm sorry, Lizzy."

Elizabeth shook her head slowly as she felt tears come to her eyes. "Those words aren't enough anymore, dad."

He walked over to her then and gave her a lingering kiss on the forehead, before letting himself out of the house. Elizabeth sank down onto the couch and let the tears fall, though she didn't understand where, exactly, they were coming from.

Will must have heard the door close, because he walked back out into the living room, and immediately went to sit next to her. He reached up to wipe the tears from her cheeks, and leaned in to kiss her.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded. "I am. I don't know why I'm crying, I'm not – I'm not distraught or anything. I said what I needed to say, and that's that."

He hugged her tightly, and she buried her face in his neck, letting the scent of him and the warmth of his body calm her.

"What should we do now?" he asked her quietly, his hands moving slowly up and down her back as he held her.

Elizabeth leaned back and smiled up at him, her eyes now dry but shining brightly. "We get married, and we live happily ever after. _That's_ what we do."

* * *

><p><em>So...anyone ready for a wedding? Please leave a review, I would really appreciate it. Thank you!<em>


	59. Chapter 59

_So here it is...the end. Thanks to all of you who have been reading along faithfully, you've made the experience of posting my first story a positive and memorable one! And now...it's time for a wedding._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 59<strong>

_Monday, May 23__rd__, 8:00 a.m._

Elizabeth headed down into the basement, ready for a nice long run on the treadmill. She had taken the week off from work in preparation for The Wedding, and was resolved to get a run in every morning. It was a good way for her to start the day...although her fiance had thought otherwise. He had left for Boston just a half an hour ago, and he definitely had had his own ideas on how they should start the day. She sighed and smiled to herself. _Well, it was certainly a workout_.

The Wedding.

It was five days away. In five short days, she would be Mrs. Darcy. Will's wife. He would be her husband. They would be Mr. and Mrs. Darcy. As usual, a little zip of anticipation shot up her spine, and she shivered involuntarily. She was not nervous about anything, not by a long shot. Everything was working out so smoothly, it was almost...scary. Part of her was almost waiting for something to happen, but really, there was nothing that _could_ happen at this point, barring some type of catastrophe at the hands of mother nature. That was a factor that had to be considered, unfortunately; she and Will both wanted to be married outside, on the beach, but the weather might not cooperate. Fortunately, they had a back-up plan, and could be married right inside the inn if the weather was bad.

Her wedding dress hung in the guest room closet, which she had threatened to put a padlock on when she caught Will creeping into the room not once, but twice. She couldn't help but shake her head at him each time; he looked like a small boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"You know what?" he'd asked her, while they were each seated at their desks on a Saturday morning a couple of weeks ago, the day after he was caught snooping for the second time.

"What?"

"I've had sort of a – a revelation."

"Ohhh, do tell." She batted her eyelashes and smiled at him, laughing when he threw a wadded up piece of paper at her.

"Well, I realize – it's just a dress."

She peered over the top of her laptop at him, eyebrows raised. "_Just a dress?_ Are you referring to my wedding dress?"

He nodded. "Yes, of course. It's just a dress."

Elizabeth had frowned at him then, and her frown grew as she saw him grin back at her. _I can't wait to hear this one._

"Wait, don't look at me like that, I'm saying that for a good reason. I realize now that I really don't want to see it – not until you're _in_ it. Without your gorgeous body filling it out, it's...just a dress."

Her eyes had teared up, and when Will noticed, he dropped his head back against his chair, chuckling. "Oh my god, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."

She waved her hand in front of her face, fanning her eyes rapidly. "No, _I'm_ sorry. I'm such a mush bucket lately, I can't control it." She rose from her chair then and walked over to him, plopping herself down onto his lap. "You no longer have the right to tell me that you never know what to say, that you don't have a way with words. That, Mr. Darcy, is pure, one-hundred percent bull. You know _exactly_ what to say, and when to say it. It's your fault that I'm like this all the time."

He leaned forward, first kissing her nose, then her lips. "Like what all the time, happy?"

She nodded and nuzzled into his neck.

Will smiled and kissed her on the head. "I'll gladly take the blame."

Shaking her head and smiling softly, Elizabeth let her thoughts linger for a few more moments on her husband-to-be, until she came back to the present. She set the treadmill at a slow speed, gradually increasing it until she was running at a steady, sweat-inducing pace. Her mind began to drift to The Wedding again, and she began to sort through the check-list that was stored in her head. There really wasn't much left to do; some phone calls to confirm a few details today, and that was it.

One of the first things she and Will had decided on was who they wanted to stand up with them at the ceremony. Elizabeth had wanted both of her sisters to participate, but had decided to avoid calling them 'maid of honor' or 'matron of honor'. They would both be witnesses, or attendants, but one wouldn't hold a distinction over the other. The same went for Will; he had asked both Charles and Richard to be groomsmen, but neither would bear the title of 'best man'.

One decision that Elizabeth had made, the one that had taken the longest but was very important to her, was whether or not she wanted her father to walk her down the aisle. She had decided, eventually, to make the walk alone. Her reasoning was simple; her father wasn't 'giving her away'. That would imply, in Elizabeth's mind anyway, that he had been caring for her and looking out for her, and was now imparting that responsibility to Will. It didn't sit right with her, that reasoning; it didn't _feel_ right. In the end, she had decided to give _herself_ away to Will. She would walk down the aisle alone, her sisters walking down ahead of her. In a way, the aisle represented the path she had chosen, the path she had forged with Will, leading her _to_ Will and the life she would continue to build with him; she didn't need her father's assistance for those final few steps.

Her relationship with her parents hadn't changed much over the past couple of months. Contact was maintained mostly by phone calls, not by visits. Her mother had had a birthday in April, and the three girls had taken her out to lunch, and again, Elizabeth had noticed a marked difference in her attitude, just as she and Will had noticed in February. She asked about the wedding details, seemed genuinely interested, but didn't demand to be included in the formation of plans or events. Much of the conversation was also spent on her impending 'grand-motherhood', and her excitement over that was obvious, but again, she wasn't over the top. She had no words of wisdom to share with either Elizabeth or Jane, thankfully, and even refrained from turning her matchmaking attentions to Lydia.

Elizabeth's thoughts turned to Lydia, who was now happily involved with Ben. What started out as friendship had quietly and slowly turned into romance, and Elizabeth was thrilled. Ben was a solid, steady presence, mature beyond his years. He took his schooling seriously, and knew what it would take to make his dreams of someday owning his own restaurant come true. When it came to school, Lydia may have received her financial support from Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, but Ben was definitely her biggest cheerleader. Elizabeth hadn't seen her so happy, so settled and focused, in years, if ever.

Jane and Lydia had picked out their dresses without Elizabeth's assistance; she had left it in their hands to decide the color and style to buy, trusting their judgment completely. Jane was due in a couple of months, and Elizabeth wanted her to be comfortable above all. Her sisters had gone off shopping together, and had picked out beautiful dresses, both the same shade of royal blue, but in different styles. They were simple but elegant, perfect for a beach wedding, and the brilliant color brought out the the blue of their eyes. Elizabeth was very pleased with their choices.

The men's clothing was left up to Will, and he had decided to go with a traditional black tux for himself. Secretly, Elizabeth was thrilled; the sight of him in a tuxedo literally took her breath away, and when he told her that was what he had decided on, she had almost squealed like a giddy schoolgirl. Will had looked at her curiously, trying to read the expression on her face.

"Would you rather have me wear something more casual? Is it too much for-"

"NO, no, a tux is fine. It's fine, really. It's fine. It's good. A tux will be good. I mean, you have to wear what you want to wear, right? So if you want to wear a tux, wear a tux. Perfect."

He had squinted his eyes at her suspiciously. "Alright then, I guess I'll...wear a tux."

She could only grin and nod, but inside, she was doing some serious fist-pumping.

Charles and Richard would wear black suits as well, the difference being that they would wear royal blue neck ties.

Will had reserved condos for Mrs. Reynolds, the Gardners, the Fitzwilliams, and another for Catherine and Anne. He had debated inviting Catherine, but Elizabeth assured him that it was the lesser of two evils; either invite her, or hear all about it forever if they didn't. She didn't mind Catherine, didn't feel threatened or intimidated by her at all. She assured Will that Catherine's presence wouldn't bother her in the least, and that she was actually looking forward to seeing Anne again. The condos were in a time-share development right down the road from the Darcy home in New Seabury, and all four had beautiful views of the ocean. Richard and Lauren and baby Emma were due to arrive on Thursday, and were staying through Sunday. Catherine and Anne, the Gardners, and Mrs. Reynolds were due in on Friday.

Elizabeth and Will had enjoyed a nice four-day trip out to California in March for Emma's christening. Elizabeth loved watching Will as he interacted with his newest, youngest cousin. The look on his face when he held her was a mixture of awe and terror, and Elizabeth couldn't pull her eyes away as he looked down into her tiny little face, cooing away at her. Emma had stared at him with that look of infantile bewilderment that all babies seemed to wear, and Elizabeth's heart felt like it was expanding in her chest. Of course, her eyes had welled up. Will had glanced at her, and seeing her on the verge of tears, he rolled his eyes and shook his head, but he couldn't stifle the broad grin on his face.

Coming back to the present once again, Elizabeth glanced at the display on the treadmill, and realized she had been running, completely zoned out, for almost an hour. Slowing the speed down, she walked to cool off for another ten minutes, then headed up to take a shower.

* * *

><p><em>Wednesday, May 25<em>_th__, 2:45 p.m._

"Poker night?" Will was headed home from Boston, and was talking to Charles on his cell phone.

"Yes, poker night," Charles answered emphatically.

"Okay, but can I ask you something? 'Poker' isn't a bizarre euphemism for 'stripper', is it? We're really playing poker, right?"

Charles laughed. "Are you serious? Have you met my wife?"

Will laughed with him. "Alright, dumb question I guess. Have you talked to Richard though? I wouldn't put it past him to plan something like that."

"Yes, we've talked, he said he didn't plan anything. He said that was the old Richard. The new Richard doesn't do that stuff anymore."

"That's because the new Richard _also_ has a wife that would kick his ass if he did."

"Exactly. So, it's poker night at my place on Friday night. You, me, Rich, Matt, Ed, Ben, and Elliot."

Will's eyebrows rose. "Sounds like a good crowd." He paused for a moment. "Um, did you invite your father-in-law?"

"Your soon-to-be father-in-law? I did," Charles said quietly, "and he declined the invitation."

Will nodded to himself. "Okay. That's fine." _I don't want him there anyway_. "So, I assume all the women will be invading my house while I'm gone?"

"Yes. A wild and crazy manicure and pedicure party, if I'm not mistaken. Jane hired some people to come to the house to do nails. And no, 'do nails' is not a euphemism for 'male stripper'."

Will smiled. "Thanks for the unnecessary reassurance."

"You're welcome. So, Jane and I will be heading down on Friday morning. We're giving Mrs. Reynolds a lift with us."

"Oh, that's great. I was planning on calling her tonight to see what her arrangements were, I didn't want her to have to take the bus."

"I took it upon myself to give her a call and offer her a ride, so she's all set."

Will was relieved. "Thanks Charles, I appreciate that. Call me when you get in."

"Will do. Talk to you soon."

Will hung up and sighed. _Three more days._ He glanced at the clock on the dashboard and saw that it was nearing three. Elizabeth wasn't expecting him until after six, so he knew she'd be surprised to see him. He hated being away from home, and this time it had been for two nights.

There were a lot of things that had needed his attention at the office, and he had managed to get ninety percent of them taken care of. The rest were things that could wait, or could be managed by other people. There was a reason he had such a capable staff, and it was for times like this, when they needed to pretty much run things for him when he was away. They had done a fantastic job the previous year, when he had taken so much time off to be with Georgiana, and he was sure they'd do a great job now. As it stood, he wasn't due back to the office until the middle of June. If anything dire came up, Charles would know how to contact him, so he wasn't worried.

Will thought back again to Mrs. Reynolds. He'd have to ask Charles to touch base with her occasionally while they were away, to make sure she was doing okay. He knew Georgie would, she always did, but it was good to know that there was someone in Boston keeping an eye on her as well.

As he and Elizabeth had talked about music for the reception, they had discussed dances, and whether or not Elizabeth would want to have a traditional 'father-daughter' dance. Will had wanted to dance with Alice Reynolds, and so although Elizabeth had chosen not to have her father walk her down the aisle, she had decided that she was fine with dancing one dance with him, and the four of them would dance simultaneously to a song that Will had chosen. To her, the dance with her father wasn't symbolic of anything; it was just a dance.

Will wanted to share a special dance with Alice. Although it wouldn't be a 'mother-son' dance, she had been, for the past twenty years, the only mother figure he'd had in his life. There wasn't a time that he could think of that she wasn't there for him, to talk to him or spend time with him. Within the past year, he'd really come to see how much of an influence she'd had on him, how much love and security she'd brought to his life. Thinking back, he remembered the love and affection that existed between his mother and Mrs. Reynolds, and he knew his mother would be smiling down on them as they danced.

He'd dance with Georgiana too, he was sure of that. She had changed so much over the past few months, but the changes were subtle, even to him. Happiness radiated from her, and she seemed so content. He'd had to laugh when Matt had pulled him aside a few weeks ago, after one of their dinners together, and asked Will to give him a 'rough figure' on what he'd spent on Elizabeth's engagement ring.

"A rough figure?" Will had asked, unable to resist the opportunity to tease the man who he knew would someday be his brother-in-law.

"Yes. Just – just a ballpark. I'm not trying to be nosy, I just want an idea. I mean, that's a pretty freaking big ring you bought, I don't-"

"It's not that big. It was actually one of the smallest in the store."

Matt's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Look, Matt, these days, girls want big rocks. Lizzy's is only two carats, that's not much. I may have to upgrade on our first anniversary."

Matt swallowed. "_Only_ two carats? Man, it's a good thing I've been saving my money. Shit."

"Yeah, good thing." Will cleared his throat. "Once you've got around, oh, ten thousand saved, you should start shopping."

Matt's eyebrows flew way up into his forehead. "Ten _thousand?_ Ten thousand _dollars?_ Are you _kidding me?_"

He looked so distraught that Will couldn't do it anymore, and took pity on him. "Yes, I'm kidding you," he said, laughing and slapping Matt on the back. "Relax, your eyes are about to fall out of your head."

Matt let out a huge sigh of relief. "Dude, you are _such_ an ass."

Will smiled. "I know." He slapped Matt on the back again as they both chuckled. "What happened to 'we want to wait a while'?"

"We do want to wait, but I want to start saving for a ring now, and I just wanted an idea."

"Well, head to a jewelry store, find something you think she'll like, and go from there."

Matt shook his head. "I don't know why I didn't think of that, it would have been less painful."

Will laughed to himself as he drove along, remembering the conversation. He really did like Matt, he was a responsible, hard-working man, and he took care of Georgie. It was obvious that he adored her, and honestly, if Georgie was happy, Will was happy.

About forty-five minutes later, he pulled into the driveway, smiling when he saw Elizabeth's Jeep parked there. He got out of the car, grabbing his bag from the passenger seat, and tilted his head a bit as he heard the sounds of loud music coming from the open windows of the house.

Curious, he headed for the front door. The closer he got, the louder the music became. He unlocked the door and let himself in, dying to know exactly what was going on inside the house. The sounds of an old but definitely remixed Elvis song flooded the room, and underneath it all, he could hear the sounds of something else as well: the vacuum cleaner.

Will set his bag down, and when Fenway bolted past him in the foyer, he peeked around the corner to see what had spooked him. His mouth dropped open as he watched Elizabeth moving around the living room with the vacuum cleaner, dancing as she went, singing at the top of her lungs.

_A little less conversation, a little more action please  
><em>_All this aggravation ain't satisfactionin' me  
><em>_A little more bite and a little less bark  
><em>_A little less fight and a little more spark  
><em>_Close your mouth and open up your heart, and baby satisfy me  
><em>_Satisfy me baby_

She was wearing the shortest pair of pink shorts he'd ever seen, and one of her skimpy tank tops. Her hips were gyrating to the music as she vacuumed, and her hair, pulled up in a rough ponytail, swayed and swung behind her head. He stood there watching her, smiling broadly, wondering if this was a regular occurrence when he was in Boston. _What have I been missing?_

_Baby close your eyes and listen to the music  
><em>_Drifting through a summer breeze  
><em>_It's a groovy night and I can show you how to use it  
><em>_Come along with me and put your mind at ease...*_

Her back had mostly been turned to him, but she suddenly moved in his direction, and he shifted his feet a little, knowing that the movement would get her attention. She jumped slightly and dropped the handle of the upright vacuum, her gaze flying to his face. Immediately her skin pinked, and she reached with one bare toe to shut the vacuum off, then turned to her iPod dock to lower the volume.

They walked toward each other, Will with a huge smile on his face, Elizabeth grinning in embarrassment.

"You're early," she said softly, reaching up to give him a kiss.

"I am," he replied, placing his hands on her hips, pulling her closer to him.

She stared at him, and could see from the look on his face that he was holding back from either teasing her or laughing. "Go ahead, get it over with," she said, placing her hands on his shoulders and beginning to laugh a little herself.

"Get what over with? Do you think I'm going to tease you?"

"Yes."

"No way, no teasing. That was _the_ best dance performance I've ever seen, hands down. The only way it would've been better is if you were wearing your red heels...and if you were naked." She rolled her eyes at him, and his gaze dropped to her chest; it was evident she wasn't wearing a bra. "You're almost there already, anyway." Slowly, his hands crept up under the hem of her top, and she batted them away playfully.

"I wasn't expecting you this early."

"So, what, you would have put your bra on before I got home? That's no fun." His hands moved again, determined to make their way under her shirt.

"I would have _showered_ before you got home. I'm sweaty and sticky," she said, laughing as she batted his hands away again.

"Ohh, that's so hot, keep talking," he murmured teasingly as he leaned down to kiss her neck. Moving his hands again, he wound his arms tightly around her waist to bring her body up against his. His tongue licked across her skin lightly. "Mmm, you taste good."

Elizabeth could feel it, the moment that his playfulness began to turn to something else as his kisses slowed. His mouth moved down along the curve of her neck to her shoulder, and he pulled on the strap of her tank top with his teeth, gently tugging it off of her shoulder. She could feel the hardness of his arousal as it began to swell between them, and his hands moved again to the hem of her shirt and slid underneath, slowly creeping upward. Her breasts suddenly felt heavier and began to throb in anticipation of his touch, the centers tingling and growing tight with need.

She never ceased to be amazed at the effect he had on her, and she on him; it seemed that sometimes, a soft whisper, a lightly placed touch or kiss, or even a sultry stare was all that it took to set them both on fire. She gasped against his mouth as his lips found hers at the same moment that his warm hands skimmed over her breasts. She kissed him back hungrily, all thoughts of housework and being sticky completely pushed from her mind. He had a way of kissing her that could do that to her; could make her forget herself and become oblivious to everything around her except for his body, his mouth, his tongue.

"I hate being away from you, even for two nights," he whispered against her lips. "I want you so much…now…let me have you right now, Lizzy, please..."

In one swift movement, her tank top was pulled over her head, and he lowered his hands to yank his dress shirt out of his pants. Elizabeth moved her hands to his pants, unbuttoning them and then moving to the zipper. She lowered it and immediately pushed her hands inside of his briefs, sighing when she felt the warmth and hardness of him in her hands. He muttered something that she couldn't quite make out and reached to grab her wrists, holding her arms to her sides, bending slightly to take one taut nipple into his mouth. She fought against his grip, wanting to touch him, but he held her tightly, moving his mouth to capture her other nipple. Her body responded instantly, and she felt the rush of warmth pooling between her legs.

Will released one of her wrists, only because he needed to touch her more. Her hand rose to hold his head to her breast, and he felt a tremor move through her body. His free hand slid down under the waistband of her shorts, heading straight to the warm skin between her thighs. He groaned when he stroked over her, parting and dipping into her, letting his fingers glide along slippery flesh, feeling himself grow harder as he finally slid his fingers inside of her.

Elizabeth subconsciously widened her legs, letting him caress her and inflame her arousal, the feeling of his fingers inside her and moving over her causing her entire body to heat and fill with arcs of sensation. Abruptly, she reached for his hand and pulled it out of her shorts. Without saying a word, she led him over toward the couch but bypassed it, only grabbing a pillow from it and throwing it to the floor in front of the fireplace. She turned to him and finished removing his dress shirt before yanking on his t-shirt to pull that off as well.

For a moment she just stared at him, at his beautiful chest and the sculpted muscles of his arms, before dropping her eyes to his abs and the rows of muscles there, highlighted by the 'v' that led into his pants. They had both been better about getting in regular exercise over the past couple of months, and on him, it really showed. His muscles were more defined, though still perfectly proportioned to his body. He was her very own perfectly sculpted Greek statue.

Will pulled her back against him forcefully, plying her with kisses until she was soft against him, her body melting into his. She pushed at the waistband of his pants, and he helped her tug them and his briefs down simultaneously. Their movements became more rushed, more frantic as he stepped out of his shoes and then his clothes, kicking them away. Elizabeth's mouth was at his neck, kissing up to his ear, working along his jaw to his lips. Her breasts brushed against his chest, and then she was pulling away, stripping off her own shorts and sinking to the carpet. She tugged on his hand so that he would come down with her, and he did, but lay on his back and pulled her up to straddle him.

"Rug burn," was all he said in response to her questioning look, before reaching up to latch onto a nipple that happened to be in close proximity to his mouth.

Elizabeth reached between them to stroke him, loving the feel of the warmth and hardness of him – so hard, but yet so soft at the same time. He reached down and grasped her hand, pulling it away from him, and grabbed at her hips, lifting and pulling her to position her over his mouth.

"Will, I can't," she whispered, shuddering when she felt his tongue glide across her. Her body was shaking entirely too much for her to keep her balance, and she felt like she was about to topple over.

"Shhh, you can, I've got you. Just let me taste you, I need to taste you," he said against her skin, his hands gripping her hips tightly before sliding to her bottom, holding her in place.

Elizabeth felt his warm breath against her and she sighed, relaxing into the feel of his mouth and tongue on her, unable to stop herself from moving against him. She leaned back slightly, far enough that she could reach behind her and take him into her grasp again. His groan of pleasure vibrated against her, and she echoed it with her own soft moan. She felt his large hands slide around to her center, his thumbs opening her more, encouraging her thighs to part wider as his tongue stroked and probed relentlessly. Within moments, she was gasping over him, her body rushing to its release as she called out his name. She gripped him harder, stroked him more firmly, and felt him thrusting into her hand before he suddenly took her by the hips again and moved her back until she was centered over him.

Will surged up inside of her, pulling her hips down so that he filled her in one motion and she was seated firmly on top of him. They stayed like that for a moment, unmoving, until he reached up to remove the elastic from her hair, which was barely doing its job anyway. Her long brunette waves flowed down over her shoulders, and he reached up to twirl one around his finger as they smiled at each other.

Elizabeth raised herself up excruciatingly slowly before sliding back down on him again, making him bite his lower lip and expel a long exhalation of air.

"You – you've raised my expectations now, you know," he said, slightly breathless.

She raised herself up, and then slid down onto him again, sighing when he lifted his body to meet hers. One delicate eyebrow arched up. "How have I done that?" she whispered.

"Welcoming me home like this." His hands reached up to play with her breasts, before he pulled her down to him so he could tease them in turn with his tongue. "A man could get very used to this sort of thing."

She tightened her muscles on him, clenching at his length, making him hiss. "So could a woman."

Elizabeth sat up again and he settled them into a steady rhythm, letting things build slowly. She felt the pleasurable tension winding itself up again in her body, and she adjusted her position, resting her hands against his chest, getting just the _right_ amount of friction, _exactly_ where she needed it. Will's hands moved to her breasts again, heightening the tension until she was trembling with pleasure. She gazed at him, at the small bead of sweat that had gathered along his forehead, and she realized that he was holding himself in check for her, waiting for her to come again.

Will watched as Elizabeth slowly reached for one of his hands and guided it down between her legs, helping to move his fingers in slow, slippery circles around her swollen flesh as she rode him. Her eyes locked on his, and the deep emerald green color pulled him in, just as it always did. He continued to let her fingers guide his, and his eyes dropped again to their joined hands, the slow, lazy movement almost hypnotic to him. He let out a harsh breath before looking up at her again. "God, you are so beautiful."

Elizabeth lowered herself to kiss him and felt his fingers increase their pressure. She moved her hand away from his, using it to support herself over him instead. The rising tide of pleasure in her body reached its crest, and she kissed him again, letting him swallow her cries of pleasure as her muscles clenched around him in spasms. She felt every muscle in his body tense, felt his hips raise up off the floor as he thrust into her one final time, groaning loudly as he finally let himself spill inside of her.

She collapsed down on top of him, their bodies both covered with a light sheen of sweat, her hair flowing around his shoulders and draped over his chest. Gradually, they began to breathe normally again, and Elizabeth lifted her head, bringing her lips to his for a long, soft kiss.

"I missed you too," she whispered against his lips before sitting up a little.

Will chuckled softly. "I can only imagine what it will be like when I have to go away to California or New York for a week." He pushed her hair aside and cupped her face in his hands, letting one thumb drift over the soft skin of her cheek before it grazed across her bottom lip. He began to sing quietly, just a few lines of a song as he looked at her.

_You're so delicious, you're so soft,  
><em>_Sweet on the tip of my tongue  
><em>_You taste like sunlight, and strawberry bubble gum...*_

He stopped, but continued to stare at her. He didn't say anything else, but his gaze was steady and became more intense, and Elizabeth had an idea of what he was thinking about. She had come to learn that the long, quiet stares that frequently came her way usually occurred during the times when he was thinking about their future, about what their life together would hold...or sometimes, he was just thinking about her.

Will's eyes dropped to follow the path of his hand, which had drifted away from her face and down the column of her neck, moving lower still until his fingers caressed over one nipple, watching as it instantly perked at his attentions. He smiled then, his face softening, and looked back up at her. "I can't believe I get to marry you," he said quietly. "In three days, you're going to be my wife. _My wife_." He swallowed thickly, feeling his throat tighten. "Sometimes I can't believe it. I can't believe that you're here, and that you've chosen me – _me_ – as the person you want to spend the rest of your life with..." His expression turned serious. "After everything that happened, after – "

Elizabeth frowned, and moved her fingers to cover his lips, stemming the flow of his words. "Hey, where is this coming from?" she asked quietly, unsure of why he was bringing up their past now. They hadn't talked about anything to do with last summer in quite a while. "What's wrong?"

Will shook his head, swallowing again. "Nothing is wrong," he said, staring up at her. "It's just – sometimes I think back to last year, and I think about how close I came to losing you. I know it doesn't do me any good to think about it, I know we've moved past it, but sometimes I can't help it. You know what though? It's okay, because it reminds me of how lucky I am to have you, how fortunate I am that I have this absolutely amazing woman in my life." He reached up to hold her face in his hands, and she covered them with hers. "I love you so much, Lizzy...sometimes saying that doesn't seem like enough."

Elizabeth briefly covered his lips with her fingers again and laid back down on him, kissing his neck and jaw before moving to his lips. The truth was, she thought about it sometimes too, but not in the way that he did; instead, she wondered if she would have ever been completely happy if she'd denied her feelings and taken the safe route, choosing a life without him. The answer, she knew, was a resounding _no_. "I love you too, and it's enough," she said softly. She kissed him again, a long, slow kiss, before rubbing her nose with his. "It's enough," she whispered, "and it's all I need. You're all I need."

* * *

><p><em>Friday, May 27<em>_th__, 9:30 a.m._

"So, Carrie...I think this thing we've had going has run its course, don't you think?"

Caroline Bingley's eyebrows rose as she watched Dalton adjust his tie in the mirror of their hotel room. She was still buried under the covers, but she pursed her lips and shrugged. This _thing_ had been going on for almost six months. "I don't know, Dalton, has it?"

He nodded very decisively. "It has. Sarah's holding the whole divorce thing over my head again, telling me she's gonna take me to the cleaners unless I straighten up." He turned to Caroline. "I can't let that happen, so..." he shrugged, "it's been fun, anyway."

He said it with no emotion whatsoever, and she was fine with that. Dalton was always just a diversion, a plaything to keep her busy. Caroline felt a little badly for his wife, but really, this wasn't his first extramarital dalliance, nor would it be his last. Surely she must have known what he was like before marrying him, right?

"Anyway, I've gotta run," he continued, turning to her. "So…no hard feelings?"

Caroline managed a slight grin. "None whatsoever. Thanks for the memories, Dalton."

He walked over to the bed and bent to give her a hard kiss on the mouth. "Same to you." Standing straight, he shrugged into his suit jacket, then grabbed his laptop and a small duffel bag. There was a newspaper on the table and he picked it up. "Oh, by the way...I thought you'd like a little light morning reading."

Caroline rolled her eyes as Dalton tossed the paper toward the bed. It landed short of it, and she had to roll over and reach down to pick it up off of the floor.

"What could possibly be in this rag that would interest me?" she asked when she saw that it was the Herald.

"You'll know it when you see it." He winked at her. "Later babe." And with that, he was gone.

Caroline sat up and began leafing through the paper, not seeing anything of interest...until she got to the society pages. Her mouth dropped open when she saw a picture of Darcy there, looking devastatingly handsome as always. There was a short article next to the picture, and she began to read.

_Can you hear it, Boston?_

_Listen closely and you'll hear it...that crackling rumble is the unmistakable sound of hearts breaking up and down the entire east coast. Yes, ladies (and even some of you gents), it's true; by this time tomorrow, one of Boston's wealthiest, sexiest, most eligible – and most desired – bachelors, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, will be well on his way to tying the knot with his lovely Cape Cod lady, she of the stunning chestnut waves and emerald eyes._

Caroline's mouth hung open in shock. _Married?_ _He's_ _marrying_ _her?_ She continued to read.

_Apparently, this reporter was misinformed when she was told that FD was done with his brainy beach babe and was headed back our way for a dose of some city life. Perhaps that was wishful thinking on the part of my source? Methinks it was. Well, FD, all the best to you and your beautiful bride as you start your new life. We'll sure miss you here. * reporter sighs heavily *_

Caroline sighed heavily as well, then picked up the paper and flung it across the room, where it hit the wall and slid to the floor in a pile.

"I can't believe he's marrying her. _Her!_" she said aloud. Her stomach felt as though she'd swallowed a brick, and she glanced around the hotel room helplessly until her eyes lit on her phone. Jumping out of bed, she threw on a robe and reached for it, pressed a few buttons, then held it to her ear, tapping her foot impatiently while she waited for her call to be answered.

"Good morning sis," she heard her brother say as he answered his phone.

"Charles! Please tell me it isn't true."

"It isn't true."

"Oh, thank God." She paused for a moment. "Wait a second, do you even know what I'm talking about?"

"Not at all."

"Oh, Charles, for heaven's sake. I'm talking about Darcy! The paper said he was marrying Elizabeth Bennettomorrow!"

"Ohhh, thaaaaat. Yes, that's true." He couldn't resist torturing her, just a little.

"I – I can't believe it! How long have you known? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I've known almost since it became official, so a few months anyway. And I didn't tell you because one, it's none of your business, and two…well, I knew you'd react like this."

"Oh, please, Charles—"

"No, Caroline, I'm serious. Will is marrying Elizabeth, and they're going to be together forever. _For_. _Ev. Er._ I've said it a dozen times to you, but now you really have to listen: _move on_. Find someone else. Honestly, Caroline, do you think you ever really loved Will anyway? He was just something you wanted to have, like another Prada bag."

"That's not true, I _do_ love Darcy," she said, her tone suggesting offense at his comment. "Do you think that low-born chit loves him, and not his money and everything that comes with it? The homes, the clothes, the jewelry, the status...do you think she's immune to that, just because she claims to be? She's fooling you all."

Charles sighed. "She's not fooling anyone, Elizabeth is one of the most genuine people I know. And for all your talk about your love for Darcy, you certainly have a strange way of proclaiming it; you've tried to sabotage his relationship, and you've been sleeping with a married man for six months. Not only does Will completely dislike you, he has absolutely zero respect for you. Even if he didn't have Elizabeth, he would never lower himself to be with someone who has done the things you've done. Never."

She felt his words like a slap across the face, but refused to let him know it. "Fine, he'll never be with me. That's – that's just fine. But mark my words Charles, he'll be miserable with her. I'll give him a year, maybe two, until he starts to realize what a dreadful mistake he's made."

Charles laughed. "Oh, my god! I wish you could hear yourself. You're completely out of touch with reality. This conversation is over. Jane and I are leaving for the Cape in about an hour, we'll be back in town on Monday night. Have a great weekend."

He hung up before she had a chance to reply, and she threw her phone down onto the bed in frustration.

She eyed the paper, lying in a heap on the floor, and wandered over to pick it up, putting it back in order. She sat on the bed and began flipping through the pages until she got to the society section again, and stared down at Darcy's picture. _Move on, find someone else. _Charles' words reverberated through her mind.

Caroline shook her head stubbornly as she stared at the picture, ignoring the hollow feeling that had settled into her stomach. She could be very patient when necessary.

_I can wait. _

* * *

><p><em>Friday, May 27<em>_th__ continued…11:41 p.m._

Elizabeth lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, wondering what Will was doing. Her evening had been a lot of fun, and the wine and the margaritas had flowed freely, although she'd only indulged in one margarita; the last thing she wanted was to feel lousy in the morning. She'd had a great time with all the ladies, and there had certainly been a houseful of them: Jane, Lydia, Georgiana, Mrs. Reynolds, Vee, Megan, Charlotte, Lauren, Anne, and yes, even Catherine. Elizabeth was surprised when her mother had shown up as well, a bottle of wine in hand. Again, her mother was subdued, and spent most of the evening talking to Mrs. Reynolds, Vee, and Catherine. Jane had been drawn to Lauren, of course, asking her questions about baby Emma, who slept through most of the festivities.

Elizabeth had spent a lot of time catching up with Charlotte. Although they always maintained contact by phone, they hadn't seen each other in quite a while, and Elizabeth was eager to hear all about the paramedic that was Charlotte's new paramour. Charlotte took great glee in reminding Elizabeth that Charlotte was the one, after leaving Charles' big Memorial Day party last year, that predicted Elizabeth and Will would end up together. The more margaritas she consumed, the more gleeful she became, proclaiming that if she hadn't _graciously_ bowed out of pursuing William herself, things may have certainly turned out differently. Elizabeth laughed, knowing she was kidding, and knowing how thrilled Charlotte really was for her.

At one point during the evening, Elizabeth had managed to slip away for some fresh air out on the deck. She was feeling restless, and impatient for time to pass a little quicker. Although she was enjoying the time with her friends and family, Will was never far from her thoughts, and she couldn't wait to see him tomorrow. Her aunt had snuck out to join her, and they were able to have a brief conversation about what the next day would bring. Elizabeth had taken a moment, then, to thank her aunt for all she had done for her.

"I owe you so much, Aunt Vee. Those couple of days I spent with you on the Vineyard last summer were lifesaving. I needed that time away from everything, but at the same time…I needed to talk about it. The things you said to me, the advice you gave me…I don't think you realize how much it all meant. I don't know if I'd be standing here right now, in this house, about to marry Will, if it wasn't for you."

Vee smiled and waved her hand. "Oh, nonsense Lizzy. You and William would have worked your way back to each other, with or without my help. You were meant to be, don't you see that?" She reached out to hug Elizabeth, and the two women stood that way for a moment, embracing. "I'm so happy for you, sweetie. You two will be just fine, I know it."

Elizabeth hugged her tighter. "Thank you."

Coming back to the present, she sighed as she lay there, still gazing up at the ceiling. Fenway was lying with her, curled up in a ball, when suddenly his head shot up and he stared at the French doors that led out to the deck. Elizabeth looked at him, then at the doors, and then she heard what he must have; a faint noise against the glass. She waited, and it came again. Her curiosity got the best of her, and she wandered to the doors, opening them and poking her head out. The air was still, and it was quiet, except for the sound of the ocean in the distance. She stepped further out and went to stand at the small wall that enclosed the third floor deck, looking out over the yard that was bathed in light from an almost-full moon. A movement far below her arrested her attention, and her heart lurched.

"_There_ you are," she suddenly heard, and she realized Will was standing on the lawn below, looking up at her.

"Oh my god, William, what are you doing? You scared me to death!" She looked at him, and after a moment, couldn't help the grin that spread across her face, especially since she had just been thinking about him. He wore old, faded jeans and a rumpled white dress shirt, which hung untucked, and he was barefoot. The Red Sox hat she had bought him almost a year ago graced the top of his head, and his hair hung in unruly curls from it. She'd persuaded him to leave his hair on the longer side for the wedding, as she liked it a little shaggy. He looked absolutely adorable.

"I wanted to see you," he said simply. "I snuck out, and then realized I'd left my keys and phone at Charlies'. I've been throwing sticks and pebbles at the doors for fifteen minutes."

She laughed as she rested her elbows on the wall and looked down at him. "Is your poker party over?"

"God no, they're still going strong. Your uncle is a helluva card player, he's cleaning everyone out." He sat down in the grass, stretching his long legs in front of him and leaning back on his arms, staring up at her. "How was your night?"

Elizabeth smiled. "It was fun. Jane was tending bar, and the margaritas were flying."

His mouth dropped open. "You were drinking tequila without me?"

She shook her head. "I only had one, I promise you."

"Yeah, I only had a few beers myself, I don't want to feel like crap in the morning. Everyone else is making up for it though. Those boys can drink."

Elizabeth chuckled. "I bet." She cleared her throat. "Did my father show up?"

Will shook his head slowly. "I didn't expect him to, Lizzy. It was his choice. Your mom?"

"She came…and she behaved. Something must have happened, I can't explain it. She's just been different, ever since Christmas."

"Lizzy?"

She looked down at him. "Hmm?"

"I didn't come here to talk about my future in-laws."

"Sorry. What did you come here to talk about?" she asked, smiling down at him.

"You." He grinned up at her lecherously, and she thought she saw his eyebrows wiggle. "What're you wearing?"

She giggled. "One of your big t-shirts."

"Hmm. You're wearing a sexy thong or something under it though, right?"

"No, I'm not. Actually, I'm not wearing any underwear at all."

Will fell back into the grass and groaned, instantly feeling warmth circulate through his body and head straight to his groin. He sat up again and grinned at her. "How 'bout you come down and let me in?"

Her mouth dropped open as she laughed again. "Are you kidding me?"

"Come on, love, just for a little kiss. I'll only stay a minute."

"Oh no, no way. I know what you're capable of doing in a minute."

Will frowned. "I don't know if that's good or bad."

She giggled. "I meant it in an entirely good way, trust me. Besides, if Jane catches you here, you'll be a dead man."

He grinned. "True. Well, if you're not going to let me in…how about a little flash of something?"

She waved her left hand around, biting her lip to stop herself from laughing. "There you go."

"I didn't see anything...what are you flashing, a toe?"

"No, I flashed my ring."

"Ha ha, you're very funny. Come on, show me some skin. I miss you."

"You just saw me this morning! You saw _all_ of me, and _plenty_ of skin, if I'm not mistaken. _Way_ more than a little flash."

"I know, but-," he stopped talking and jumped to his feet, facing the beach. "Oh damn. Shit."

"What's the matter?"

"Here they come."

Sure enough, the rest of the men had come walking down the beach to find Will. Once he was spotted, the boisterous group converged on him.

"What the hell, Darcy?" Richard said loudly, giving Will a playful shove. "Who do you think you are, fucking Romeo?" He glanced up at Elizabeth then, a contrite expression on his face. "Sorry Lizzy."

Elizabeth smiled. "That's okay Richard."

"Hello Lizzy," Ed called up to her.

"Hi Uncle Ed. Having fun?"

"Oh, most definitely, yes. Making some money while I'm at it."

"So I hear."

Richard and Charles had each grabbed Will by an arm and were forcibly pulling him back toward the beach. Will was still facing Elizabeth, walking backward. "See you tomorrow," he called out quietly, smiling up at her.

She grinned back, waving a little at him. "See you tomorrow."

"I love you," he said, still smiling.

"I love you too."

The men playfully shoved him along, teasing him as they went. Elizabeth watched until they were out of sight, and turned to go back into the bedroom. She crawled underneath the covers, and looked at her clock. It read 12:05.

_Fourteen hours_, she thought, forcing herself to close her eyes, but unable to erase the smile from her face. _I'm getting married in fourteen hours_.

* * *

><p><em>Saturday, May 28<em>_th__, 1:50 p.m._

Elizabeth stood just inside the inn, waiting for word that everything was set and ready to begin. She looked outside from a small room at the back of the inn, pulling aside one of the window shades that had been closed to prevent Will (and everyone else) from seeing her. She could just see a sliver of him, standing casually in his tux in the bright sunlight, talking to Richard. Her stomach jumped in a nervous flutter, and she chewed on her bottom lip. Suddenly, her hand was slapped lightly.

"Cut it out. If he can't peek, you can't peek," Jane said sternly. "And if you keep doing that to your lip, it will swell and your gloss will be all uneven. Stop it."

Elizabeth looked at her and grinned. "I'm getting impatient, can we just get on with it?"

"Another ten minutes isn't going to kill you."

Lydia came to them then, having just returned from the restroom. "Is everything okay? My dress, my jewelry, my hair?"

"Yes, you look stunning," Elizabeth replied. "You both do. Those dresses are perfect."

"You look fucking _gorgeous_," Lydia said, in true Lydia style. "Will is going to hyperventilate when he sees you."

Elizabeth glanced down at her dress. "Thanks. I actually _feel_ gorgeous. I love this dress."

"It's beautiful, you're beautiful, we're all beautiful. Even me and my beach ball," Jane said, laughing as she rubbed her belly. "BB has been kicking me all day. Must be the excitement."

"Must be," Elizabeth said, smiling at her very pregnant sister. BB was the temporary name of said beach ball..._not_ an abbreviation for beach ball, actually, but for 'baby Bingley'.

Elizabeth looked up as her Aunt Vee stuck her head in the door. "Are you ready Lizzy? Everything is all set, and your groom is getting a bit anxious to see his bride."

Elizabeth smiled at her aunt. "I'm ready."

After Vee left, Elizabeth turned to her two sisters. "I'm so glad you're both here with me...that you're both a part of this. It – it means so much to me. And to Will. You're not just my sisters, you're my very best friends. I don't know what I'd do without you." She stopped talking as her eyes began to fill, and the three girls shared hugs, all of them carefully wiping away tears and sniffling. Elizabeth turned to Lydia. "Okay Lyddie, you first."

Lydia walked out, and a few seconds later, after squeezing Elizabeth's hand tightly, Jane followed.

_Deep breath. Breathe in, breathe out._

As soon as Elizabeth walked out the door, she could hear the click of the photographer's camera as the pictures started. There was no music as she walked down the stairs to the beach, following behind Lydia and Jane; instead, she and Will had chosen to have the sound of the waves and the seagulls be their background song. Their guests had assembled on either side of the 'aisle', which was actually just a path marked by seashells in the sand.

Elizabeth's eyes sought Will's, and once found, never left them; she was unaware of anyone else, even the people watching from beyond the wide boundaries set up by the inn. There was only Will, standing there with an outstretched hand, waiting for her to reach him.

She took his hand and smiled up at him brilliantly, her eyes watering and her heart pounding as he smiled back. He bent and started to whisper something to her, but stopped, and she could see that he was trying to collect himself. She squeezed his hand tightly, and he leaned back a little from her; it was then that she could see the emotion written in his expression, the love in his eyes.

Will swallowed heavily, trying to control his galloping pulse and his breathing. As soon as he saw her emerge from the inn, he was thunderstruck. She was a vision, her dress stunning, her hair down, just as he loved it, flowing around her shoulders, catching the light breeze that swept across the beach.

Finally, he felt as if he was able to speak. "You are more beautiful today...than you have ever been," he managed to whisper, looking down into her upturned face.

Even though it was a bit premature, she reached up to give him a soft kiss, and they smiled against each others lips as they heard the Justice of the Peace clear his throat.

The ceremony wasn't long, as they had chosen to recite traditional wedding vows. The only words they had decided to write themselves were the words they would speak when they were exchanging rings. Elizabeth went first, and was handed Will's heavy, thick platinum band from Richard. She held his left hand in hers, and slowly slid the ring onto his finger as she spoke the words they had penned together.

"William, I promise to give you the best of myself, and to ask of you no more than you can give. I promise to share with you my time and my attention, and to bring joy, strength, love, and imagination to our marriage. I promise to keep myself open to you, to let you see into my innermost fears and feelings, secrets and dreams." Her voice broke, and she paused briefly to collect herself. The ring slid the rest of the way onto his finger as she finished. "I promise to grow along with you, and I promise to love you in good times and in bad, with all that I have to give and all that I feel inside in the only way I know how; completely and forever." She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed the ring she had just given him.

"I love you, Will," she whispered, as she looked up into his eyes. A tear escaped and trickled down one cheek, and Will reached up to gently wipe it away. He took a deep breath, knowing it was his turn to speak next, and turned to Charles, holding out his hand. Charles winked at Elizabeth and grinned, placing the ring into Will's palm. Will cleared his throat, and held the ring to place on Elizabeth's finger.

Elizabeth's eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open slightly as she looked at the ring. _This_ was not the wedding band she had picked out. The one she had chosen was a plain, thin platinum band, meant to match his, but this one was _not_ plain; it was set with diamonds, all the way around the entire ring. She looked up at Will, who grinned and shrugged slightly. "Surprise," he whispered to her.

Elizabeth couldn't help it, she giggled, causing Will to laugh quietly as well, momentarily breaking the seriousness of the moment. He cleared his throat and became solemn again as he slowly slid the beautiful ring onto her finger.

"Elizabeth, I promise to give you the best of myself and to ask of you no more than you can give. I promise to share with you my time and my attention, and to bring joy, strength, love, and imagination to our marriage. I promise to keep myself open to you..." he paused here, taking a deep breath, "to let you see into my innermost fears and feelings, secrets and dreams. I promise to grow along with you, and I promise to love you in good times and in bad, with all that I have to give and all that I feel inside in the only way I know how; completely and forever."

Will lifted her hand to kiss her ring, and as he did, the tears welled in his eyes. He looked up at her and smiled through his blurred vision. "I love you so much, Lizzy."

Not a moment too soon, the Justice of the Peace proclaimed them officially husband and wife, and the small group of friends and family sharing the moment with them cheered and clapped as the happy couple kissed.

"I love you," Elizabeth whispered against Will's mouth.

"I love you too, Mrs. Darcy," he whispered back, causing Elizabeth to break out in a huge smile. They embraced, and then turned to face everyone. Jane and Lydia both hugged Elizabeth, while Will shook hands with Charles and Richard. Elizabeth laced her arm through his, and Will looked down at her, at his _wife_, and couldn't resist leaning in to kiss her again. She happily kissed him back, heedless of the whooping and clapping from the small group. Even the few people on the beach that had watched from a distance were cheering.

Everyone mingled on the beach for a little while, enjoying the sunshine and the light breeze. Elizabeth stood talking with Lauren, while Richard and Will had moved off to the side, involved in their own conversation. Emma was wearing an adorable little dress with a matching headband, and Elizabeth was dying to hold her, but was warned off politely by Lauren.

"Believe me, I'd love for you to take her, but she has this uncanny ability to sense when people are dressed up...and I'd hate for anything to get on that gown," Lauren said, laughing. "You look fabulous."

Elizabeth smiled. "Thank you."

Will and Richard moved over to them, and Will indicated that the host from the inn had let them know that everyone could move inside. Will motioned for everyone to go in ahead of them, until it was just him and Elizabeth outside, standing at the foot of the steps. He turned to her and wrapped her up in his arms, letting his hands glide along her bare back. She hugged him back tightly, and they said nothing for a moment; they didn't need to. Elizabeth felt Will take a deep breath, and she pulled back to look at him.

"Are you okay?" she asked, noticing the tears in his eyes.

"Yes. God, I feel like you," he said teasingly as he wiped his eyes quickly, making her laugh, until he looked at her again, this time seriously. He reached up to cup her cheek with one hand, stroking her skin with his thumb. "I just wanted a minute with you before we go inside, that's all. I wanted to hold you." He smiled again, and let his eyes slide down her body, then back up to her face. "You look amazing. This dress...god, you're so beautiful…like something out of a fairy tale."

Elizabeth smiled up at him, taking the time to let her eyes travel over his body as well. "You look pretty amazing yourself. My very own prince charming." She reached up to smooth one hand down his chest, before lifting it again to let it trail down his arm. "Very, very handsome."

Will took both of her hands in his and held them at her sides before leaning in to kiss her softly but deeply, then held his forehead to hers. "I love you, Elizabeth. Always."

She reached up to hold his face in her hands and kissed him again, which was difficult due to the large smile on her face. "I love you too, William. Always."

David Bennet watched Elizabeth and Will through a window as they lingered on the beach, and he was overwhelmed with different emotions, all at once. There was love, yes, because he did love his daughter, but there was also regret. He was not the father she had needed him to be, not the father _any_ of his daughters had needed him to be.

Ed Gardner came up behind him then, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Nice looking couple, aren't they?"

"Mmm. They are."

When he didn't say more than that, Ed spoke again. "He's a good man, you know. You should give him a chance, get to know him."

"I don't think he wants to get to know me."

"Well...you haven't given him much of a reason to, have you?"

Mr. Bennet turned from the window and looked at Ed sharply.

Mr. Gardner held up a hand. "I'm not reprimanding you, don't look at me like that. Whatever has transpired between you and Elizabeth, I firmly believe that nothing is beyond repair. She may be disappointed in you or angry with you, but she does love you, of that I'm sure." He paused for a moment. "It's up to you to show her that you deserve her love." His eyes slid to the window again. "That young man almost lost her too, but he fought tooth and nail to get her back, and I'm quite sure he had to face some things about himself that probably weren't too easy to see. He knew, though, that Lizzy was worthy of it." He paused again. "Perhaps you should take a lesson from him."

Ed squeezed his shoulder briefly and walked away, leaving Mr. Bennet standing at the window, watching his daughter and her new husband as they hugged and kissed, love and happiness radiating from them as brightly as the rays of the sun.

* * *

><p>Elizabeth and Will had reserved a large room that overlooked the beach, and a wall of windows flooded the entire space with sunlight. A small dance floor had been set up, and the musicians that Will had hired were just getting ready to play. He had actually tracked down the trio that they had seen on New Year's Eve while in Boston; he and Elizabeth had both liked their playing style very much, and in keeping with the intimacy of the wedding, he thought they would be an appropriate choice. Elizabeth was very happy with the idea, and so Elliot helped Will to find the information on them. The group only had to learn three specific songs, and other than that, they could play whatever they wanted.<p>

As everyone got settled at their tables, champagne glasses were filled and readied for the toast. Will glanced at Elizabeth as they sat themselves at their own private table in the center of the windows, a perfect vantage point for them to see their loved ones around them.

"Here comes the bubbly," he said, grinning at her.

"Oh boy," Elizabeth said, laughing at the expression on his face. "Don't worry, I won't get carried away. Besides, I already feel a little drunk, just on the excitement. I feel giddy."

"I do too. But in a manly way," he added, smiling when she laughed. "Manly giddy."

They had thought about who to ask to give a toast, or just say a few words before the celebration began. Will didn't want to choose between Richard and Charles, and so both he and Elizabeth had agreed that her uncle was the perfect choice. Will's relationship with him had grown over the past six months, and he felt closer to Ed than he ever would to Elizabeth's father.

Ed cleared his throat before he spoke. "When Will and Elizabeth asked me to say a little something on their behalf, I had thought that I would be able to become suddenly prolific, and come up with something inspirational on my own." He paused. "I was sadly mistaken." Quiet laughter rippled through the room. "And so, with that, I searched until I found something that I thought was fitting for the occasion, a blessing of sorts." He unfolded a piece of paper and glanced at Elizabeth and Will, smiling at them both before he began to read.

"As you stand beside the ocean, may your love always be as constant and unchanging as the never-ending waves that pour beneath your feet, flowing endlessly from the depths of the sea. Just as those waves fall upon the sand, and just as there will never be a morning without the ocean's flow, so there will never be a day without your love for each other; it will be as dependable as the tide. As the ocean nourishes the earth and sustains life, so may your love and constant devotion nourish and sustain you until the end of time."

Ed lifted his glass in a toast, as did everyone else in the room. "To Elizabeth and William. Congratulations." After everyone had sipped from their glasses, Ed walked over to shake Will's hand, and gave Elizabeth a hug and a kiss.

Shortly after that, it was time for the bride and groom to share their first dance as a married couple, and Elizabeth was waiting to hear what she'd be dancing to. She and Will had decided that he would pick the first song, and she would pick the last, and neither had told the other what they had picked. He had also picked out a song to dance to with Mrs. Reynolds, but all Will told her was that it was an old song that Mrs. R would like, and one that would be appropriate for her to dance with her father to.

As the song began, Will took her hand and led her to the dance floor, pulling her closely to him. They both sighed as they settled against each other, sharing a long kiss. Will started to sing softly in her ear as the words began, and Elizabeth closed her eyes and just listened to him as they swayed slowly. His voice washed over her, and she felt tears threatening once again, as they had off and on since she had woken up in the morning.

_Baby I've been searching like everybody else, can't say nothing different about myself  
><em>_Sometimes I'm an angel and sometimes I'm cruel, but when it comes to love I'm just another fool.  
><em>_Yes, I'll climb a mountain, I'm gonna swim the sea  
><em>_There ain't no act of god, girl  
><em>_Could keep you safe from me  
><em>_My arms are reaching out, out across this canyon  
><em>_I'm asking you to be my true companion  
><em>_True companion, true companion._

The song continued, and the tears slowly tracked down Elizabeth's cheeks as Will sang to her, so much emotion pouring into his voice. He cupped her face in his warm hands, and it was all she could do not to completely break down.

_So don't you dare and try to walk away, I've got my heart set on our wedding day  
><em>_I've got this vision of a girl in white, made my decision that it's you alright  
><em>_When I take your hands, I'll watch my heart set sail  
><em>_I'll take my trembling fingers, and I'll lift up your veil  
><em>_Then I'll take you home, and with wild abandon  
><em>_Make love to you just like a true companion, you are my true companion  
><em>_I got a true companion, oh true companion.*_

At the end they embraced tightly, whispering words of love to each other. Will never liked to be the center of attention, but at this particular moment, he was oblivious to every other person in the room; there was only Elizabeth.

He wiped her tears away and leaned to kiss her gently on the lips. "You've got to stop doing that," he said, chuckling softly as he kissed each cheek. "We can't have a red-nosed bride in our pictures."

She sniffled and hugged him close. "They'll stop eventually. Hopefully by our first anniversary."

He kissed her again, and it was then they realized that they were being watched by their guests. They smiled at everyone, acknowledged the light clapping, and returned to their table.

The meal was served, and the whole affair was relaxed and casual, just as Will and Elizabeth had hoped. There was no seating arrangement, everyone just chose a spot, and it worked out well. Occasionally, someone would approach the happy couple at their little table for two, offering best wishes and congratulations.

Elizabeth happened to glance up from her plate, which she'd barely touched, to see Catherine heading their way.

"Uh oh. Here she comes."

Will glanced up, and when he saw Catherine, he immediately reached to hold Elizabeth's hand. He glanced at the table that Catherine had just come from, and saw Anne watching her mother's progress with a worried look on her face.

Catherine stood in front of the table. "My sincerest congratulations to both of you."

Elizabeth had to suck her bottom lip into her mouth to stop from laughing. Catherine's manner of speaking was such that she could have said, "I dislike you both very much", and her tone would have been entirely appropriate. Elizabeth could see out of the corner of her eye that Will was trying not to laugh as well, so she refrained from turning to look at him.

He cleared his throat. "Thank you, Catherine."

Catherine turned her no-nonsense gaze to Elizabeth. "Now, Miss Benn – Mrs. Darcy. You realize that Fitzwilliam is the end of the Darcy family line. It will be up to you to provide an heir to carry on the name."

"Catherine, really-" Will tried to interrupt.

"Fitzwilliam, let me have my say," Catherine said, glaring at Will.

Elizabeth squeezed his thigh, letting him know she was fine. She was actually dying to know what Catherine would come out with next, and she didn't have to wait long to find out, as the older woman turned to stare at Elizabeth again.

"You have a responsibility. Fitzwilliam's mother did her part in continuing the Darcy line, and now it's up to you. Undertake your efforts soon; if _your_ family line is any indication, a male child may not be the first to be born. Therefore, you should waste no time."

"No worries there," Will said under his breath, so only Elizabeth could hear. She started to giggle, but stopped when she noticed Catherine looking at her seriously.

"Young lady, this is no laughing matter! It would be a disgrace if-"

Will stood up, cutting Catherine off before she could say more. "Point taken, Catherine, I think you've said enough...thank you. Um, enjoy the party."

Catherine looked at him closely, squinting her eyes and shaking her head, before turning to walk away. Will sat back down, and they laughed quietly.

"God, she's unreal," Will said, still laughing. "Although, she has a point. I'm all for undertaking our efforts as soon as possible. Think anyone would notice if we snuck out?"

Elizabeth laughed again. "Yes, I think we'd be missed."

She looked up at him, her eyes dancing with happiness, and he had to kiss her again. He rested one hand against her back, stroking her lightly, absorbing the softness and warmth of her skin. Sighing, he kissed her neck, just under her ear, making her shiver. "I can't wait to be alone with you, to have you all to myself. I want to make love to my wife."

Elizabeth's breath hitched at his words, and she pulled back to look at him before kissing him again. "I love the way that sounds, hearing you call me your wife. I love _you_."

"I love you, too," he whispered before kissing her again.

Dancing began in earnest after dinner was over. Elizabeth and Will had opted for no other 'traditional' events for the celebration, other than the dances. There would be no tossing of the bouquet, no cutting of the cake.

In fact, there was no cake at all; instead, there were individual whoopie pies for all, which Will credited Georgiana with. It was her idea to ask Mrs. Reynolds to make them, and although Will was hesitant to ask her to do anything, Georgiana insisted that she would help. Elizabeth had loved the idea, and so Will had agreed. Of course, Mrs. Reynolds was thrilled that they had asked. Georgiana had taken Friday off, and the two of them had spent all of Friday afternoon in Georgiana's kitchen, baking and having a ball.

It was time for Will to dance with Mrs. Reynolds, who was quite surprised when the singer in the trio said that it was a special dance that Will would be dancing with her, as Elizabeth danced with her father. The smooth tones of Paul Anka's voice filled the room as Will guided Alice around the floor.

_Good morning, yesterday  
><em>_You wake up, and time has slipped away  
><em>_And suddenly it's hard to find the memories you left behind,  
><em>_Remember, do you remember?  
><em>_The laughter and the tears, the shadows of misty yesteryears  
><em>_The good times and the bad you've seen, and all the others in between  
><em>_Remember, do you remember the times of your life?*_

"I had no idea I'd be dancing with you like this," Alice said as she looked up at him. "You could have danced with your sister."

Will nodded. "I know that, and I will dance with her, but I wanted to share this with you." He paused, looking down at her. "You know, for the past twenty years of my life, you've been there for me, through the good and the bad. You've been a mother to me." He grinned as he saw her eyes well with tears. "Don't cry, because then I'll cry, and that won't do. My wife has been crying all afternoon, I can barely handle that." He glanced at Elizabeth, who was moving slowly around the floor with her father. They were talking, at least, though it didn't seem to be much of a serious conversation. "I just wanted to thank you for all that you've done for me, and for Georgiana. You'll never know how much it's meant, all these years, to have you in our lives."

"I'm just so glad that you're happy, that you're both happy." She sniffled. "Things are just as they should be, aren't they?"

He smiled and gave her hand an extra squeeze. "Things are just as they should be."

* * *

><p>At six o'clock, the party was still going strong; everyone was dancing and enjoying themselves, and Elizabeth had lost track of how much champagne had been served. She stood by herself, taking a moment from the whirlwind of the day, watching everyone as they mingled. Her mother and father stood talking to Uncle Ed and Aunt Vee, and the four of them seemed to be getting along fine, which wasn't always the case.<p>

She laughed when she saw Jane and Charles; Charles was, apparently, having a very serious conversation with BB, as he was bent over Jane's stomach, talking quite animatedly to it. Jane was laughing at whatever he was saying, one hand resting on Charles' head. Georgiana and Matt were sitting at their table, lost in their own world, just as she and Will had been at Jane's wedding, she supposed. She grinned to herself. _No matter what those two say, it won't be long for them_.

Her eyes sought and found Lydia, dancing in a group with Ben, Megan, Elliot, Charlotte, and Charlotte's new beau. Mrs. Reynolds was chatting with Catherine, and Elizabeth could only imagine what Catherine was saying; Mrs. Reynolds' expression was one of slight shock, which couldn't be good.

Elizabeth finally found her husband, standing with Richard, Lauren, and Anne. He was holding Emma again, which he seemed to want to do quite frequently. Emma's tiny fist was grasping his little finger, and he was chatting away with her while she looked up at him, somewhat more aware then when they first met her in March, but still with that same look of bewilderment on her face.

_Babies_. The thought of having children excited her, but right now, she couldn't think that far into the future. She couldn't focus on anything beyond today, and of course the honeymoon, even though she had no idea where they were going. Will had asked her to relinquish complete control when it came to planning it, and she did so, quite willingly. He had wanted to take care of everything, and had only told her what she needed to pack for the two week trip. She knew that whatever he had chosen as their destination, she wouldn't be disappointed.

She noticed her father moving toward her then, and smiled slightly at him as he approached.

"What are you about, standing here all by yourself?" Mr. Bennet asked, smiling at her, his vivid green eyes looking down into hers.

Elizabeth shrugged. "I'm just watching everyone. It's nice to have a moment of solitude, just to take everything in."

"You're looking for solitude already? It's much too soon for that."

She sighed. "Dad, don't. That's not what I meant, and you know it." She nodded toward Will, who still held Emma in his arms, but was now chatting with Anne, Lauren, and Richard. "Will is enjoying some time with his cousins." Elizabeth marveled at how quickly Will had become comfortable holding the baby; it looked second nature to him, and she felt some serious tugging at her heartstrings. She knew, deep in her heart, that he would be a wonderful father, whenever they were blessed with children.

"Well, in any case, I hate to disturb your solitude, but I'd hoped we could talk a bit before the day was over." His voice softened slightly. "There are some things I'd like to say, if you'd care to hear them."

Elizabeth looked at her father. He sounded hesitant, almost unsure of himself. Still, she knew what her answer would be to his request. "I'm sorry, dad, but I can't have that conversation with you, not today. It's my wedding day, and I don't want to make the issues between us a part of it. When I come back from my honeymoon, if you still want to, we can talk. Today is just not the day."

He nodded, his face somber. "Don't apologize, Lizzy. I shouldn't have asked. When you come back, we'll talk." He leaned forward to kiss her forehead and gave her a gentle hug. "I do love you dearly, you know. At least let me say that."

Elizabeth forced back the tears that threatened, and spoke around the lump that had unexpectedly formed in her throat. "I love you too, dad."

Thankfully, at that moment, the sounds of a Barry White song began, and Elizabeth knew that Will would be over to grab her in a matter of moments. Sure enough, he was handing Emma back to Richard, and headed straight for her, a devilish grin on his face. As he got closer, he noticed the tears in her eyes, and his gaze shot to her father before going back to her again. His expression grew serious, but Elizabeth shook her head and smiled, telling him without words that she was perfectly fine. He took her hand and led her to the floor, which was filling rapidly.

The song had a fast pace, but Will chose to pull Elizabeth close and sing to her as they danced slowly, pressed together, his hand gliding up and down the bare skin of her back. She moved her arms under his jacket and around to his back, then very discreetly untucked his shirt so that she could slide her hands underneath to feel his bare skin as well. He looked at her in surprise, but only chuckled and pulled her closer to him. As he sang to her, he kissed her, as often as he could, in between each line of the song, or while there was music – anytime he could fit a kiss in, he did. Elizabeth felt her skin begin to flush, and her stomach was fluttering wildly in response to his attentions.

_My first, my last, my everything  
><em>_And the answer to all my dreams  
><em>_You're my sun, my moon, my guiding star  
><em>_My kind of wonderful, that's what you are.  
><em>_I know there's only, only one like you  
><em>_There's no way they could have made two  
><em>_You're all I'm living for  
><em>_Your love I'll keep forevermore  
><em>_You're the first, you're the last, my everything.*_

As the song was ending, Elizabeth very gently tucked Will's shirt back in and reached up to kiss him. "Have I told you how sexy my husband is when he sings to me," she whispered, kissing him again, "or how much his voice turns me on?"

Will groaned quietly, pulling her close again. "I'm sure that he'd rather have you show him. Actions speak louder than words." He reached up to let his hand sift through her long hair, holding her head so he could kiss her deeply.

From out of nowhere, they heard Richard's distinctive, deep voice above the collective din of everyone else in the room. "Roooomeeeoooo."

They both began laughing and broke away from each other. "He's a pain in the ass," Will said, but smiled as he said it.

He led Elizabeth over to the small bar to get them both something to drink, asking for two waters, and then led her over to their table by the windows. Will sat, encouraging Elizabeth to sit on his lap, which she gladly did. They both set their drinks on the table, and Elizabeth settled against him. She reached up to play with his bow tie, and nuzzled toward him to place a kiss on his cheek, taking a deep breath at the same time.

"You okay?" Will asked quietly. He was concerned when he saw her standing with her father, and hoped that nothing had happened that would have upset her.

She nodded slowly. "I'm absolutely perfect. Why?"

He hugged her tightly to him and kissed her hair. "I saw you talking to your father. You looked a little distressed, that's all."

"I wasn't. I mean, he wanted to talk to me, but I told him I couldn't do it. Not today. This is my day to have with you, and with the people we love, without stress and worry. Even my mum...she's been so sweet, so – so _normal_ today. The last thing I want is to get into a serious conversation with my dad about _anything_. His timing just completely sucks."

Will chuckled a little at her choice of words. "It certainly does."

"I told him that once we got back from our trip, if he still wanted to talk, we'd talk. Right now, all I want to think about is me and you and us being alone for two entire weeks."

"Kind of alone."

She lifted her head to look at him, eyes wide. "_Kind_ _of?_"

He looked down at her. "Yes, kind of. Not completely, but mostly."

She started to ask another question, but he covered her mouth with his hand playfully. Not knowing what else to do, she licked his palm, making him laugh.

He lowered his hand. "No more questions," he said, staring at her mouth, "and I have much better ways to keep that tongue of yours occupied." He lowered his lips to hers, drawing her into a deep kiss.

They sat for a while, watching everyone, getting a huge kick out of Richard getting Catherine up on the dance floor. Anne was in hysterics, and Will was amazed that Richard got Catherine to smile; she actually looked like she was enjoying herself.

Will glanced at his watch. "It's almost time to wrap things up, Mrs. Darcy," he said quietly.

Elizabeth nodded, but didn't say anything. She didn't dare look up at him, as she was on the verge of tears once again; happy tears, most definitely, but tears nonetheless. Finally, after a few more moments of silence, she spoke. "We still have one more song to dance to, don't forget."

"How could I forget that? Dancing with you has been the best part of the day. Other than the whole marriage bit, I mean."

She pinched his thigh. "Marriage bit?"

He grinned into her hair. "Yeah, all the 'I do' business. That was pretty good too."

"Pretty good?" she said softly, smiling at his tease.

His arms tightened around her, and he took a deep breath. "Yes," he said quietly. "Pretty damn good."

Elizabeth's placed her chin on Will's shoulder, her eyes drawn to the windows behind them, and she stared out at the ocean. The sun was beginning to lower in the sky, although it wouldn't set for another hour or so. She sat up and looked at him, lightly running her fingers through his hair. "Do you want to get some fresh air?"

"Sure."

They stood and walked toward the doors. Elizabeth stopped briefly to speak to the musicians, and then she took Will's hand, leading him out the door and down the stairs, into the sand. She was barefoot, having already removed her shoes hours ago, but Will still wore his. He stopped and removed them, along with his socks, and tossed them toward the stairs. The beach in front of the inn was still roped off, as the management had guaranteed complete privacy during the ceremony and reception, so they had the small stretch of sand to themselves.

They could hear the music coming from inside the inn, and the soft light of candles that were now lit on the tables created a warm, soft glow from within.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Elizabeth asked, staring at the inn, then turning to look at the scenery around them. The waves lapped softly against the shore, and the sky was changing from its blues to shades of pink and orange.

Will only had eyes for his wife, though, watching as she turned in the sand, taking in everything around them. He pulled her gently toward him. "You're beautiful."

She smiled up at him. "So are you."

They kissed, holding each other tightly. Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Will's shoulders, holding him as close to her as possible, as his arms encircled her waist. They remained that way for several minutes, just kissing, until finally they slowed and just held each other, foreheads together.

"Please tell me it will always be this way," Elizabeth whispered. "That we'll always try our best to make it this way, the way we are now. I don't ever want this to change."

Will reached up to stroke her cheek. "It never will, I promise you. I'll make sure. I love you so much, Elizabeth...I'll make you happy. We'll be happy, always." He kissed her again, softly this time, stroking over her lips with his.

"I love you too, so much," Elizabeth replied, as tears spilled down her cheeks again. He wiped them away and they embraced, both taking deep breaths as they tried to regain their composure.

They could hear the beginning of a new song, and Elizabeth pulled back from Will a bit to look up at him, reaching to wipe the trail of a tear from his cheek.

"This is my song," she said simply, as she began to sway against him, and they began to dance together.

_I'll let every moment say__  
>How much I love this day<em>_  
>There are no obstacles in our way<em>_  
>No mountains to climb<em>_  
>Everything that might look bad is a blessing<em>_  
>Carrying us to build our very strengths<em>_  
>There's no accidents there's only what is<em>_  
>Go on and ask me then who I am <em>_  
><em>_  
>I have come to be the one to stand beside you when the sun decides to bow its head<em>_  
>I've come to be your friend<em>_  
>I'll share with you my secrets til there's nothing left to hide <em>_  
>And when you feel the darkness I'll remind you of the light you have inside<em>_  
>Yeah, this is what our love looks like.*<em>

As the song continued, Will took Elizabeth's hand, leading her down to the water's edge. He looked at her, and she thought she saw a gleam in his eyes.

"Want to see how warm it is?" he asked innocently.

She grinned at him, his words instantly bringing back a flood of memories of their walk along this very same beach a year ago, when they were just starting to get to know each other. It was the first time they danced together, the first time she heard him sing...and now here they were, married, beginning a new life together.

"Don't you mean how cold it is?" she replied, arching a brow.

Suddenly, he picked her up and carried her into the water, making her squeal and hold onto him for dear life. He didn't go in too far, it was probably only up to just above his ankles, but she was surprised just the same. "William, what..."

She was forced to stop talking as he kissed her, and she felt him begin to lower her into the water.

"But my dress..." she whispered softly, not really concerned about her dress, not really concerned about anything but Will and this moment with him.

"I'll have it cleaned," he said quietly. The way she was looking at him made his breath catch and his heart expand, all at the same moment. Her love for him was so plainly written on her face, it was impossible for him to pull his eyes away.

Elizabeth smiled softly. "The water's too chilly," she complained halfheartedly, nuzzling his neck as he let her slowly slide down his body, until she was standing in the water in front of him.

Pulling her close, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her deeply. "I'll keep you warm."

He moved one hand to cup her cheek, and as he gazed down at her, she saw everything she needed to see, all the love he had to give. It was there, shining in his beautiful brown eyes, and it was all for her.

Will kissed her once again, before whispering softly.

"Shall we dance, Mrs. Darcy?"

~ The End ~

* * *

><p><em>And there you have it. Thanks, again, for staying with me, through the ups and downs! Thanks, too, for all the reviews, I appreciate that readers take the time to let me know what they like (or dislike) about the story. So, I'll leave you with a final question...epilogue, or no epilogue? Please let me know what you think.<em>

* * *

><p><em>AN: The words that were spoken during the ring exchange, and the blessing that Ed Gardner read, were taken from the internet, and rewritten (slightly) to suit. _

_Songs used in this chapter:  
><em>"_A Little Less Conversation", by Elvis Presley and JXL  
><em>"_Faster" by Matt Nathanson  
><em>"_True Companion" by Marc Cohn  
><em>"_The Times of Your Life" by Paul Anka  
><em>"_My First, My Last, My Everything", by Barry White  
><em>"_This is What Our Love Looks Like" by Jason Mraz_


	60. Epilogue

_Happy 2013 everyone!_

_So, I guess I was remiss when I stated that 'Dance the Tide' was complete after I posted the last chapter. I think I knew all along that I would do some sort of epilogue, but what I didn't anticipate was how difficult it would be to write. I hope that you enjoy reading further about the goings-on in the lives of this Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth, and the lives of their loved ones._

_This story wouldn't have been what it is without the betas who have been with me since the beginning: Terry, Colleen, and Natalie. You guys are the best, and I look forward to heaping another story in your laps in the near future! Mariana, you joined us a little late in the game, but your opinions and words of support (and love of HMS!) have been invaluable._

* * *

><p><em><strong>Just a note, this takes place a little more than five years after Will and Elizabeth were married.<strong>_

_**Saturday, July 8th**_

Elizabeth walked slowly down the hallway of her home, listening to the voices that were coming from within the office. She couldn't discern words, not from this distance, but she could hear the deep tones of her husband's voice, interspersed with the light, sweet voice of her daughter. As she arrived at the door, she lingered out of sight, content to eavesdrop.

"Daddy?"

"Hmm?"

"When are we gonna wake mommy up?"

Will turned his attention from his guitar to his precocious, almost four-year-old daughter, who sat in the chair behind his desk, swinging her legs back and forth while she colored in a coloring book. He glanced at his watch.

"Not quite yet, sweet pea, mommy needs to get lots of rest, remember?"

Little Hannah Darcy nodded seriously. "I 'member. But it's mommy's birthday, can she rest on another day?"

He grinned at her slight impatience. "She has to rest every day. Growing a baby makes her very tired, so the more rest she gets, the better she feels. She wants to have lots of energy for the party."

Hannah nodded again, frowning slightly, and sighed. "'Kay." Her attention fell to his guitar, which he had been strumming quietly. "Can you teach me a song?"

"Of course I can. Go ahead and get your guitar."

Hannah slid down from the chair and skipped over to her child-sized acoustic guitar, picked it up, and carried it over to her father. Her eyebrows were knit together over her big brown eyes, and he could tell from the serious look on her face that she was thinking very carefully about something.

"How come I gotta use a little guitar? Why can't I have a big one like yours?"

Will chuckled. "Well...this guitar is about as big as you. I think it might be hard for you to hold." He bit his lip, trying to stifle the grin that appeared when he saw the look of determination that was suddenly on her face. _She is her mother's daughter. _"Would you like to try it?"

Hannah smiled brightly. "Yes please."

"Alright, sit up here on this chair," Will said as he stood up. "Hold your arms out...left one under the neck-"

"Right one over the body," she said, interrupting him, and again making him smile.

"That's right, your right arm goes over the body, very good."

He whipped his cell phone out of his pocket to capture the picture she presented. Her arms were too small to effectively reach the strings over the top of the guitar, but she looked adorable, dwarfed by the instrument.

"Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"Um, it's – it's too big. Can I have my guitar back now?"

Will smiled and picked hers up, exchanging it for his own. "There you go." He watched as her brows knit in concentration once again, as she tried to position her little fingers on the frets. She played a chord, and looked up at him with a big grin on her face, making him laugh. "Smart girl, you remembered that one. Do you know what it's called?"

"It's called 'A'. Like 'A' for Andrew."

"That's right, A for Andrew. And who is Andrew?"

"My baby brother that mommy's growin' in her tummy."

Elizabeth stood in the hallway, smiling softly as she listened to her husband and daughter chat. Sighing happily, she left them alone and strode back down the hall to the living room, stretching out on the couch, deciding that a few more moments of peace wouldn't hurt. Will encouraged her to rest every day, and she usually did. She listened to her body closely, letting it dictate her activity level as much as possible. Fenway, now a very large and very spoiled cat, curled up next to her, purring contentedly.

Her pregnancy with Hannah had surprised them both, only because it seemed to happen so quickly. They had decided fairly early on – in fact, had made the decision while still on their honeymoon – that they didn't want to wait too long to have kids. After spending two glorious weeks on a chartered yacht, touring the beautiful coast and islands of Greece, they had returned home, where Elizabeth had promptly flushed her birth control pills down the toilet. Will had watched her do it, and when it was done, they had both looked at each other with large, silly grins on their faces.

"Wow," Will had said after a few moments, now wearing a look of shock, "you really – you really just flushed your pills down the toilet."

Elizabeth nodded, her enthusiasm suddenly changing to panic. "Oh – oh god, I did. I flushed them."

They both glanced at the toilet, and then looked back at each other, wide-eyed. It took a moment for the reality of what she had just done to sink in, but then they both started laughing, and from that point on, there were never any doubts or second guesses.

Less than a year later, she found out she was pregnant, and they were ecstatic. They were on the Vineyard celebrating Will's birthday in February when she secretly did the home pregnancy test, and when she told him it was positive, he was beside himself with joy. Hannah Rose had officially made them a family of three on the very last day of August.

The pregnancy had been relatively easy, and so she had expected the same when she became pregnant again, when Hannah was just two. She and Will were excited to welcome another child, but sadly, it was not to be. She had miscarried at the end of her first trimester, and it had devastated her. Not just her, of course; it had devastated them both.

Naturally, during that time, Elizabeth had begun to think back to when she had miscarried all those years ago when she was in grad school, and she started to have doubts as to whether having another baby would be a reality for her and Will. Though the birth of Hannah proved that she was capable of carrying a child to term, the questions and fears played on her mind constantly. It was a rough time, then, and though caring for Hannah was a joy and an all-too present and real reminder that they had much to be grateful for, the underlying pain and fear were there, lurking.

Thankfully, when she tended to become mired in sadness and insecurity, Elizabeth had Will to lean on and pull her out of her despair. In turn, when she saw that he was struggling, she found the strength, somehow, to pull him up when he needed her help. They cried together, grieved together, and eventually moved forward together.

When she found out she was pregnant again, just five months ago, they were both once again overjoyed, but Elizabeth couldn't help the worry that overtook her at times. It was natural to feel that way, she knew it, but Will was always there at her side, boosting her strength, keeping her positive. Now, as far along in this pregnancy as she was, she felt more confident, and allowed herself a bit of a reprieve from the fears that had plagued her during the first trimester.

While they had agreed that Hannah's gender would be kept a surprise, they decided to do things differently this time, and were thrilled to find out that they were having a boy. Just as they had given Hannah Elizabeth's middle name – Rose – as her middle name, they decided to follow the same idea with their soon-to-be son, and chose the name of Andrew Robert. Will had been quite adamant about not saddling his son with the name Fitzwilliam, not even as a middle name.

Elizabeth was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of her husband and daughter making their way down the hall toward the living room. Hannah was giggling hysterically as Will sang her a silly song, and Elizabeth watched, smiling, as they came into the room. Hannah was perched up high on Will's shoulders, her favorite place to be. Her long brown curls bobbed as they headed to the kitchen, presumably for a snack, and they didn't see her at first, until Hannah suddenly spotted her mother reclining on the couch.

"Mommy's awake!" she squealed, latching onto Will's hair and pulling it excitedly.

Will turned and smiled at his wife. "What are you doing in here, all by yourself?" he asked, grimacing as he attempted to pry his daughter's hands from his hair before lowering her to the floor. Hannah immediately went to Elizabeth, climbing up on the couch beside her, dislodging Fenway as she settled herself up against her mother.

"Just getting a few more minutes of rest." She smiled as he walked over to her and bent to kiss her and caress her face.

"Did you sleep?" he asked.

Elizabeth shrugged. "Not really. Maybe a little, I think...not for too long."

Will could tell she was tired and a bit preoccupied, and assumed that the small party they were having later today was at the front and center of her mind. "Everything will be fine, love. No worries, okay? It's just your mom and your dad, and the rest of the family, just like always."

Elizabeth forced a grin. _Sure, it's my mom and my dad, and my mom's new...'man' friend._ She rolled her eyes. "I just hope it's not weird, that's all."

Hannah started bouncing on her bottom, up and down on the couch. "Nanny and Grampy and Auntie Jane and Uncle Charlie and Oma and Auntie Gigi and Uncle Matty are all comin' to the birthday party, right? And Tommy and Mikey too?"

Elizabeth smiled excitedly at her daughter, widening her eyes. "Yes, they're _all_ coming to the party. And _you,_ Miss Hannah banana...have you picked out your party dress?"

Hannah's mouth widened in a large 'O', and she froze for a moment, her deep brown eyes – identical to her father's – opening wide. "Ohhh, my dress!" she whispered. She hopped up from the couch and tugged at her mother's hand, trying to pull her up to stand. "C'mon, mommy, we have to go pick out my dress."

"Okay, we'll pick out yours, and then you can help me pick out mine." She looked up at Will and smiled.

He reached to help her up from the couch, and planted another kiss on her lips as she stood. His gaze quickly slid down her body and back up, coming to rest on her eyes again, and one hand reached out to linger on her hip, lightly stroking her there. "I'll help you pick out a dress. You can model them for me, and I'll tell you which one I like best."

She grinned and kissed him again, not mistaking the look in his eyes. "Nice try."

"Daddy, you can't help mommy pick a party dress, that's for girls," Hannah stated quite emphatically, staring up at him. "You gotta get in a tie, that's what the boys do."

Will scrunched up his nose, making his daughter laugh. "I have to wear a tie?"

"Yeah, daddy! It's a party, you gotta wear a tie!"

Elizabeth whispered close to his ear. "Yeah, daddy, it's a party, you gotta wear a tie." She bit his earlobe lightly, and smiled when she felt his body jerk in response. "I promise I'll help you take it off later."

Hannah tugged steadily on Elizabeth's hand, and the two of them departed the living room and headed up to Hannah's bedroom. Will watched them go, admiring Elizabeth's figure as she walked.

Never had he thought that he could possibly adore her body more than he had when he married her, but the way she had changed over the past four years, since her pregnancy with Hannah, drove him absolutely mad. The fullness of her breasts, the more sultry curves of her body, the incredible softness of her skin, and now, the growing roundness of her belly; all of those things appealed to him, but more than that, it was the glow that radiated from within her...she was so alluring, so sexy to him, he was surprised that she hadn't yet resorted to fending him off with a stick.

No, she hadn't resorted to that yet, and thankfully, once the nausea and periods of low energy had ebbed away after her first trimester, their sex life – healthy as it had always been – had resumed enthusiastically. Will sighed wistfully, his mind wandering to places it shouldn't be wandering to at the moment, and headed back to his office to finish up some last minute work before he had to begin getting ready for his wife's thirty-seventh birthday party.

Thirty minutes later, Hannah came bounding into his office, twirling as she went.

"Look at my party dress, daddy! Isn't it pretty?" Layers of pink floated around her as she spun.

Will looked up from the paperwork on his desk and took off his reading glasses. "You look just like a princess from one of your storybooks." He grinned as she continued to make circles around the room, until she stopped and lurched, obviously a little dizzy.

"That's what mommy said too. Can I go see Oma? I want to show her my dress too."

"I don't see why not, but we have to make sure it's okay with Oma. Why don't you call her and ask?"

He gave his cell phone to Hannah and recited the number slowly, giving her time to press the buttons. After a short conversation in which Hannah was told that a visit would be welcomed, Will walked with her to the living room, then out the slider, down to the bottom of the steps, onto the back lawn. He watched as she skipped down the walkway toward the guesthouse, and saw Mrs. Reynolds open the front door, a broad smile on her face.

He waved, watching for her wave back. "Just give a call when you're ready to send her home," Will called out, and saw Mrs. R nod and wave again before ushering Hannah inside.

Having Alice Reynolds close by was a huge comfort to Will. Her sister had passed away not too long after he and Elizabeth were married, and less than a year after that, her brother-in-law had moved away from Boston, wanting to be closer to his children.

Will worried about her constantly, though he talked to her at least every other day, and always went to see her when he made a trip to Boston. Jane and Charles were close by if she ever needed anything, and that brought him some measure of peace, but it wasn't the same.

When Georgiana and Matt married two years ago, they had decided to seek out a larger home, hoping to start a family relatively soon (and indeed, Georgiana was now pregnant with their first child). Will was able to convince Mrs. Reynolds to move back to the Cape, and live permanently in the guest house, now officially her home. She resisted the idea at first, but soon realized that life in Boston no longer suited her. Plus, the idea of being closer to her 'grandchild', Hannah, was a large motivator. Both of the Bingley children, Thomas, almost five, and Michael, two, also called Mrs. R 'Oma', and she spoiled them as a true grandmother would. She was thrilled that Georgiana was expecting, and was embracing her role as a grandparent.

Will walked back into the house and immediately headed upstairs to the master bedroom, intending to seek out his wife. He found her sitting on their bed, still in her yoga pants and a loose top, staring off at nothing in particular. She started when he walked in, and smiled up at him.

"Hi," she said as he plopped down next to her on the bed.

"Hi yourself," he replied, planting a quick kiss on her lips, before bending over her to kiss and nuzzle her stomach through her shirt.

Elizabeth smiled and ran her hands through his thick hair, admiring the flecks of gray that had slowly begun to mix within the deep brown waves. He sat up and kissed her again, this time a little longer.

"Where's Hannah?" she asked, kissing him lightly again.

"Off to visit Oma, showing off her party dress."

Elizabeth grinned. "That was no small feat, narrowing her selection down to one dress. She has definite opinions on her clothing already."

"Our daughter, opinionated? I wonder who she gets that from," he said, and chuckled as she pinched his thigh. He wrapped his arm around her and hugged her close, enjoying the quiet. After a long moment, he felt her begin to relax. "Are you feeling alright?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.

"I'm feeling just fine."

Will moved back on the bed, settling against the headboard, and pulled her along with him, so that they were stretched out, cuddled together. "Are you sure? You seem distracted or something. I know you're worried about today-"

"I'm not," she said, shaking her head, interrupting him. "I'm not _worried_ about it, really, I just...it will be odd, don't you think? To have my mother here with another man?"

Will shrugged. "I suppose so, maybe a little, but your father said he was okay with it – at least your mother was gracious enough to ask – and your parents have been divorced for three years. I think it's great that your mother has moved on. She seems happy."

It had surprised everyone in the family when Fran Bennet had asked David Bennet for a divorce. Mrs. Bennet had told Elizabeth that it was the examples of her two oldest daughters that had spurred her to take the leap, to make that necessary, long-overdue change. She wasn't happy, and neither was her husband, so why stay married? Everything proceeded amicably, and both of her parents seemed happier now. Mr. Bennet had moved back to the beach house, which had sat vacant since Lydia moved to Providence with Ben, and Mrs. Bennet kept the condo in Mashpee.

Both of Elizabeth's parents enjoyed being grandparents immensely, and Mr. Bennet was especially pleased to have two grandsons to dote on, and was looking forward to having a third. Elizabeth's relationship with her father was better; it had improved over the years, and although it still wasn't at its best, Elizabeth had accepted that it was probably as good as it was ever going to be.

"I know she's happy, and I'm thrilled for her," Elizabeth said. "She's – she's a different person, isn't she? I'm actually looking forward to meeting Walter, he sounds like a nice man." It was true, her mother had done a complete about-face after leaving her father; gone was the insensitive, selfish, overbearing woman that Elizabeth had been dealing with for the past ten-plus years. The change was remarkable.

Will was quiet for a long moment as he looked at his wife. "So...what is it then?" He reached down to rub one hand over her stomach. "Is it this little guy?"

Elizabeth could hear the worry in his voice, though he tried to disguise it. She turned to look up at him. "Will, I feel fine, I really do." As if to reassure his daddy, the baby gave a hard kick right under Will's hand, making them both laugh. "See?" she said, nudging Will playfully. "He's telling you not to worry, his mommy is just fine."

Will leaned down to kiss her nose. "Then tell me what's bothering you."

She sighed. "I've been thinking about work, about my job..." Her voice trailed off.

Will's eyebrows rose. "What about your job?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, exactly. It's just...when I went back to work after Hannah, it just – it didn't feel as important anymore. I wanted to be home, with her. I know that you were with her, and you always did such an amazing job, but...I missed being home. I missed her, I missed you. And now that Andrew is coming...I don't know what I want to do. Hannah will be going off to kindergarten next year, and I feel like I want to be home, enjoying them together, before she's off to school all day." She stopped, shaking her head. "I'm babbling. Obviously, I've been thinking about it, but not too clearly. Blame the hormones."

Will waited patiently, knowing the wheels were turning in her head, guessing that in a moment, she'd probably have more to say. He wrapped his arms around her a little tighter when he felt her snuggle in closer, and tucked her head under his chin, resting it on his chest. He didn't have to wait long.

"I was thinking about the photography classes I took after...after we lost the baby. I enjoyed them so much, they were perfect for taking my mind off of everything...and I really feel like I learned a lot from them."

Will's eyebrows rose again, but still, he waited.

"I've been thinking about doing more of _that_, somehow, and maybe...leaving my job." Elizabeth swallowed loudly and nervously. That was the first time she had given voice to the thought that had been running through her mind for the past two months, and it was a relief to finally say it, but terrifying just the same.

She had done a lot of photography over the past few years...weddings of friends, portraits of families, even promotional work for the cafe that Lydia and Ben had just opened in Providence. She didn't advertise, and still didn't have a formal business card, but former clients had passed on her name, so it was through 'word-of-mouth' that she was able to stay busy. What she liked about the idea of doing photography was that she could work when she wanted to. She certainly didn't _have_ to work at all, but she wanted to do something; she just wasn't sure that the Monday through Friday routine was making her happy anymore. In fact, she was positive it wasn't. As much as she still loved her job, it just didn't have the place of importance in her life that it used to.

"What – what do you think?" Elizabeth asked quietly, turning to look up at her husband once again.

Will wasn't surprised, really, that it had come to this. He could see that she wasn't entirely happy when she went back to work after six months at home with Hannah. The enthusiasm she had for her work was there, but wasn't as prevalent as before. Will would greet her at the door with Hannah when she came home from work, and Elizabeth's face would literally light up at the sight of them. In the back of his mind, he had wondered when, or if, this day would come.

"I think that I want you to do whatever makes you happy," he said quietly, kissing her on the head. "If being home with your babies is what makes you happy, then be home with them."

Elizabeth kissed the underside of his chin, and laid her head back on his chest. "Not just my babies...you too." She sat up then, turning to face him. "I don't want you to think that this has anything to do with your ability as a father, that's not what this is about at all."

"I know that," Will said confidently. Admittedly, those first couple of weeks at home with Hannah, when Elizabeth had gone back to work, had been a little nerve-wracking. He'd had to learn not to second-guess himself about everything, and rely on his instincts as much as Elizabeth relied on hers. He'd gotten the hang of it, and soon was able to develop a routine that worked for both him and Hannah. He was still able to get work done, and although the amount varied from day to day, it didn't matter much; he _loved_ being at home with her, and wouldn't have traded a minute of it for anything.

"You are amazing with her," Elizabeth continued, "and have been since day one. You're a wonderful daddy." She leaned in to kiss him, and he reached up to hold her head gently, preventing her from moving away too soon.

When they finally broke apart, he noted the flush of her cheeks and the way her eyes glimmered. _Oh, I love the second trimester,_ he thought, before deciding he needed to keep those thoughts at bay; it was obvious she wanted to talk. "And you're a wonderful mother, and I want you to do whatever you want to do," he said, stroking her cheek. "I'll support you one-hundred percent, whatever you decide, you know that."

Elizabeth smiled at him softly. "I do know that, thank you." Her fingers toyed with the bottom of his t-shirt, and without thinking, she slid her hands up underneath it to roam over his warm skin. He watched her, a hint of amusement on his face, as she let her hands slide up, letting her thumbs brush over his nipples. Her eyes rose to his, and he lifted an eyebrow in question.

"When do we need to collect Hannah?" she asked, still exploring with her hands.

"When Mrs. R calls." He patted his shorts pocket. "I have my phone right here."

Slowly, Elizabeth moved until she was straddling her husband. "We should take advantage of the free time."

Will smiled to himself. _Okay, she's obviously done with talking. _He looked down and watched her hands as they pushed his t-shirt up higher, until he was forced to sit forward and pull it over his head. He stayed sitting upright, leaning back on one outstretched arm, using the other to stroke over her hip. His eyes traveled down her body, then back up to her face. "What did you have in mind?"

Elizabeth let her hands wander over his bare shoulders, down his biceps and back up, and down to his chest. "Hmm...a little birthday celebration before the birthday celebration?" She leaned forward, placing warm, wet kisses on his neck, biting him a little, making him suck in a breath. The hand grasping her hip traveled up, and she felt him cup her breast over her shirt, letting his thumb drift back and forth across the tightening tip.

"Mrs. R could call at any minute, you know," he said, his voice less steady now, as she worked her way up his neck and along his jaw with her mouth, her tongue tracing his skin lightly. When her lips met his, she pulled back slightly.

"Then you should probably move a little faster, don't you think?" Elizabeth said playfully, arching a brow.

Will didn't need further encouragement. He quickly maneuvered her onto her back and helped to remove her clothing, before stripping off his shorts and briefs. He threw his cell phone on the nightstand, and turned his attention back to his wife. She was so beautiful, stretched out on their bed. Groaning softly, he laid down, partially covering her. "I don't want to move fast, I want to take my time and lick every inch of you." He lowered his head to bring one dark nipple into his mouth, toying with it before suckling on it gently. One hand fanned across her body, caressing her stomach softly, before moving down lower, between her thighs.

Elizabeth sighed, feeling her body respond instantly to the touch of his mouth and fingers. Pregnancy definitely hadn't lessened her desire for sex; if anything, it had ramped it up, and she often initiated interludes between them, especially when they were presented with moments of solitude, as few and far between as they were. She lifted his face to hers, and they kissed deeply. His hand stroked over her damp flesh, sliding between her folds, two long fingers moving into her while his thumb unerringly zeroed in on the one spot he knew would drive her very crazy, very quickly.

Slowly, his mouth left hers and trailed down her body, stopping to linger at her breasts, and then continuing on, placing soft, gentle kisses on her stomach before moving down further. His tongue replaced his fingers, and within moments, she was gasping under him, her hips rising, pushing her up as she grasped his head, holding his mouth to her while she climaxed. Once she quieted, he rose up on his elbows and looked at her, before lowering his head to kiss the inside of each of her thighs. Again, he kissed her stomach, before moving slowly back up to her breasts. After paying prolonged attention there, moving his hand to stroke the wet flesh between her thighs, he lifted his head.

"Fast enough for you?" he asked, a cocky grin on his face.

Elizabeth laughed, although it came out on a sigh as her body began to respond to his insistent stroking again. She reached to push him onto his back, and quickly climbed over him, taking his erection in her hands and slowly guiding him into her, lowering herself completely. They both exhaled loudly, and Will smiled up at her, reaching up to caress her face with both hands, then lowering them to her breasts.

"I could look at you forever like this," he whispered, his eyes burning a trail over her body. "You are so beautiful." His gaze dropped to her stomach, and he lowered his hands to lightly, reverently trace over the small swell.

Will raised his eyes to hers and smiled again, and she could see the depth of emotion there, the joy and the love that radiated from his expression. She lifted herself up and slowly lowered herself back down onto him – and his phone rang.

They both froze and looked at each other, then looked at the phone as it rang again. Will reached over and grabbed it off of the nightstand, and saw that it was, indeed, Mrs. Reynolds.

"Shit!" he exclaimed, and frowned comically when Elizabeth began to giggle. He answered the phone as calmly as he could. "Hello, Oma."

Elizabeth couldn't hear Mrs. Reynolds' end of the conversation, but decided to have a little fun. She tightened her muscles, gripping her husband snugly inside of her, making his eyes open wide. He bit his bottom lip and held back a blossoming smile.

"No, no, that's okay, you don't need to walk her over. Just-" Will paused as he felt Elizabeth's muscles bear down on him again, making his breath catch. The look in her eyes was one of pure mischief. "-just have her wait with you, I'll be outside in – in a few minutes." He reached up to caress her face, stroking his thumb over her bottom lip, and she pulled it into her mouth, sucking on it. He closed his eyes and blew out a silent breath as she lifted and lowered herself again. "Sure, we'd – we'd love some brownies, sure. Perfect. Yes. I'll see you in – oh, probably about five minutes."

Elizabeth started to giggle again, and as soon as Will hung up, he pulled her down to kiss her hungrily. "You are a troublemaker, Mrs. Darcy," he murmured against her mouth. He held her hips for a moment before sitting up and leaning back on one arm again, putting them face to face. She wrapped her legs around him as much as she could, and he gazed into those big green eyes. "Happy birthday, Lizzy," he whispered, leaning forward to kiss her again, "I love you, sweetheart."

Elizabeth slowly pushed him backward, unwrapping her legs from his waist so he could lay back. She rose off of him again, and slowly lowered herself, never taking her eyes from his. "I love you too, Will."

He held her hips tightly and thrust up into her slowly, watching as his body entered and then almost completely left hers. Reaching down with one hand, he stroked between her legs, knowing exactly how to touch her to make her climax, just as he was about to as well. His thrusts were slow and steady, and soon enough, he felt her body tighten around his again in spasms, heard her labored breathing, saw her head drop back, and let himself explode inside of her, groaning her name as he came. She lowered herself over him, pushing her face into his neck, and inhaled deeply.

They lay there quietly, and after a few minutes, Will noticed that she felt heavier, and that her breathing had become deep and regular. He smiled and stroked his hands over her back before wrapping his arms around her. Sure enough, she had drifted off into a sound sleep. He carefully untangled himself from her limbs, but as he tried to move out from under her, she began to wake and started to sit up.

"No, you stay here," he said quietly, rising off the bed and pulling the covers out from under her, then pulling them over her to tuck her in. "I'll get Hannah, you rest." He leaned down to kiss her lightly, and she was instantly back to sleep.

* * *

><p>Two hours later, Elizabeth's birthday party was in full swing. Everyone had arrived, and Elizabeth stood on the deck with Jane, admiring her new haircut, a sleek bob that fell neatly to her shoulders.<p>

"Michael had this thing for my hair when he was tiny," Jane said, laughing. "He'd wrap his hands up in it and pull, and when I reacted in pain, he'd crack up laughing. Of course, he didn't realize it hurt, and he doesn't do it anymore, but I figured I might as well just cut it. I was wearing it up all the time anyway."

"It looks fantastic," Elizabeth replied. She grinned to herself, knowing what Will's reaction would be if she cut her hair that short. _Grounds for divorce_.

They watched as out on the beach, Charles and Will were running with the two Bingley boys. Jane's kids were both blonde as could be, with piercing blue eyes. Lady-killers in the making, that's what Elizabeth called them. Both had the same laid back personalities of their parents, and were perpetually happy. Elizabeth and Jane laughed as they watched Mikey desperately trying to keep up with his older brother, but his little legs couldn't move him as fast. Charles ran over and scooped him up into his arms, swinging him around, causing Mikey to burst out laughing.

Mr. Bennet was sitting in one of the adirondack chairs, talking with Uncle Ed and...Walter. They seemed to be getting along fine, with no awkwardness between them at all.

"Where's Hannah?" Jane asked, looking around for but seeing no sign of her niece.

"She's with her grandmothers and Aunt Vee, walking down the beach, looking for sea glass." Elizabeth rubbed her stomach, feeling little kicks and thumps under her hands. "Gosh, he's active today," she said quietly.

Jane turned to look at her. "Are you feeling okay?"

Elizabeth nodded. "I am. I feel great, actually. I think I've made a big decision about something...I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders."

Jane looked at her curiously. "Anything you want to share?"

Elizabeth paused, taking a deep breath. "I think I'm going to leave my job."

Jane's eyes widened. "For good?"

Elizabeth nodded again. "Yes, for good. It's just not making me happy to be there anymore. When I'm at work, I'm always wishing I was home. But when I'm home...well, I certainly don't find myself wishing I was at work."

Jane chuckled. "I'm sure you don't. Well, you know how I feel about that."

Elizabeth smiled. Jane was able, shortly after the birth of Tommy, to work out an excellent arrangement with the law firm that she and Charles worked for. She went to the office on Mondays, and then worked out of the home for three other days during the week.

Charles, thanks to Will, had become busier at work, due to the expansion of FRD Design. Another division had opened in Boston, and Will had brought out Stephanie Hanscom to get the ball rolling. Within a few months, the architects were hired, and business was booming.

"I do," Elizabeth said. "You have the best of both worlds, I think; working steadily, but being at home with your kids."

"I know, I'm very lucky. I can't believe Tommy will be five in a couple of weeks, and he'll be off to kindergarten in two months...time has just flown." She turned her attention back to Elizabeth's declaration. "How does Will feel about all this?"

Elizabeth smiled. "You know Will, Jane...he's happy if I'm happy. He wants me to do what I want to do." She paused for a moment. "I've thought about doing photography more, you know? Not all the time, but...more than I am now, but when I choose to do it. Does that make sense?"

Jane's mouth dropped open. "Yes, that makes total sense! Oh, what a perfect idea! You're so good at it, Lizzy, you really are...the portraits you've done for Charles and me are gorgeous. Talk to Matt, I bet he could design a website for you."

"I thought of that already."

"You should talk to Matt today," Jane said excitedly.

The slider to the deck had opened, and Georgiana and Matt stepped out. "Talk to Matt about what?" Matt asked, his arm draped loosely around Georgiana's waist.

Elizabeth very quickly told him what she was thinking about, and Matt nodded enthusiastically. "That wouldn't be a problem at all," he said. "We'll have to sit down together when you're ready to really put yourself out there on the web, and we'll get it done."

"It won't be for a while yet, but I'll let you know when."

Georgiana watched as her brother and Charles romped in the sand and splashed in the ocean with Tommy and Mikey. "Why don't you go down to the beach? The boys look like they're having fun," she said to Matt.

"Are you sure?"

Georgiana nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. Go ahead."

"Do you need anything?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Something cold to drink?"

"Nope, I've got some water." She held up the bottle for him to see.

"Would you rather sit?"

"No, I've been sitting most of the day. I'm good standing."

"You should probably get in the shade, if you can."

"Actually, the sun feels good."

"Do you-"

"Matt?" Georgiana stared at him, eyebrows raised. "Go down to the beach."

Matt smiled sheepishly and kissed her on the cheek. "Right. Beach." He went down the steps and out toward the sand.

Georgiana exhaled loudly, and frowned at Jane and Elizabeth when they both started laughing. "It's not funny! He's driving me crazy!"

"No, it's funny, trust me," Elizabeth said, still chuckling. "That's exactly how Will acted when I was pregnant with Hannah."

"Charles too, with Tommy," Jane chimed in. "Just give it some time, he'll relax a bit. It's just new to him."

"God, I hope so," Georgiana said, now smiling. "I know he means well, but he's hovering. Ever hear the term 'helicopter parent'? We use it a lot at school. Well, Matt is my 'helicopter husband'."

"He'll realize eventually that you're not breakable, you're just pregnant," Elizabeth said, "and then you'll wish he was still pampering you."

Georgiana rolled her eyes. "You're probably right."

Elizabeth caught sight of Hannah, walking up the beach with her mother, Aunt Vee, and Mrs. Reynolds. She had refused to change out of her party dress and into a bathing suit, so Elizabeth had let her be. She was all things girly, for sure, but at the same time, she loved to investigate down by the water, and had no trepidation about getting dirty if it meant assuaging her curiosity.

"I'm going to head down to the beach," Jane said, wanting to join her husband and her kids. "Anyone want to head down with me?"

"I'll go," Georgiana said. "Lizzy?"

Elizabeth took a deep breath. "I think I'll stay here for a little longer."

Jane and Georgiana walked down the stairs and across the lawn, joining everyone else.

The breeze coming off the ocean felt so good, keeping the sun from becoming too hot, and Elizabeth was enjoying the view of her family in front of her. She watched as Hannah broke away from her grandmothers and her great aunt and went running to Will, holding up her little pink bucket to show him her loot. He dropped down onto his knees in the sand, becoming engrossed in conversation with her as he looked over whatever she had carried back with her.

Elizabeth felt tears prickle at her eyes, and she let them come. She was so happy, felt so blessed that she had these people in her life, as her family. Will glanced up to the deck then and saw her standing there, and he waved. She waved back, and watched as he said something to Hannah, making her glance up to the deck as well. They held hands and made their way across the sand, onto the grass.

"Mommy!" Hannah called out as she came across the back lawn, "I got some sea glass and shells!" She slowly made her way up the stairs to the deck, her father one step behind her.

"Oh, let me see what you have," Elizabeth said, sitting down at the table on the deck. Hannah climbed into the chair next to Elizabeth's, and dumped her treasures onto the table.

"Look, I got _green_ sea glass," Hannah said, and held the small piece up, next to Elizabeth's face. "Daddy said it's just like your eyes."

Elizabeth glanced up at Will, who grinned and shrugged.

Hannah continued. "Auntie Vee told me that all the glass is from the mermaids. They make it when they cry. I asked her why the mermaids cried, but she didn't know. I think it's 'cause they have to be in the water all the time, just swimmin' around, and they have to eat seaweed."

Elizabeth smiled and reached out to stroke her daughter's dark brown curls, brushing them back from her face. "Maybe so."

"Can I get in my bathing suit now?" Hannah asked, jumping down from the chair. "I want to go swimmin' with Tommy and Mikey."

"Okay, that's fine," Elizabeth said. "Do you need my help?"

Hannah's brows furrowed. "No, I can do it by myself."

Will smiled. "Your suit is on your bed. Come right back down when you're ready, okay?" He opened the heavy slider and let her into the house.

"Okay," Hanna replied as she dashed off across the living room, toward the stairs.

Elizabeth stood again, walking to the railing, and Will stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and rubbing her stomach lightly.

"Will you come down to the beach with us?" he asked, kissing her cheek.

"Sure."

"Are you enjoying your birthday so far?"

Elizabeth nodded, settling back further against him. "Very much. I love having everyone here. I wish Lydia could have come too, and Charlotte and Jack." Lydia and Ben couldn't make the party, unfortunately. Being fledgling restaurant owners, they couldn't afford to take a busy Saturday off to come to the Cape from Providence. Charlotte, too, was working a shift at the hospital, but promised to come by with Jack – the paramedic she'd started dating before Elizabeth and Will were married, now her fiance – when her shift was over.

"Yeah, that would have been nice. Next time." He kissed her cheek again. "Are you looking forward to the Vineyard?"

"Of course I am, I can't wait to go." They were leaving on an early boat in the morning, and spending the week there. "Hannah has been chatting about it non-stop. There better be something growing in that darn vegetable garden, or we'll have one upset little girl on our hands."

Will chuckled. "Ed's been over to check on it, he said it looks great."

Being on Martha's Vineyard with her family was like being in a state of bliss. That short, three mile trip across Vineyard Sound was like traveling into another world. Yes, the island became mobbed with tourists every summer, but it was still like being in their own little paradise, every time they visited. Life just seemed to slow down for them in that house, although they couldn't escape reality completely. Instead of turning her grandfather's old workshop into a darkroom, they had transformed it into a small office, so that when they wanted to spend extended periods of time there, Will would have a quiet place to work. It was the perfect solution, and allowed them to keep the three bedrooms in the house as bedrooms.

Family came to visit frequently, and now that Hannah required her own room, they had put some money into the small, two bedroom apartment over the garage, making it a perfect space for guests as well. Even Richard and Lauren had come to visit for a couple of weeks last summer, and the apartment was exactly right for their family of four – Emma now had a little brother, Aidan.

"Oh, good. I want Hannah to be able to see the results of all the planting we did in the spring, see everything growing."

Will rubbed his hand over her stomach. "Like her mommy," he said quietly, a tease in his voice. "Her mommy is growing."

Elizabeth laughed softly. "That she is." She laid her hands over his and sighed contentedly. They stood like that for a bit, watching their guests, listening to the laughter being carried to them on the breeze.

"I don't know if things could possibly get any better than this," Elizabeth said quietly, her voice catching.

Will hugged her a little tighter. "They will get better, in about three and a half months or so," he replied, nuzzling her neck. "We'll have our little boy."

"Mmm, you're right. I can't wait to meet him."

"Me too."

The slider slowly began to open, and Will glanced back to see Hannah pushing at it. He had to stifle a laugh as she stood there in her bright pink bathing suit, with her huge white sunglasses on and a giant, floppy pink sunhat on top of her head, a beach towel clutched in her little hands.

"I'm ready!" she exclaimed, joining them on the deck.

"So you are," Will said, smiling broadly. "Let's go."

The three of them left the deck, and as they stepped onto the grass, Hannah walked between her parents, grasping one hand of each, laughing as they lifted and swung her. Elizabeth closed her eyes and smiled, briefly lifting her face toward the sun. Will turned to her at that exact moment, and was transfixed as he watched a look of complete, genuine happiness dance over her features. Unable to resist, he stopped their walk and pulled her gently to him with his free hand, reaching up to cup her cheek. They kissed softly for a long moment, until Elizabeth smiled against his mouth, feeling the impatient tugging of Hannah's hand in hers.

"C'mon mommy, c'mon daddy, stop kissin', let's go!" Hannah said, her excitement obvious. Her young cousins called out to her, and she let go of her parent's hands and raced ahead of them.

As he watched Hannah go, Will had a fleeting thought; _this is what life is all about, moments like this._ Elizabeth squeezed his hand tightly, smiling up at him, and they resumed their walk, strolling slowly together toward the beach to join their family.

* * *

><p><em>The writing within this story is the sole property of the author and any form of plagiarism (for profit or not for profit) will be treated as theft and will result in legal action. This story was written by Cat929 and posted at fanfiction-dot-net beginning March 2012. It has not been published as a book or ebook, nor is it meant for publication.<em>

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><p><em>So, there you have it. I'd love to know what you think, so if you have the time to leave a review, please do!<em>

_A huge 'thank you' to all of you who read along faithfully, angst-lovers and angst-weenies alike. Your support for this first-time author was and is greatly appreciated!__ Thanks, too, for indulging my love of music, and for believing that there could be a guitar-strumming Fitzwilliam Darcy with a romantic soul._

_Until next time!_

_Cat _


	61. Chapter 61

**8/1/15 - Just a note: Due to a surge in cases of story theft from fan fiction websites such as this, I will be pulling **_**'Dance the Tide'**_** and **_**'Sanctuary'**_** from this site on or around the first of September, 2015. My new story (currently being written), **_**'An Unexpected Harvest,'**_** will likely not be posted here, but you can find it and my other two stories at The Meryton Assembly, another fan fiction website that I feel is better protected and moderated (I am cat0967 there). Sadly, there are too many who are willing to take what isn't rightfully theirs and claim it as such. **

**That being said, the readers here have been wonderful, and I truly appreciate all of your support and encouragement over the past few years. Thank you.**


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